Maryam Kazemi: The Important thing is the event and relationships in the drama.

 

Iran Theater-The Miser (French: L'Avare is a five-act comedy in prose by the French playwright Molière. It was first performed on September 9, 1668, in the theatre of the Palais-Royal in Paris. The Miser is attractive due to its Interesting structure. The miser of the title is called Harpagon, a name adapted from the Latin harpago, meaning a hook or grappling iron. He is obsessed with the wealth he has amassed and always ready to save expenses. Now a widower, he has a son, Cléante, and a daughter, Élise. Although he is over sixty, he is attempting to arrange a marriage between himself and an attractive young woman, MarianeIt should be noted that Harpagon is one of the coolest and most comic characters in the world of play. Mayam kazemi has been directed children’s and youth play. She studied Acting and directing in Tehran University . She began her professional career in the nineties. Like a smile, an empty space of the sea, and God created love, Torandokht are  among the most important works of Kazemi's career. She is a member of “Theater Mostaghel”Group. The Miser directed by Maryam Jazemi is the latest production of the Theater Mostaghel Group. The Miser, Comedy Musical, had been on stage at Tehran Theater  Complex during  The  36^th Fajr International Theater Fest. Maryam kazemi talked to Iran Theater about her latest experience.

 

In The Miser ,  She used the melodies of the familiar Iranian  theme and the Show has an Iranian  touch .Was it not possible to use this method for storytelling and character names?

Kazemi replied: This was a question for many people, and I have to say that this is my personal taste for directing a comedy with the right and good structure on stage. Two years ago, I  directed  The Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare with this metod, using Iranian melodies and I did not want to have an entire Iranian structure, and my approach was to combine the Iranian and foreign atmospher. This play is based on a Commedia dell'arte and has similarities to the original Persian plays, so the use of popular melodies grabs the audience attentions. It seems to me that there was no difference that, for example, we replaced the name of  Harpagon to  Asghar Agha. The Important is the event and relationships in the drama.

The Miser deals with human issues such as hatred, love, and so on. Is the secret of the success of this play to address these human themes that have existed in most of the performances of The Miser?

She thought:” Yes, these are the eternal themes for classical analysis of the Miser, and in thematic evaluation of the plays, they have set limitations that are used in the drama and play analysis courses  in the universities. But the truth is that the live show is not about these things; the existence, capacity, and emotional and social mood of the period in which the show is being performed is very important. But in general, topics that relate to human behavior and mood, and story based on human weaknesses, may never be obsolete unless there is no other human being on Earth. For humans, there will be weaknesses, strengths, love, friendship,  and basic needs.”