Theatre: Chamber performance of “Pleasantly Scary”

Chamber performance of Pleasantly Scary

Author: Yana Borisova
Cast: Stefan Valdobrev, Vladimir Penev, Radena Valkanova, Snejina Petrova & Vejen Velchovski

More about Pleasantly Scary:

“Pleasantly Scary is a public discussion about the intimacy and manifestations thereof in modern day life. The play marks the perishable, and as a result so necessary, moments of gentleness. This is the poetry of longing in a world which prioritises the exclusion of touch.

Pleasantly Scary is, at first glance, written contrary to all the familiar rules of dramaturgy – it seems that here there is no conflict, no plot, and consequently no development. It is almost missing a narrative. It is in fact a kind of observation or study of certain human states, for which it is normally very difficult to find a definition. When the plot is concealed, that which remains on the surface is language. Here, it is differentiated by its surgical precision. The scenes hold the organic feel of documentary records of conversations which have been eavesdropped upon. The secret of their musicality is in the recognisable intonations – these characters speak, feel and function just like us. They are one of us.

If we take a closer look, we will discover that the dialogues have been written like musical scores, with their own tempo, colour and density of sound. Their rhythm is so infectious, that gradually, whilst watching, it syncronises with the arrhythmic breathing of the audience, achieving a unified breath, a unified code of perception. This is text which causes the audience member to feel a part of the events with a kind of different, internal vision; to redefine their strategy in the way they are watching the play, in order to create their own reality, in which the characters can really be met.”

(Galin Stoev)