Photo Coverage: Inside Opening Night at La Mama's TRASH CUISINE
By: Walter McBride May. 01, 2015
Belarus Free Theatre -- the internationally-acclaimed troupe said by Sir Tom Stoppard to "defy gravity" -- returns to New York with the U.S. premiere of TRASH CUISINE at La MaMa's Ellen Stewart Theatre (66 E. 4 St.) in Manhattan. This NY presentation of TRASH CUISINE is produced by La MaMa, and is a continued collaboration with The Public Theater in support of Belarus Free Theatre.
A series of post-show talk backs and performances will be held in conjunction with TRASH CUISINE. Scheduled April 25-May 17, TRASH CUISINE will perform Mondays through Saturdays at 7 pm and Sundays at 4 pm with the following exceptions: no performances May 2-5 and May 11.
Founded in 2005 under Europe's last surviving dictatorship, Belarus Free Theatre continues to make some of the world's most provocative theatre even though it is legally banned from performing in Belarus by the repressive regime. Over the past decade, political circumstances have forced the company of actors and directors to live apart: several members, under threat of arrest in their homeland, live in exile in London and create work with fellow company members in Belarus via Skype. Belarus Free Theatre have performed in more than 42 countries across the world, and have been critically and publically acclaimed.
TRASH CUISINE draws on the works of Shakespeare, who often referenced capital punishment, and blends in elements of various national cuisines in order to emphasize local flavors of violence. The production was one of the breakout hits at the 2013 Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a subsequent sold-out performance at the Young Vic in London where was described by the Daily Telegraph as, "an urgent and unforgettable experience". The London premiere was accompanied by the launch of the Give A Body Back campaign, supported by Jude Law amongst notable others, to raise awareness of the fact that the bodies of executed people in Belarus are not returned to their families, making it absolutely impossible for them to grieve properly. In any other country in Europe, this disregard for humanity and perpetuation of pain and violence would be considered an appalling human rights violation.
Photo Credit: Walter McBride
Theatre Marquee
~ Theatre Arrivals ~
~ The Curtain Call ~
Stage & Set
The Cast
The Cast
The Cast
The Cast
The Cast
The Cast
~The After Party~
Natali Kaliada
Linda Emond and Natalia Kaliada
Linda Emond, Nicolai Khalezin, Natalia Kaliada and Casey LaBow
Nicolai Khalezin and Natalia Kaliada
Nicolai Khalezin and Olympia Dukakis
Natalia Kaliada
Oskar Eustis and Natalia Kaliada
Oskar Eustis and Natalia Kaliada
Oskar Eustis and Natalia Kaliada
Oskar Eustis and Natalia Kaliada
Oskar Eustis and Natalia Kaliada
cast members
Director/playwright Nicolai Khalezin and cast
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