In Péter Halász's play, She Who Once Was The Helmet-Maker's Beautiful
Wife, we can get an insight into a world so ruthless that it is almost
ridiculous. Those who know the works of Péter Halász, the
Hungarian-born actor, director and the founder of the Squat and Love
Theatres, would expect him to do bizarre, perfectly visualised and
structured performances. But never did he form his Ð often very cruel Ð
visions into such an affectionate understanding as in this play. Péter
Halász shows us touching memories of his grandmother, played by
himself. The old lady's one leg is shorter than the other, she lives
like a petrified Methuselah in this malevolent world that conspired to
strike her down, tumble down on her and torture her, while she recalls
her life. All these take place in a little, messy bedroom from which
she shouts, cursing and quarrelling, to her grandson, Péter...
The Grandmother's memories are told in the sometimes ghostly voice of a
smart, young woman. The story of the young woman is told by a little
girl who does not realise the tragic decline of the family and the
whole world. ... In our times only a few theatre-makers are able to
evoke so simple images, and to manipulate them with such magic.
(The New York Times, June 18, 1992)
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