Theaterstück nach Motiven von Maxim Gorkis »Nachtasyl«

People behind glass. Looking into the kitchen, dining room, living room, bedroom and fitness area. Both a kind of »reality show« for the audience, and at the same time a glance at different inside worlds. The actors use their own names and rehearsals are shown on video. On the stage, they demonstrate a refined acting combination of banality and artistic license. »Tālāk« (»Forwards«) is the diagnosis of a society that is becoming increasingly totalitarian and manipulative. »The man – how proud it sounds« (Maxim Gorki) – a mixture of hopes, threats and dreams.

For Alvis Hermanis, the piece »Night Asylum« by Maxim Gorki (1868-1936) – premièred in Moscow in 1902 – represents a kind of musical score, from which part of the text and certainly the spirit is lifted into the production. Hermanis takes the title that was later changed by Gorki to »Scenes from the Deep« to a symbolic »Forwards« and demonstrates the possibility of maintaining a deep humanism alongside scepticism and social criticism.

Alvis Hermanis, born in Riga in 1965, trained as an actor at the Latvian conservatoire in his hometown. He started directing even at drama school. Since 1993, he has been the Artistic director of the New Theatre in Riga, with over 20 productions to his name. His best works include »Revidents«, (»The Inspector General«) by Nicolai Gogol, »Stāsts par Kasparu Hauzeru« (»The story about Kaspar Hauser«, both 2002), and »Garā Dzīve« (»The Long Life«, 2003). The New Theatre in Riga is a repertory theatre in the centre of the city, captivating audiences with modern performances, rich in vitality and social responsibility.

»With ›Tālāk‹, Alvis Hermanis has opened a door to developing the theatre further, and he will continue to do so … « (Gerd Klee, Wiesbadener Kurier, 26.06.2004).