TEHRAN- Sahne-ye Abi Cultural and Artistic Center in Tehran will be playing host to a reading performance of the 1956 play “The Visit” written by the Swiss dramatist Friedrich Durrenmatt on February 7. 

The performance will be directed by Ali Khamr with a cast composed of Zahra Bahrami, Yasna Pourali, Ailin Ahadpour, Yazdan Jalali, Mostafa Taheri and Taha Yarian. 

“The Visit” was translated into Persian by the celebrated director Hamid Samandarian, who also staged the play several times between 1972 and 2008.

The play is a darkly satirical play that explores themes of vengeance, morality, and the corrupting influence of money. The story unfolds in the economically depressed town of Güllen, which eagerly anticipates the arrival of the wealthy billionaire Claire Zachanassian, a former resident. The townspeople hope her fortune will revitalize their struggling community. Alfred Ill, the town's store owner and Claire's former lover, is tasked with persuading her to contribute to the town.

Upon Claire's arrival, she makes a shocking announcement—the promise of a billion francs as a donation, to be divided between the town and its families. However, her generosity comes with a sinister condition: she demands the death of Alfred Ill, who had previously betrayed her during a paternity suit that led to her social disgrace and exile. The revelation leaves the townspeople aghast, initially appalled at the idea of murder.

As the story progresses, the townspeople's morals begin to erode under the weight of Claire's offer. Alfred, once the most respected man in Güllen, begins to experience paranoia as he notices the townsfolk indulging in expensive purchases on credit, signaling their willingness to embrace Claire’s dark conditions. He seeks help from the local authorities and the priest, only to find that they, too, have financially succumbed to Claire's influence. The townspeople encourage Alfred to remain, pretending nothing is wrong while secretly plotting against him.

Despite his initial desire to escape, Alfred decides against fleeing after witnessing the community's increasing complicity in their moral decay. He collapses under the pressure, recognizing that he is trapped in a web of guilt and responsibility for Claire’s rage. Claire’s marriage to another man exacerbates the situation, as the town becomes increasingly desperate for Claire’s financial salvation.

The tension culminates at a town meeting where the inhabitants vote unanimously to accept Claire’s donation, effectively sealing Alfred’s fate. They choose wealth over principles, locking the doors and dimming the lights. In a harrowing twist, they forcibly kill Alfred, this act of violence framed as a tragic necessity. Even in death, Alfred's demise is misrepresented to the press as an accidental heart attack. Claire leaves Güllen, fulfilled and empowered, carrying Alfred’s body away while the townspeople revel in their newfound wealth. The play serves as a powerful commentary on human ethics, the price of greed, and the dark side of social dynamics when faced with financial desperation.

Durrenmatt (1921-1990) was a Swiss author and dramatist. He was a proponent of epic theater whose plays reflected the recent experiences of World War II. The politically active author's work included avant-garde dramas, philosophical crime novels, and macabre satire. 

Like the German expatriate writer Bertolt Brecht, Durrenmatt explored the dramatic possibilities of epic theater. Next to Brecht, he has been called its “most original theorist”.

Durrenmatt, who was educated in Zürich and Bern, became a full-time writer in 1947. His technique was clearly influenced by Brecht, as in the use of parables and of actors who step out of their roles to act as narrators. Durrenmatt’s vision of the world as essentially absurd gave a comic flavor to his plays. Writing on the theater in “Problems of the Theatre” (1955), he described the primary conflict in his tragicomedies as humanity’s comic attempts to escape from the tragic fate inherent in the human condition.

SAB/