The novel Trainspotting based in Edinburgh, became known worldwide because of the film made in 1996. This is due to the fact that British black comedy has used a completely new visual scene in which it portrays the hallucinations of heroin addict youngsters from their own perspective, following all their junkie visions. Few people know, but the theatrical adaptation came earlier than the filmmaking itself. At the Thalia Theater in Budapest, the work was staged by Csaba Horváth with whom we created the scenery together. For the director who is mostly known in the physical theater genre, every part of the scenery became a central element of the work which is dynamized by the play of the characters. The play with four actors is a chamber piece that gives an abstract presentation of the struggles of young people who are unable to quit drug addiction in a depressing, tight space. The piece bounces between two dimensions, according to the actors' state of mind: the frustrating gray world of sobriety is depicted by run-down corrugated walls, while the ground loss and heightened perception of the shots are evident in the soft sponge scenery and vibrant colors. The use of lights also helps to visualize the muted perception of the characters, because while in soberity the illumination of the scenery is monochrome, the full range of colors only opens after the effect of the drug. This effect builds on the phenomenon in which, under the influence of addiction things really lose their meaning and can only become meaningful and exciting again from substance use. The Edinburgh scene, the city-specific brick architecture is evoked by a sponge wall that can be broken down into its elements, which actually crumbles down at the of the play to gain symbolic meaning. 

location
Budapest, Hungary
Thália Theatre

Phase
Completed, 2019

director

Csaba Horváth

scope
Stage design

project TEAM
Kristóf Kiss-Benedek
Zoltán Kalászi

PHOTOGRAPHY
András Zombori
Zsolt Puskel