Stage adaptation by: Miklós Vecsei H., Róbert Vörös, Enikő Eszenyi
THE GREAT DICTATOR © Roy Export S.A.S. All Rights Reserved. Charlie ChaplinTM © Bubbles Incorporated SA 2018
3h with intermission 

Hynkel / the Barber: Attila Vidnyánszky Jr. 
Commander Schultz: József Wunderlich 
Herr Speis: Károly Hajduk 
Herr Hering: Béla Gados 
Hannah: Csenge Szilágyi 
Correspondent: Márk Ember 
Mr. Grűber: Sándor Lukács 
Mrs. Grűber: Éva Igó 
Napaloni: Dániel Király 
Mrs. Napaloni / Mrs. Schumacher: Zsuzsa Hullan 
Man with hat / Waiter / Slender waiter / Trumpetist: Áron Zoltán 
Spook / Wagner / Commander / Kibitzen: Zoltán Gyöngyösi 
Female secret agent: Andrea Waskovics 
Hilda: Enikő Dobó 
Grocer: Attila Viszt 
Captain K. / Tall guard: Zsombor Ertl 
English soldier / Patrol: Péter Reider 
Anna: Szonja Rudolf 
Nurse: Luca Márkus 
Nurser-maiden: Dorottya Antóci 

Also appearing: Gábor Ánosi, Barna Bálint, Szandra Bársony, Adél Forrás, Ádám Kolozsvári, Balázs Kóbor, Ádám Kurucz, Brigitta Tóth, Máté Tóth, Zsófia Safranka-Peti, Péter Viola, Orsolya Vitárius 

Musicians: Ádám Hlaszny, Kristóf Hosszú, Péter Gellért-Robinik, Roberta Izabella Kiss-Varga, Levente Kurucz, Dávid Mester, Gábor Rónai, Péter Tóth, Mátyás Standovár 

Directed by ENIKŐ ESZENYI 

Dramaturgy: Róbert Vörös 
Choreography: László Bóbis 
Set designer: Csaba Antal 
Costume design: Judit Pusztai 
Music: Adrián Kovács 
Head of music: Dávid Mester 
Scenist: Zoltán Juhász 
Lighting: Balázs Csontos 
Director’s assistants: Dániel Cseplye, Zoé Efstratiadu, Gergő Patkós 
Stage manager: László Balázs, Róbert Schmidt, Erik Wiesmeyer 
Prompter: Csilla Mészáros 
Costume manufacturer: Katalin Horváth 
Fighting scenes: László Balázs 
Stage movement: Edit Rujsz 
Acrobatics coach: Tibor Kőműves, Tünde Vincze 
Pyrotechnics: Ferenc Török 
Flying technique: Gábor Mihály

The Great Dictator, Charlie Chaplin’s most influential work, is a deeply humanistic piece of cinematic art. The ruthless sarcasm and ingenious clowning, which Chaplin uses as he plays both the little barber and the great dictator, relieved millions of their anxieties. His unforgettable accessories, the moustache, the shoes, and the bowler hat along with his gestures have all imprinted themselves onto our minds. 
The story takes place just before WW2, in a time when poverty and madness reached an unprecedented level. The faith in humanity and freedom had failed. It was on the advice of Hungarian born film director and producer Sándor Korda, that Chaplin started working on The Great Dictator. The film follows the development of Hitler’s Reich and the hardships the Jews had to endure, up until the occupation of Austria. 
Later in his life, Chaplin said: „Had I known the actual horrors of the German concentration camps, I could not have made The Great Dictator; I could not have made fun of the homicidal insanity of the Nazis.” 

Enikő Eszenyi is the first theatre director in Hungary to receive the license of the Chaplin family to stage The Great Dictator. 


“The Great Dictator clearly reflects the humanity and ingenuity of a supreme artist. The way he is translating Hitler’s personality into comic terms gives a great opportunity for a tour-de-force performance for the outstanding talented actors of our company. With a superb supporting cast, we felt that our company has the best moment to put this piece on stage, which has been a great dream of mine for a long time. Our company has a brilliant young actor, who has played the role of Hamlet also in my direction − Attila Vidnyánszky, Jr. − who has the physical, emotional, and artistic capacity to reformulate on stage the breathtaking and symbolic figure and acting of the genius Charlie Chaplin. 
As an actor and director, I feel a special personal resonance to this masterpiece in which Chaplin describes poverty, loneliness, hopelessness, and anti-Semitism with such a sensitive compassion. The piece gives a cutting caricature of insane ambition for political power, while it shows The Little Tramp, as touching, wily, and sane in a world of madness. 
In my staging, I would like to keep the density of jokes that Chaplin has designated as an important companion element of comedy while trying to cite his classic, eternal gags on the stage. 
This piece is an act of resistance through therapeutical laughter. Through our performance at Vígszínház – while being truly faithful to its core – I would like to reveal the full measure of the world’s grievous absurdity.”

Enikő Eszenyi