She didn't want to leave the apartment, but a man left thirty messages on her answering machine.

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Jon Lonoff's play Centiról centire is set in New York, as are many other successful one-act relationship dramas, but it's not about bickering spouses, nor is it just about the problems of the upper middle class. The main character, Maureen – played brilliantly by Virág Marjai – lives in the suburbs, is a dental assistant, and we don't get intellectual banter from her and the other characters, but a lovable story told with sarcastic, outspoken humor. We attended the premiere of the Rózsavölgyi Szalon.
 

Raise your hand if you haven't felt that for some reason (because you're old, fat, wrinkled, don't have a single rag, the list can be expanded as you like) you don't want to go out with people. After work, you'd rather stay home and order a pizza, maybe watch a TV series (the list can be continued here), but of course, without anyone coming to you (there wouldn't be room anyway because of the accumulated pizza boxes), and don't even call. Callers are deterred by an answering machine set with a catchy text: run away after the beep! 

Well, the main character of the show Centimeter by Centimeter , Maureen, is exactly like that.

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And is there someone in our environment who is seemingly fine, beautiful in appearance, confidently manages the family business, organizes everything for everyone, but their severe addiction hides an inner insecurity? Their compulsion may be related to their appearance (constant plastic surgery, dieting, excessive exercise, makeup), but it may also manifest itself in workaholic behavior – let's not talk about other substances now.

And this is Sheila.

Happy Dragon

What happens when the two characters are brought together, they become siblings in a play, and although they love each other very much, they could sometimes drown the other in a glass of water, despite the fact that the other means well but does not understand the emotion behind it. Maureen (Virag Marjai) orders food from the most varied places, such as Chinese from Boldog Sárkány, her fridge is full of peanut butter and tomato sauce (the latter can be used to top anything, pizza, bad mood, coconut pudding), and Sheila (Kata Dobó) tries to save her sister and put her on a diet while undergoing two plastic surgeries, 

not even realizing that if anyone needs saving, it's him.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that the two women have two men. To be precise, Maureen doesn't have one yet, she's with Joe (Steve Hajdu) before their first date, so they don't even know each other. Sheila's husband, Kyle (Áron Őze), is able to handle the wrinkle between the two sisters well, performing diplomatic duties here and there, where the house is on fire, but after a while he can't hide his weaknesses (which, as you've probably already guessed: are actually strengths). And he doesn't have to.

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Marjai Virág and Dobó Kata​​

Photo: Miklós Molnár

The prickly and the hysterical

It would be a sin to reduce Jon Lonoff's play Centimeter by Centimeter (which we saw in Judit Dávid's translation) to such simple messages as believing in ourselves, that we are good enough and lovable, that we don't need to constantly beat ourselves up or polish ourselves to perfection, hoping that we will be accepted better or not abandoned. We should also dare to accept and share our wounds, our shame, our vulnerability – of course only with a worthy friend, partner, or family member, but with them at all costs.

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So it doesn't hurt to keep these pieces of advice in mind over and over again - fortunately, you've heard them many times by now - but in this case, we'd rather emphasize that it's a hilarious comedy with a lovely story, lots of jokes, twists, funny and lovable characters, and comical situations.

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Marjai Virág Maureenja's stinging comments, Dobó Kata Sheila's hysterical outbursts hide her vulnerability,

 

besides the fact that they are both smart and beautiful. Although these are two women with different characters, we see pure comedians on stage, who deliver and deliver jokes in perfect rhythm, most of which were written for the play by playwright Ágnes Karácsony.

Beside them, the men, as they would do in real life, “vibrate” with them in a kind and subtle way: Hajdu Steve in the role of Joe is not at all loud, he doesn’t want to be funnier than everyone else, but he is kindly and gentle, perhaps too helpless for a restaurant owner. Áron Őze, who brings Kyle to life, is a true gentleman, while of course he is also kindly and gentle.

 

 

 

 

 

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Marjai Virág and Hajdu Steve

Photo: Miklós Molnár

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The characters' styles and mental makeup are perfectly reflected in the costumes by Fabióla Kiss: Virág Marjai is hotly beautiful, Kata Dobó is breathtakingly elegant, worthy of her successful lawyer husband, Kyle, who always wears a suit, while Joe is most authentic when he is soaked to the skin and even has a towel on his head.

Thirty messages

The entire performance takes place in a single room, Maureen's apartment, where the furnishings consist of a modernist armchair, a bookshelf and a – in a unique interpretation – home altar, and of course a refrigerator full of delicacies (set designer: Péter Enyvári). Maureen reluctantly lets Joe into this apartment, who is not deterred even by the blanket-style recorder from sending thirty messages, but the happy ending naturally unfolds only through many, many twists and turns. 

It becomes clear who is oppressed by what, who is carrying what burdens, and who really needs help (spoiler: everyone).

At the Rózsavölgyi Salon performance, the atmosphere of the performance also permeated the audience, women were talking in small groups, and the following dialogue was heard from one of the tables: “This play is about me.” To which the girlfriend said: “No, it’s more about me.” Well, that’s it. Everyone can find a connection to the play, and while laughing or on their way home, they will remember exactly the thoughts and “messages” that we wrote above.

Áron Őze didn't over-organize the performance, there are no unnecessary artifices in the hour and a half, it's as if we were really just peeking into a (suburban) New York home. From where the empty pizza boxes eventually emerge, foreshadowing the change that will also put Maureen's soul in order, inch by inch.
 

If you didn't know what to surprise your girlfriend with for Christmas, now you've found it.

(Cover photo: Áron Őze and Kata Dobó on December 10, 2024. Photo: Miklós Molnár)