Bela Bartok and the Story of the Prince Carved in Wood

The fame of the little mice, Sică and Rică, the ones that lived alternately along the greatest musicians of all times, while they were still kids – in Vivaldi’s violin, in Bach’s organ, in Mozart’s library, under Chopin’s piano, in Enescu’s country house –, got to little Bartok’s knowledge. He wanted to meet the two mice so he invited them to his house. Sică and Rică, along with Lola the Cat, arrive in a culturally new, strange environment, which they try to understand. They learn a few words in Hungarian; they play some games with Bela and his friend, Ioșka the Macedonian; they listen very heedful to the stories about gathering information about folklore with a wonder-instrument named phonograph and they get the chance to play some folk instrument they never seen before: the Jew’s harp or the alphorn. Bela also tells them about how he writes music inspired by the purest source – the folk music, the Hungarian one especially, alongside the Czech, Slovenian, Italian, Polish, Croatian and Romanian songs. Raluca the Pianist and Monica the Violinist play fragments from the series of piano pieces For Children and the Five Romanian Dances.

They all feel amazing together but the visit must come to an end. Before going back to Bucharest Sică, Rică and Lola help Bela to present the Story of the Prince Carved in Wood before the kids in the audience, a ballet inspired by a fairytale. It tells the story of a prince who felt in love with a princess but an evil spirit tried to stop him get close to his beloved. But it all ends well, as it always happens. In the end, Bela Bartok the Hungarian composer and his artists – Sică, Rică, Lola, Ioșka, the Storyteller, Raluca and Monica – await the round of applause from the enthusiastic audience.

Cristina Sârbu

Performance duration: 1h