National Theatre Bucharest - "Ion Caramitru" Hall

July 8, 2025, at 20:00

Under various titles, the play “The Blacksmiths” by Milos Nikolic has been part of the repertoire of several theaters in the country, as well as abroad. The director of the show, Horațiu Mălăele, seems to be “in love” with this play in which he also plays the lead role. 

The original text by playwright Milos Nikolic, born in Kosovo in 1939, tells the story of a German blacksmith who, after a long time, discovers that his son is the child of a Romanian. Horațiu Mălăele adapts the subject so that blacksmith Grigorie is a Romanian who finds out that his son is the child of Hungarian Peter, who learns that his own son has the Russian Ivan as father, and Ivan finds that his son belongs to,,, Grigorie! This genetic muddle is the consequence of war since all the men, professionally blacksmiths, were also soldiers at the front. The underlying theme of the play generously suggests the consequences of war and the false trumpeting of nationalism, which has become a “doctrine” for some current European parties. The comedy is skillfully written by Milos Nikolic and creates humor from the misfortunes of the three men of different nationalities who discover that their sons are genetically, in fact, of another nationality. 

However, adapting by changing the nationalities of some characters is fragile. The wives are represented in the text only by Matilda, the Romanian Grigorie’s wife, who argues that women did not cheat on their husbands; they just wanted the blacksmith trade to have descendants. Matilda's argument is conceived on the historical background that after farmers and shepherds, blacksmiths serve as one of the oldest professions recorded even in the Bible. These remain the basic professions of simple people. In today's world, however, Matilda's desire to perpetuate the trade fails because their sons, as their fathers say, are no longer blacksmiths; they have chosen other professions. Horațiu Mălăele's adaptation uses the translation signed by Veronica Lăzăreanu, rich in trivial accents.

         Scene designer Maria Miu, who has illustrated this play at another theater as well, with her recognized talent, builds a blacksmith shop on stage in detail through specific objects of the profession, complemented by those from the households of simple people. The set is enchanting and designed functionally for diversifying the stage movement. Director Horațiu Mălăele humorously develops the story of the three men, being proficient in the realm of comedy. The performance lasts an hour and ten minutes, of which five minutes are consumed at the beginning of the performance through Grigorie's search around the blacksmith shop with a lantern, in the dark, looking for “something”; however, these absurd searches do not find a solid purpose in the subsequent action.

 The four actors remarkably fulfill their roles. Maia Morgenstern as Matilda, Grigorie's wife, delivers an excellent performance. The actress develops with inner conviction Matilda's struggle to clarify to her husband that she did not cheat on him during the four years he was on the front in Russia, completed with the emotion of reuniting with Peter. Once again, Maia Morgenstern proves to be an actress of rare complexity and can credibly approach both the comic and the dramatic genres. 

Horațiu Mălăele nuancedly constructs the character of Grigorie, a simple man trying to unravel the complexities brought by Peter's arrival in his family. The actor treats the situation dramatically, and evidently, the result is comedic. With a timid Hungarian accent in his speech, George Mihăiță presents Peter as he intensely lives the emotion of reuniting with Matilda, but also the complicated situation of the revelations. The intervention of Ivan at the end, expertly portrayed by Valentin Teodosiu, through his demeanor and the management of relationships with those he encounters, is commendable. The four actors commendably convey the story of the capable blacksmiths, simple men whom war has left with... traces, just like many other simple people living today in a different, confused world.

         “The Blacksmiths” provides an opportunity for comedy to the audience, which should then also ponder when it boasts that it has its origin in...   the Dacians and Romans. The performance remains merely a successful exercise in amusement...

 Cast:  Horațiu Mălăele , Maia Morgenstern, George Mihăiță