My friend Nora has wanted to see Mikve at the Vigszinhaz (Pesti Szinhaz stage) for some time, but tickets proved impossible to obtain. Luckily Julcsi was able to help out, 3rd row center - thanks Julcsi! Indeed the place was packed. The Galron Hadar 2004 drama centers around the Jewish ritual bath called a mikveh. I have never known about this side of Judaism, and the portrayal of the customs and gender relationships within the faith came as a shock to me. Once a month, the women must cleanse both their bodies and souls before being permitted to re-enter the marital bed. A very serious play about religion, gender issues, family issues and domestic battery of women, the play also had a number of funny scenes. The set design was simple but very effective. Whereas the screechy singing was just annoying, the live cello music assisted in setting the tone for different scenes.

The play centered on Vera Pap's Shoshana and Eniko Eszenyi's (director of the Vigszinhaz) Shira, who were excellent. However, the rest of the cast also turned in brilliant supporting performances. Patricia Kovacs as Miki and Enikő Börcsök az Esti added some nice comic moments, while Kata Peter was the perfect hysterical woman. In truth, they

were all outstanding, and it was a superb performance. If you can get tickets, it is playing a number of times in January.

Cast:
SHOSHANA - Vera Pap
SHIRA - Enikő Eszenyi
ESTI - Enikő Börcsök
HINDI - Éva Igó
CHEDVA - Barbara Hegyi
TEHILA - Kata Péter
MIKI - Patrícia Kovács
ELISHEVA- Angéla Stefanovics