Tehran theater to host “Fools”

TEHRAN –(Iranart)- Tehran’s Mehregan Theater will be playing host to theatergoers for a reading performance of American playwright Neil Simon’s comic fable “Fools” on Saturday.

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The reading performance will be directed by Raheleh Shamsabadi based on a Persian translation of the play by Shahram Zargar.

Ahmad Kheirabadi, Hamid Izadpanah, Maryam Alinia, Zahra Nazeri, Abolfazl Keivani, Hossein Qasempur, Amir-Hossein Sha’bani, Amir Arman, Ali Soheili and Miriam Zakeri are the members of the cast.

The story of the play is set in the small village of Kulyenchikov, Ukraine during the late 19th century. It follows Leon Steponovich Tolchinsky, a schoolteacher who takes a new job educating Sophia, the daughter of Dr. Zubritsky and his wife, Lenya. Leon soon learns that there is a curse on the village that makes everyone stupid, but complications ensue when Leon falls in love with his pupil.

The play, premiered on Broadway at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in 1981, allegedly was written as the result of an agreement Simon made with his wife during their divorce proceedings. She was promised the profits of his next play, so he attempted to write something that never would last on Broadway.

“Fools” was adapted as a stage musical in 1984 titled “The Curse of Kulyenchikov”, with book and music by Peter Melnick, lyrics by Pat Pattison and direction by Paul Warner. 

It ran from April to May 1984 at the Old Library at Leverett House, at Harvard University.

With the permission of Simon, the play was adapted into another musical in 1990, this time with the title “Kulyenchikov”. It was produced in San Jose, California in November of that year.

“Fools” has also been staged by several other Iranian directors, including Nader Naderpur, Hooman Rahnemun, Majid Behnamifar, Mohsen Sotudeh, Majid Kashiforushan, Faezeh Rastegar and Satia Nuruzi, at Tehran theaters over the past five years.

source: Tehran Times