Yvonne Frayssinet and Pilar Brescia return to the theater with “Radojka”, a play to laugh and think

The complicity that both transmit in each scene goes beyond fiction. Yvonne Frayssinet and Pilar Brescia They have a friendship that goes back to their beginnings on stage, in the seventies, when they were part of the Lima Theater Club. It was there that they shared the stage for the first time. A short time later, already as professionals, they came together in “Hallelujah, hallelujah”, a performance that opened the Marsano Theater in 1976 and made them two of the favorite actresses of the legendary Osvaldo Cattone. The last time they acted together was in 2016, in the successful revival of the Peruvian version of “Vagina Monologues.” Today, the actresses are preparing to captivate the public with the black and questioning humor of “Radojka”, a play written by Uruguayan playwrights and which has received praise both in their country of origin and in Argentina, Colombia, Chile and Spain. It opens, under the direction of Joaquín Vargas, on April 15 at the Nuevo Teatro Julieta.

During the last months of 2021, Yvonne and her daughter Lucía Oxenford traveled to Argentina. They took advantage of that stay to go to the theater, but by mistake they bought a ticket for a different play than the one they had planned. That play with a complicated name surprised them. “It was the premiere and the truth is that we liked “Radojka” and we laughed a lot. People stood up.”Yvonne says. It made such a good impression on them that they decided to form a production company to bring it to Peru., despite the adverse circumstances that the cultural industry is going through in the country. The commitment to “Radojka” -which in Serbian means joy- follows the story of Gloria and Lucía, who take care of the old woman who gives the piece its name. The different personalities of these middle-aged women, one submissive and the other dominant, will hit rock bottom when a fatal accident occurs. From that moment on, the hilarious situations and the radical decisions they make to keep their jobs will put their imagination to the test.

Regarding her experience with humor, Pilar comments that she always found it difficult to make intelligent comedies. “But this one,” she says. It is such an incredible work that it only remains to laugh. It’s almost like politics in our country, either you laugh or you cry at the absurdity of things. It is as blackly humorous as “Waiting for the float”, one of those kinds of works that talk about death so out of place that you end up laughing.”. Yvonne, for her part, assures that “it is about a simple work that does not give problems to understand it but that leaves you wondering how far we are capable of going and how much more the human being will continue to degenerate”.

For the actresses, this will be their reunion with the public in person. And although they are overflowing with enthusiasm, they are aware that culture is not a priority in the country. Pilar sums it up like this: “we fight for a room, because there are not many. We also don’t know how many people are willing to go to the theater and pay to see us.. An interview like this is still important to me. I feel that the theater I am doing is similar to that of before the pandemic and of yesteryear. This play preserves the essence of the theater where I grew up and learned for so many years.”

More information:

Place: New Juliet Theater. Direction: Porta Passage 132, Miraflores. Schedule: It opens on April 15. Goes Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 8 pm Tickets: Joinnus.