Lambalo and Qasha

Language: Georgian

 

Duration: 120 minutes

 

Author: Mikheil Javakhishvili / Tamaz Goderdzishvili

 

Director: Dimitri Khvtisiashvili

 

Choreographer: Gia Margania

 

Set Designer: Lomgul Murusidze

 

Artist: Zurab Gagloshvili

 

Assistant Director: Inga Kachakhidze

 

Main Cast: Nika Faikridzе, Nika Khrikuli, Davit Khakhidze, Davit Rostomashvili

 

Also Starring: Giorgi Kachakhidze, Kakha Choladze, Vamekh Jangidze, Pavle Nozadze, Tamar Mamulashvili, Vakhtang Nozadze, Nika Chkadua, Aleksandre Sharabidze, Giorgi Okruashvili, Giorgi Shavgulidze, Rati Goguadze, Laliko Gherkenashvili

 

A stage adaptation by Tamaz Goderdzishvili based on the famous short story by Mikheil Javakhishvili.

 

Mikheil Javakhishvili wrote the story “Lambalo and Kasha” in 1925. The narrative is told in the first person by a Georgian Red Cross doctor, who is sent to the shores of Lake Urmia during the war.

 

The story takes place during World War I in already weakened Persia, which is forced to appease both Russia and England in order to survive. The Russian Empire openly asserts its claims over the territory and attempts to strengthen its influence militarily, socially, and religiously.

 

The story vividly portrays chaos, spiritual degradation, and the fracturing of society, all of which accompany every war. Against this backdrop, the friendship between the Georgian doctor and a young Muslim, Georgian tolerance, and the intervention of Russia as a foreign and oppressive force stand out emotionally, alongside themes of historical and political past.

 

The setting — the Urmia region — resembles a Tower of Babel, where people of different religions and ethnicities intermingle, reflected also in the characters’ diverse speech patterns.

 

In the story, good and evil are embodied in the young Muslim Mashadi Hasan (nicknamed Lambalo) and the cunning, deceitful Assyrian Orthodox Kasha Lazare.

 

Recommended age: 14+