Festival of firsts ends with international flair

As the Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts comes to an end this week, we are given a… As the Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts comes to an end this week, we are given a taste of Eastern Europe with theatre companies from Russia and Poland.

“Pookh ‘ Prakh”

Wednesday: 8 p.m.

Thursday: 10 p.m.

Akhe Group, Russia

City Theatre Warehouse Space

Southside, 1313 Bingham St.

Student tickets $10 with ID

“White Cabin”

Friday: 7 p.m.

Saturday: 11 p.m.

Sunday: 5 p.m.

Akhe Group, Russia

City Theatre Warehouse Space

Southside, 1313 Bingham St.

Student tickets $10 with ID

The Akhe Group, formed in 1989, has become a cult legend in Russia. Also known as “Engineering Theatre Group,” they present innovative multimedia performances using light, sound, visual arts and clowns. Audiences will have five chances to see them in action this week. Their first show, “Pookh ‘ Prakh,” is silent. Through a series of small and incomplete episodes that use puppets, masks and role-playing, the group tells the tale of a lonely man and a lonely woman searching for love.

“White Cabin” explores the relationship between a performance and its audience.

Following the female protagonist, the audience is plunged into a world of absurdity and magic as she tries to answer such questions as whether or not a spectator’s presence can directly influence a performance.

“Magnetism of the Heart”

Thursday: 7 p.m.

Friday: 7 p.m.

Saturday: 7 p.m.

Sunday: 2 p.m.

Teatre Rozmaitosci, Poland

CAPA Mainstage

9th St. and Fort Duquesne Blvd.

Student tickets $10 with ID

Director Grzegorz Jarzyna has found critical acclaim in Eastern Europe for his success with Teatre Rozmaitosci (Theatre of Diversity). This week he and his company will present “Magnetism of the Heart.” As is his custom, Jarzyna presents the play under a different name, Sylwia Torsh (he uses a different alias for each production).

This piece is a reinterpretation of the Polish comedy of manners, “Maiden Vows” (1833) by Aleksander Fredro. In the original, two sisters, situated in a country manor, make a vow never to marry, and it is up to their suitors to convince them otherwise. Jarzyna/Torsh’s version of the genteel comedy plays with traditional theatrical conventions and presents a more sexually liberated version of the plot that is sure to wow audiences.