What always involves the writer is the use of words that make the desired emotional load as deep and complete as possible

A written conversation with Jalal Tehrani. About the performance of "Two Clowns and a Half"^[1]

In "Two Clowns and Half" people speak in a monotonous and emotionless tone; What is the reason for anger and how often this tone takes on the color of feeling?

They are not supposed to be angry, either. It is supposed to be an expression of anger. Well, this is a difficult task for an actor. You may have caught them off-guard in some places. It may be lost sometimes. Theater is a living phenomenon, and any of these is possible.

The presence of actors who are not stars and don’t create any background in the audience's mind so that a major part of the audience’s mind is involved in the actor's name and fame Is one of the strengths of your work what was the reason for this choice of yours? Was it voluntary or forced?

My decision was to stage a play with Maktab Tehran student. In the theater, choices are always limited. One of the most difficult tasks in the theater is choosing an actor. But being forced to do something does not exist in the sense you say.

Using the repetition of a piece of music in harmony with the atmosphere of the work and emphasizing its notes is a very novel thing, at least in our theater, and it is an emphasis on the audience to listen only to the music; But why a foreign music, the use of which will lead to copyright issues and so on? And for a work that is original from the text to the performance?

Yes, this project was made in Iran from scratch, but it takes place in a Christian and non-Iranian atmosphere. The night of Christmas. This feature has left my hands open in choosing music. We do not have a copyright issue here. At least three times my works have been used in the cinema without my name being mentioned. What I observed in this regard, and I think it was sufficient, was to mention the name of the song, its producer and singer both in the brochure and in the performance. You will see the track name four times during the performance. In addition, this song is even more famous in Iran than Kafr Iblis.

What is the reason for the repeated and sometimes emphasized use of certain words, such as son of a bitch? If we are going to say that people are obscene, are these words that people really use for obscenity in today's world? If the censor does not allow us to say a word like mother**** in full, is it correct to step into a category that is bounded in our art? A red line? Of course, for now!

The things that you said aren’t red lines at all. What always involves the writer is the use of words that make the desired emotional load as deep and complete as possible. Rest assured, if I had a more suitable word for these, I would definitely prefer it.

The dialogues are extremely simple, but in their simplicity, when they are put together, they refer to a deep meaning and reveal the insides of people with biting and bitter humor; But despite the time that is very suitable for a modern theater and a more suitable rhythm, in some scenes, the dialogues in completely intelligent mise-en-scène are shot so machine-gun-like towards the mind of the audience that they kill the audience on the spot, and sometimes this continuous shooting with incomplete strokes, disturbs the rhythm; What is the reason? Text? Performance? Or ...? Do you agree with this opinion?

Of course, I agree with you. I think it is more related to the implementation. Not to all performances. Some performances lose tempo in some scenes. For the actors, the ideal is that the tempo remains stable and if it changes, this change is calculated. Well, sometimes it doesn't happen. We are human beings, after all. Sometimes it can't. Sometimes it doesn't happen.

[1] Artena press, 2014