Actors of SND Drama Stage Object to Statements by Culture Minister Simkovicova

Bratislava, September 20 (TASR) - Actors of the Slovak National Theatre's (SND) Drama Stage held a news conference on Friday to deny claims by Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova (SNS nominee), suggesting that the theatre must cancel performances due to theatre-unrelated activities of actors who "are the loudest" and support initiatives criticising the ministry's management. SND Drama Stage director Miriam Kicinova pointed to the fact that the minister's statements may not only stir the public's distrust vis-a-vis the theatre and its actors. "They may appear to be directly instigating against us, making an impression that we are not fulfilling our mission sufficiently. But we take our work seriously and responsibly," she said. Members of the SND Drama Stage ensemble then documented with data the number of performances that were played and cancelled during the past two seasons. Simkovicova at a news conference on Tuesday stated that those SND actors who have jobs outside SND have the closest relation to the Culture Ministry's critics and the Cultural Strike initiatives. According to her, a lot of theatre performances had to be cancelled, though tickets were sold out, only because these actors had activities outside the SND. The minister was referring to the information she obtained from the SND's temporary general director Zuzana Tapakova. ko/mcs