Famous actor Ercan Özdal: 'The stage is a proving ground!'

Theatre, cinema, and TV series actor Ercan Özdal gave important messages on March 27 World Theatre Day. Making demands regarding theatres, famous actor Özdal stated, "We demand that taxes on theatres be abolished and that venues be increased."

The famous actor answered the questions as follows:

Do you have a message for World Theatre Day?

"As the founders and managers of Feyk Sahne, we created a venue out of almost nothing. We set out based on Muhsin Ertuğrul's words, 'If you knew the world would end tomorrow, I would open a theatre today.' Here is to many more March 27ths! We demand that taxes on theatres be abolished and that venues be increased. We hope to see more friends who are passionate about theatre following in our footsteps and whom we have trained.

What would you like to say about the impact and future of theatre in our country?

Acting, in terms of artistic infrastructure and depth, passes through the theatre stage. It is easy to become famous in front of the camera. Especially now that we live in the age of social media. Becoming famous is very easy. Acting has been divided into very different classes. Acting fields like TikTok acting have developed. But the essence of this craft passes through the stage. The stage is a proving ground. Greetings to those who do this work as an art and elevate its value!

Local elections are coming up. So, do municipalities support theatre?

Regardless of whether they are right-wing or left-wing, municipalities prioritize those with crony relationships. However, we think it would be more appropriate for cultural departments to work more comprehensively, reach out to quality teams and people who do their jobs properly and are experts in their field, and work with them. We demand that future municipalities be more selective and support theatres in need of support.

Finally, do you have a striking message?

Long live theatre, long live art!"