Ciutadella Theatre: Universal Humour Show

Since its premiere in 1993, the most popular text by playwright Francis Veber, «The idiots’ dinner», has become one of the most famous works of French theater with universal humor as its flag. Factor on which the success of a story is based that also gave very good results with the subsequent jump to the cinema, with an adaptation by Veber himself, and which gave rise to a remake in the United States. A performance that after thirty years is still present in many theaters, such as the Ukalari, in Menorca, where it will premiere this weekend with a double function: Saturday (8:30 p.m.) and Sunday (6:30 p.m.).

All that success story behind the work, which comes to the Island thanks to the company D9 Don Bosco Theater under the title “El sopar dels idiotes”, represents a small “handicap”, recognizes Miquel Pau Fullana, co-director and interpreter of one of the main roles, due to the high bar. “What I recommend is that the public come with new eyes,” he explains about what is undoubtedly the most important assembly that has been carried out in recent times.

It must be taken into account that this is a amateur company that took a break due to the pandemic but he returned strongly in 2024. Of course, he did not fail to fulfill his commitment when, in turn, he had to perform a local classic like “Foc i fum.” A montage that they faced precisely last June and that ultimately caused “El sopar dels idiotes” to move on the calendar until 2026. In the end, Fullana acknowledges, everything has worked out, since the premiere comes within the framework of the celebration of Saint John Bosco, patron saint of the Union of Salesian Alumni, an entity that houses the company.

The Menorcan version comes with a direct translation from Spanish. «We have barely fixed a little thing to adapt it a little more to our culture»explains Fullana, who shares the directing duties with Seto Boschwho also plays one of the leading roles. “The mess involved in the work is great, the text itself is comical and has the advantage for us that all the characters are very different from each other, something that we really like when working,” says Fullana a few days before the premiere.

They complete the artistic team of the assembly Pili Coll, Caterin Bonet, Pedro José Marqués, Fina Fernández, Bep Marqués and Claudio Vidal. In the technical part, complete the team Nina Moll and Judith Sintes as governors, Xavier Vinent is in charge of the sound, Pere Vinent is in charge of the sets and Edusound is in charge of the lighting. A group linked for years to this family of love for theater. In that sense, Fullana, with a long career in the world of dramatic art, remembers, as he usually does, his motto: “Without amateur theater, professional theater would not have been born.”

Ciutadella will see the premiere of a production that they have been working on for the last few months, but the tour of the work will be longer, visiting other stages on the Island. In fact, they have already closed the tour. On the 11th April they will be in Ferreriesthe next day they will do a performance in Es Mercadal and on May 16 They will, for the moment, perform one last performance in the theater of the Orpheon Mahonès.