Several plays by Nikołaj Chalezin - Belorussian playwright and head of “Free Theater”- feature historical characters who had a dominant role in their country’s strife for freedom. Drawing on the examples of two “political” plays - The Jeans Generation and To Be HeroldPinter - the article is an attempt to illustrate how the national heroes were portrayed and what meaning it holds in the context of the anti-totalitarian resistance. By introducing historical figures into his works, Chalez in depicts certain parallels to the current state of affairs in Belarus. In doing so, he creates a specific type of drama - a reportage, which at the same time becomes a certain manifesto, addressed not only to his compatriots, but also to the entire world.
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