G. Dezorz: I FOUND OUT THAT YOU'RE ALIVE

(The comic was published by ej publishing)

One love. One city. One war that will put everything to the test.

The puppet play *I Found Out You’re Alive* is an adventurous love story set in Košice during World War II. In the present day, a young couple gradually uncovers this story: their conversations and curiosity open up the past and transform it into a personal experience. Before the audience’s eyes, a true story of love, courage, and acts that test one’s character comes to life—and shows how easily the world can turn into a mechanism of fear.

The production is based on a comic book by screenwriter Sona Balážová and artist Dávid Marcin, adapted from the novel by Košice native Oliver Rácz (1918–1997), a writer, educator, and translator. During the war, he helped several Jews from Košice, including his future wife. For saving human lives, he was awarded the title “Righteous Among the Nations” by Yad Vashem, the Israeli Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, on behalf of the State of Israel (decision made in 2019; presented posthumously in Slovakia in 2022).

The production poses uncomfortably relevant questions to the audience: Where does hatred originate? Why do people stand idly by and watch injustice in extreme situations? And what does it mean to remain human when silence becomes the norm? The production utilizes the principle of live puppet cinema, through which the story unfolds right before the audience’s eyes, with an emphasis on detail, emotion, and the contrast between the present and memory.

The creators’ aim is to convey the horrors of war in a way that is understandable even to today’s young audience, thereby reinforcing the values of a tolerant, open, and democratic society—with a clear rejection of extremism in any form.

We are also organizing discussions and educational activities for students and the public in conjunction with the production.

The production is intended for youth and adults (ages 11 and up).