İNCİ TÜRKAY: “IT SHOWS HOW SMALL DETAILS CAN SHAPE OUR LIVES”
THE DECAY HIDDEN BENEATH SEEMINGLY PERFECT LIVES
İnci Türkay, best known for her role as Betüş in the TV series Sihirli Annem, staged the Türkiye premiere of her one-woman play Liste at Tatbikat Sahnesi in Ankara, following its debut in London. Based on a true story, the play traces how an ordinary mother’s daily to-do list spirals into a devastating moral reckoning after a tragic act of neglect.
Türkay said the play highlights the weight of seemingly minor details in everyday life. “We all appear to have perfect lives from the outside, especially with social media,” she said. “But the reality is very different. The decay beneath the surface, the inner struggles, are reflected powerfully in this play. It also captures the invisible burdens women carry, not only physical but mental.”
Reflecting on bringing the production to Ankara after its London premiere, Türkay said the moment carried personal significance. “Staging the Türkiye premiere in Ankara after London is a great source of pride for me. Ankara holds a very special place in my life. I graduated from the Ankara State Conservatory and studied theatre here. But Tatbikat Sahnesi is even more meaningful, because Elvin Beşikçioğlu and Erdal Beşikçioğlu are my classmates. Performing the Türkiye premiere on their stage makes it all the more special.”
“I FELT AS IF I HAD BEEN STRUCK”
Türkay described the script as deeply unsettling and said it left a strong impression on her when she first read it. “It’s a truly disruptive and surprising text. When I first read it, I felt as if I had been struck,” she said. The play, written by award-winning Canadian playwright Jennifer Tremblay, has received international acclaim and has been widely performed around the world, but is being staged in Türkiye for the first time.
A TRUE STORY
At the heart of the play is a mother struggling with her flaws, mistakes, and overwhelming responsibilities. Türkay said the project initially took shape as a women-led effort, reflecting the story’s focus on a female protagonist. “It’s about a very real mother, flawed, making mistakes, struggling alone and feeling overwhelmed. But it’s not just a story for women. It speaks to everyone. It’s entirely real, drawn from the writer’s own experience.”
SMALL DETAILS, BIG CONSEQUENCES
Türkay emphasized that the play explores how seemingly insignificant details can have far-reaching consequences. “It shows how the smallest things we overlook or postpone can lead to unexpected outcomes. Sometimes we go through so much in life that we forget how crucial those small details are. They can save lives, but they can also destroy them.”
A WORLD OF CONTRADICTIONS
She added that the play also reflects a broader contradiction of modern life: the gap between outward appearances and inner reality. “We all seem to have flawless lives from the outside, especially in the age of social media. But inside, it’s not like that at all. The decay and the underlying struggles are portrayed very clearly. It also reveals the invisible burdens women carry, both physical and mental.”
Türkay also highlighted the poetic nature of the script, describing it as both beautiful and demanding. “It’s written almost like poetry, which makes it incredibly challenging. As actors, we love improvisation, but in this play, that’s not really possible. The text has a rhythm and structure that must be preserved. That’s why I’ve fallen in love with it.”
A WOMEN-LED CREATIVE TEAM
Türkay noted that the creative team behind the production is largely made up of women from different artistic disciplines. The play is directed by Ayşegül Hardern, with lighting design by Ayşe Sedef Ayter. The French text was translated by Lal Atakay, while the stage design was created by Gülfem Özdoğan. Sound design is by Cem Tuncer, with video support and poster design by director Baran Gündüzalp.
