Fosforlu Cevriye Buluşması: Büyükçekmece’de Sahneye Taşınan İstanbul Ritmi

İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi Şehir Tiyatroları stage productions draw attention with their memorable stories, music, and set designs. Now, Fosforlu Cevriye, adapted from Suat Derviş’s immortal novel and brought to the stage by Gülriz Sururi, welcomes the Büyükçekmece audience. Under the direction of Yelda Baskın, the play premiered on 16 December 2025, Tuesday, at 20:00 in the Bedia Muvahhit Show Hall of the Büyükçekmece Atatürk Cultural Center.

Set against the nostalgic İstanbul of the 1930s and 40s, the production captures the social texture, sorrows, and joys of the era with a captivating atmosphere. The narrative centers on women, children, and youth struggling on the city’s backstreets, conveyed through powerful storytelling, resonant music, and a striking stage design that left a lasting impression on Büyükçekmece audiences.

FOSFORLU CEVRİYE (16+) tells of Cevriye, a girl who grows up in the shadows of the sea and in the Galata district, believing she was born from starlight because she never knew her parents. To feed herself, she turns to “icra-i sanat” in the streets. She is not just any streetchild; she embodies the very essence of Istanbul’s sidewalks. On a night when illness and cold edge toward death, an enigmatic Man appears and revives her life with a touch of fate, infusing her with a new devotion. The Man, in turn, speaks to her as “you” and reveals himself as a concealed executioner. Since meeting him, Cevriye transforms into a different kind of person, ready to endure imprisonment, exile, and endless trials for love.

Across the play, the Istanbul of the 1930s-40s is vividly depicted through the experiences of women, mothers, and children living under authority’s gaze in the city’s alleyways, jails, and slums. Suat Derviş, after returning to Turkey in the early 1960s, faced professional and financial difficulties. He proposed adapting Fosforlu Cevriye into a musical, but initial publishers rejected it. Consecutive discussions led to a pivotal collaboration with the young actress Gülriz Sururi, who also dreamed of staging the production at the City Theatres. This collaboration culminated in a work that remains dear to the hearts of Suat Derviş, Reşat Fuat Baraner, Nazım Hikmet, and Gülriz Sururi.

In the play, the cast includes Ayşe Günyüz Demirci, Besim Demirkıran, Binnur Özpınar, Direnç Dedeoğlu, Çağatay Palabıyık, Elif Verit, Emre Yılmaz, Esra Ede, Hakan Örge, Irmak Örnek, Nur Saçbüker Otan, Samet Silme, Tuğrul Arsever, Yağmur Damcıoğlu Namak, Yunus Erman Çağlar, and Zeynep Ceren Gedikali. Enjoy the show!