December 11th, Wednesday, - the sixth day of the Divine Comedy Festival in Kraków

The sixth day of the theater carnival, there are only four days left until the end of the festival. Perhaps it is the last chance to experience the best performances of the past season from theaters outside of Kraków. At the theatre of Juliusz Słowacki, the MOS stage hosted another showing of “Antigone in Molenbeek”, directed by Anna Smolar. An hour later, audience gathered at the Jerzy Trela stage for “Work On It!” directed by Tomasz Cymerman. In the evening, participants could choose between watching two different shows. „Rewizor”, directed by Łukasz Kos at the Nowa Huta Cultural Center, and „Polowanie na osy. Historia na śmierć i życie", directed by Natalia Korczakowska at Łaźnia Nowa Theatre. The show named „Persona. Ciało Bożeny”  directed by Jędrzej Piaskowski  concluded the whole day at the National Old Theatre.

A modern version of an ancient tragedy

Due to logistical reasons, I was only able to see two performances: „Antigone in Molenbeek” in the afternoon and „Persona. Ciało Bożeny” in the evening. Rushing toward the dressing room after the performance of Antigone in Molenbeek, one of the woman from audience loudly shouted to her friend: „I love Anna Smolar!” It's hard to top such an enthusiastic review. The performance is indeed , as one critic wrote - a small masterpiece. Cameral, using modest scenographic means. It lasts less than an hour, so it doesn't suffer from a lack of editing, which would benefit several other overly long performances. The lead role is a showcase of masterful acting. Marianna Linde, along with Maniucha Bikont, delivered outstanding performances. Does the contemporary rendition of an ancient tragedy leave an impression on the audience? It doesn't leave anyone indifferent. For me, to put it colloquially, it „I got blow in the head” I felt a sense of psychological discomfort. The director achieved her intended effect. Do I feel sorry for Nouria, a Belgian law student of Arab origin and the sister of a terrorist who cannot bury her brother's remains? Do I share the Belgian legal order? Who do I identify with, who do I sympathize with in this tragedy? What would I do in her place? What about the judge? These are the questions that each viewer must ask themselves  and the answers won’t be easy.

Should we always forgive everything?

“Persona. Ciało Bożeny” is fortunately a lighter in tone, lyrical and funny performance by the duo Jędrzej Piaskowski and Hubert Sulima. After the performance, the creators said that the inspiration for their work was, among others, the book “Radical Forgiveness” by Colin Tipping. “We want to talk about something that is still a very important and necessary thing in Poland - about forgiveness. This is a show about exploring new,  unfamiliar perspectives” - said director Jędrzej Piaskowski. And what and who don’t we have here: Donald Tusk mourning the dying Jarosław Kaczyński, victims of World War II forgiving and reconciling with Hitler, a prominent director named Krystian shouting when his artistic monologue is interrupted, Bożenka, a person of the people. Katowice versus Sosnowiec. A true combo, an explosive mix, and a rollercoaster.

This is not a play for everyone. If someone likes this kind of approach - sometimes humorous, sometimes mocking—they will be satisfied. Townspeople aesthetes and rural purists (or perhaps the reverse) might feel a bit offended. A group of actors in the audience had a great laugh.

In Krakow, a similar in aesthetic theatrical path was pioneered a few years ago at the Stary Theatre by the duo Monika Strzępka and Paweł Demirski.

There will probably be no protests with rosaries.

Grzegorz Nurek

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Photo by Klaudyna Schubert