photographer：© Magdalena Hueckel

Reviews

The show has a power of restoring energy within the spectators, which many of us are lacking in these times of general anaesthesia.

Georges Banu, Theatre Critic, France

We Are Leaving is quite a surprising comeback for Warlikowski. Those expecting another "grand" spectacle and a skilfully created dramatic mosaic to decipher may be surprised. Instead of a meaning-heavy narrative, he has created a story about a small, narrow life with the semblance of movement.

Marcelina Obarska, Polish Theatre Critic and Artist

About We Are Leaving

Once, Krum returned to his homeland after an unsuccessful expedition abroad, full of hope for fulfillment. Now, everyone is packing up. This great world migration of peoples in Levin's text finds its local face and local scale, reflecting all the anxieties and movements taking place in the macro scale.

In Comedy with Eight Funerals of the play's subtitle, the journey most often leads to the other side. Despite this one-way ticket, the desire for the journey does not diminish. Is it really true that life is elsewhere? Or maybe it is better and smarter for us to focus on building a community? Is it time for romantic gestures or maybe for grassroots work for the common good?

Cast

Performers:

Agata Buzek, Andrzej Chyra, Magdalena Cielecka, Ewa Dałkowska, Bartosz Gelner, Maciej Gąsiu Gośniowski, Małgorzata Hajewska-Krzysztofik, Jadwiga Jankowska-Cieślak, Wojciech Kalarus, Marek Kalita, Dorota Kolak, Rafał Maćkowiak, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Monika Niemczyk, Maja Ostaszewska, Jaśmina Polak, Piotr Polak, Jacek Poniedziałek, Magdalena Popławska

About Krzysztof Warlikowski

Krzysztof Warlikowski, born in Poland in 1962, is one of Europe's most prominent theatre and opera directors, and the founder and artistic director of Nowy Teatr. In collaboration with scenic designer Małgorzata Szczęśniak, Warlikowski creates outstanding theatrical images. Through his work process, he leads his actors to reach the deepest layers of their creativity. He has created a new way of staging Shakespeare, and his body of work contains subversive interpretations of Greek tragedies. But he is also well known for his staging of modern authors.

About the Boska Komedia (Divine Comedy International Theatre Festival)

Created in 2008, the Divine Comedy International Theatre Festival ("Boska Komedia") has rapidly established itself as one of the leading events in Poland’s cultural calendar. In Krakow, Poland's third largest city, the festival is held every year in mid-December, organised by the Krakow Festival Office and the Łaźnia Nowa Theatre. Named for Dante's Divine Comedy, and like that work, the plays at the festival are in three parts: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso.

The Inferno (Hell) segment of the festival features productions of the most controversial and critically acclaimed Polish plays of the year. Purgatorio includes new productions of established plays from Poland or elsewhere, and Paradiso hands the reigns to young and undiscovered directors and actors.

About Nowy Teatr

The Nowy Teatr grew out of the work of Krzysztof Warlikowski, who opened up the dramatic art in a radical way to socially meaningful, often controversial, thematic and formal experiments on Polish and foreign plays. They motivate their audiences by presenting challenging themes that challenge the existing order, and encourage critical thinking. They strive to produce shows for all age groups. They produce and promote Polish theatre internationally, creating a venue for dialogue and collaboration, a new and free artistic environment for invited artists. Their theatre is a place where art expands the battlefield, raising bold questions about the natural and human conditions and communities in the making.