Reviews

Szydłowski and his team believe in theatre, in the fact that art can expose mechanisms. They show that the city of Kars is in each of us. Not only the poet Ka is one of us, but also everyone around him: a bunch of cynics, terrorists, degenerate artists and fraudsters. We don't play for one goal at all. The goal has been dismantled, we only have a pitch. We kick (each other).

Łukasz Maciejewski, Teatr

Śnieg proves that it is possible to stage a beautiful, poetic performance about the here and now without falling into (usually unbearable) journalism. After all, the director uses Pamuk’s tale about Turkey from 20 years ago to create a poignant picture of our world. Yes, this performance simply hurts.

Rafał Turowski, rafalturow.ski

About Śnieg (Snow)

Bartosz Szydłowski reads Orhan Pamuk's great novel through fundamentalisms swelling in the modern world, ideological wars leading directly to bloodshed, and finally, an oppressive religious order leading to the exclusion and elimination of those who do not want to adapt. Poet Ka returns after several years in the West, to his hometown of Kars. Officially, due to his mother's funeral; unofficially, because he is engrossed in a series of suicides of young girls. So he starts an informal investigation. A snowstorm cuts the city off from the outside world. The revolution is about to begin...

From an in-depth reading of the novel by the Turkish Nobel Prize winner, but also from the director's previous experience, a powerful but unhurried stage production is born, saturated with subconscious anxiety, a feeling of doom, and melancholy.

Credits

Based on a novel by Orhan Pamuk

Director: Bartosz Szydłowski

Adaptation/Dramaturgy: Mateusz Pakuła

Cast: Anna Paruszyńska-Czacka, Aleksandra Przybył, Marta Zięba, Paweł Charyton, Juliusz Chrząstowski, Szymon Czacki, Daniel Dobosz, Dominik Stroka, Artur Święs, Andrzej Szeremeta, Jerzy Trela (in the video)

Choreography: Dominika Knapik

Music: Dominik Strycharski

Set Design/Costumes: Małgorzata Szydłowska

Lighting Design: Marcin Chlanda

Video: Maciej Szczęśniak, Przemysław Czepurko

Film Realization: Przemysław Fik

Camera Operators: Jacek Martini-Kielan, Aleksander Trafas

Stage Manager: Katarzyna Białooka

Chinese Script Translation: Adam Mickiewicz Institute

Production: Łaźnia Nowa Theater, Divine Comedy International Theatre Festival

Co-production: Gdańsk Shakespeare Theater / Solidarity of Arts, STUDIO theatregallery, Teatr Śląski im. Stanisław Wyspiański in Katowice

Based on the novel Snow by Orhan Pamuk (original title: Kar) translated by Anna Polat, published by Wydawnictwo Literackie in Kraków.

Copyright © 2002, Iletisim Yayincilik A.S

All rights reserved.

This Project was supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and the Polish Institute–Culture Service of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Beijing. The project would like to express its special thanks to Iwona Rogacka-Hu for her assistance.

Co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland.

About Bartosz Szydłowski

Bartosz Szydłowski is the General and Artistic Director of the Łaźnia Nowa Theater, theatre director, creator of over thirty productions. Co-founder of Łaźnia Theater, an independent scene in Kraków’s Kazimierz district (1996), which has been operating in Nowa Huta since 2005 as Łaźnia Nowa. In 2008, he created his own formula for the Divine Comedy International Theatre Festival, which became the most important theatrical event in Poland. His projects have a wide social function, aimed at the social revitalization and transformation of Nowa Huta. One of the hallmarks of his work is his own style of working with professional and amateur actors. He often refers to inspiration from both literature and film.

About Łaźnia Nowa Theater

The Łaźnia Nowa Theater has been operating in Nowa Huta since 2005 as the Cultural Institution of the City of Krakow. In the post-industrial space of the former workshop halls of the Mechanical School Complex, Bartosz Szydłowski and Małgorzata Szydłowska created a common place for artists and residents of the district. During the eighteen years of its existence, Łaźnia Nowa has developed a solid brand on the Polish theatre market and produced over a hundred productions. One of her flagship projects is the Divine Comedy International Theatre Festival, which has become the most important theatrical event in Poland. Determination and unwavering faith in the creative power of the people helped the theatre to gain loyal viewers. They also allow it to look boldly into the future.