First preview of „Family” – online for the spectators in the whole Poland

On Friday 18 December Powszechny Theatre in Łódź premiered „Family” by Antoni Słonimski. It was the online presentation and its director, Wojciech Malajkat, said it was “a spectacle for 12 voices with a smile in the background”. – This spectacle officially ended the 26^th edition of International Festival of Plays Pleasant and Unpleasant – Ewa Pilawska, the Powszechny Theatre director said.   

-In March epidemic of COVID-19 unexpectedly wrote a new scenario for the 26^th edition of International Festival of Plays Pleasant and Unpleasant. Though we managed to present almost all performances that had been planned, we did not show the last three of them. Therefore we had to change our plans – on 18 December we finished this Festival’s edition by presenting „Family” by Antoni Słonimski, directed by Wojciech Malajkat. Due to the epidemic and the break in the continuity of the Festival we decided not to have the Audience Plebiscite – says Ewa Pilawska, the Festival’s artistic director.

„Family” is a shrewd, intelligent portrait of the Poles. We could add that Słonimski was a visionary – the play which he wrote in 1933 is universal and it has not gone old. I am very glad that Wojciech Malajkat accepted the offer to direct it – Ewa Pilawska adds.

I would like this spectacle to take part in a discussion. The times are hard and our opinions clash in high temperature. „Family” by Słonimski tries to smooth the tensions. It looks at the situation from a distance and questions the sense of our disputes. Do we really have to identify ourselves as patriots or nationalists? – Wojciech Malajkat underlines. – Our opinion and definitions have been in a total mess. We would like to set it in order with this spectacle. I would be an ultra optimist if I believed a theatre spectacle can change reality. But I am sure „Family” will put many important questions that can play some part in the change – the director adds.

Antoni Słonimski
„Family”
Direction, adaptation, music arrangement: Wojciech Malajkat
Set design and costumes: Wojciech Stefaniak
Cast: Małgorzata Goździk, Marta Jarczewska, Karolina Krawczyńska, Barbara Szcześniak, Marek Kasprzyk/Artur Majewski, Jakub Kotyński, Michał Lacheta, Jakub Kryształ/Kamil Suszczyk, Paweł Okoński/ Adam Marjański, Jan Wojciech Poradowski, Arkadiusz Wójcik, Artur Zawadzki