„Who Wants To Be a Jew?” directed by Jacek Braciak at Comedy Carnival in Katowice

On 3 February, 2024 – the final weekend of the 17th edition of Comedy Carnival in Katowice, Powszechny Theatre in Łódź-Polish Comedy Centre presented the spectacle „Who Wants To Be a Jew?”. Last year we won the 16th edition of the festival with „I Wanted To Be”.  

„Who Wants To Be a Jew?” staged by Powszechny Theatre in Łódź and written by Marek Modzelewski was directed by Jacek Braciak (it was his debut as a director). The spectacle was applauded both by the audience and the critics. „It was a fantastic debut of Jacek Braciak as a director in Powszechny Theatre in Łódź. The actors play brilliantly: the do not defend their characters but they show them as people full of inconsistencies, because this is the way we really are”, Jacek Cieślak wrote in „Rzeczpospolita” daily. „Ewa Pilawska has succeeded in changing the theatre into a comedy house and showing all the possibilities of that genre that has been vilipended in Poland. <<Who Wants To Be a Jew?>> directed by Braciak fits into Pilawska’s foundations. First it gets a laugh, amuses with excellent dialogues, but causes subcutaneous concern from its first scene”, Jacek Wakar noticed in „Kraków i świat” monthly.                

This black comedy as interpreted by Braciak presents an intellectual family’s meeting which unexpectedly shows weaknesses, fears and past events. How would those educated people react when one of them announces he wants to convert to Judaism? The author puts a mirror in front of us and it very clearly reflects the picture of our society. - In his play Marek Modzelewski presents our inner provincialism in a very accurate manner while pointing out its different shades. In a false mirror he shows that a certain buffoonery ic characteristic for everybody, despite our social status –  Ewa Pilawska,  the Powszechny Theatre director, says. - In my opinion the play works on many different levels, while directing it I had to keep balance between serious and buffo, dignity and irony. Often you can talk about serious problems with the use of humour, detachment and joke – Jacek Braciak adds. 

The spectacle was presented in Katowice on 3 Fabruary. Soon you can see it in Łódź – we will present it on 23, 24 and 25 February on our Small Stage.

„Who Wants To Be a Jew?”
Written by Marek Modzelewski
Directed by Jacek Braciak
Stage design: Witek Stefaniak
Costumes: Ewa Helman-Szczerbic
Cast: Monika Kępka, Diana Krupa, Beata Ziejka, Marek Kasprzyk, Adam Marjański, Arkadiusz Wójcik