PLACE: K. C. Norwid Theatre, Jelenia Góra

TYPE OF PROJECT: theatrical performance

FUNCTION: direction, costumes, lights

OTHER CREATORS:

Text and musical arrangement: Szymon Bogacz Dramaturgy: Zuzanna Bućko Video: Jaroslaw Jagodzinski Cast: Agata Grobel, Bogusław Kudłek, Robert Mania

PREMIERE: January 27, 2015

DESCRIPTION OF THE SHOW:

The year is 1943, World War II. Jan Karski once again makes his way to the West to England. In his mind he has plans for the underground state, thousands of instructions, war images from occupied Poland, but above all, the image of one, the most important, which he will never forget – the image of thousands of murdered Jews, whom he saw with his own eyes in the camp, in the ghetto. Karski doesn’t have to embellish anything, he simply tells it to Churchill, and other most important Allied politicians, and eventually gets it to US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Karski’s words are like the bible of the Holocaust, and everyone listens to the words, everyone believes them, and it is thanks to these words that the carpet bombing of Germany begins, forcing Hitler to let all the Jews go. It is thanks to Karski’s words that the Romanian Jews are redeemed, and the chain reaction set in motion changes the fate of the war, changes the political system in the world, introduces the beautiful order of world democracy. One dreads to think what would have happened if Karski had not succeeded. What could have happened to millions of people! It is better not to think about it. Better to believe in Karski – a great hero who managed to change the course of history. „Karski’s Untrue History” speaks precisely about this – what if. What shape would the modern world have today, how would the rescued Jews feel. Would they be happy? Or maybe the opposite? Maybe Karski should be held accountable for his actions – he violated the divine order, after all… „Karski’s Untrue History” – the truth and the almost-true truth are constantly mixed together.

EXCERPTS FROM REVIEWS:

(…)the creation of parallel worlds can become an efficient tool for diagnosis, prediction, highlighting, tracking, reminding. Karski’s Untrue History, directed by Julia Mark, is a great example of this (…) Karski’s Untrue History is a never-ending play with conventions and genres (…) Circus-acrobatic stunts, caught by a vigilant spotlight, are here adjacent to drastic descriptions of torture. Death is adjacent to laughter. Without any exaggeration, however. Just a deft balancing act on the border of the permissible.Henryk Mazurkiewicz
(…) „Karski’s Untrue Story,” directed by Julia Mark, is a profoundly moving variation on Jan Karski’s mission, but also a very personal voice in the discussion of the fundamental values of European civilization. (…)It is an exceedingly sad performance, full of nuances that easily escape memory under the strain of great reflections (…) Karski’s untrue story is an extraordinary performance; well acted and, above all, executed with verve and thoughtfulness. It is part of a new post-millennium chapter in the history of the Jelenia Góra theater, once so important on the theatrical map of Poland.Katarzyna Maćkała

FESTIVALS

Festival of New Theater in Rzeszow 2015

Divine Comedy in Krakow 2015

R@port Gdynia 2016

Theater Olympics Wrocław 2016

AWARDS

Final of the 21st National Competition for the Staging of Polish Contemporary Art

Award for directing „Silver Key” in the category of best theatrical performance 2015