2016 Polish Theatre Season in China
In 2016 a Polish theatre season co-organised by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute’s Asia Programme was held in China. During seven months from April to November, 7 performances from Poland were presented to over 19,000 viewers.
The season opened with Album Karl Höcker directed by Paul Bargetto. The shaw was inspired by recently discovered photos taken by one of the commanders of the Auschwitz-Birenau concentration camp. The production of the Trans-Atlantyk Theatre was shown at Tianjin Grand Theatre and Harbin Grand Theatre.
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Shortly after, the same stages hosted the performance titled The Hideout directed by Paweł Passini. This intimate production of neTTheatre attracted the viewers’ attention with an unusual stage design created on the spot by Polish artists in collaboration with Chinese partners.
In May, the audiences in Tianjin and Harbin had the opportunity to see Heroes’ Square by Krystian Lupa. The show performed by the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre, just like Lupa’s Woodcutters staged in China in 2015, enjoyed great popularity with the local viewers.
In June, (A)Pollonia, the first production directed by Krzysztof Warlikowski to be brought to China, was shown in Tianjin and Harbin. The performance by the Nowy Theatre in Warsaw was acclaimed by Chinese critics and labeled the most important theatrical event of the year.
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Scena ze spektaklu "(A)pollonia", fot. Stefan Okołowicz / Teatr Nowy
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The Polish theatre season in Tianjin and Harbin closed with the presentation of TR Warszawa’s Martyrs directed by Grzegorz Jarzyna.
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However, it was not the last encounter with the Polish theatre in China in 2016: in the autumn two performances by the Stary Theatre from Kraków directed by Jan Klata were shown. In October, Enemy of the People, the director’s original interpretation of Ibsen’s drama, was presented at the Wuzhen Theatre Festival.
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In November, the audience at the Beijing People’s Theatre could see the same director’s King Lear, awarded in 2015 with the Golden Yorick – an annual prize awarded by the Theatrum Gedanense Foundation to the best Polish staging of the Shakespearean play in a theatre season.
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Scena ze spektaklu "Król Lear", reż. Jan Klata, fot. Magda Hueckel, archiwum Narodowego Starego Teatru
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Scena ze spektaklu "Król Lear", reż. Jan Klata, fot. Magda Hueckel, archiwum Narodowego Starego Teatru
During the 2016 Polish Theatre Season in China performances from Poland were presented a total of 32 times.
The event was held with the support of the Polish Institute in Beijing.
Sources: Culture.pl, own materials, originally written in Polish by ZG, 9 Jan 2017, translated by AW, 20 Jan 2017