Winter's
Tale directed
by
Marcin Hycnar
National Theater
in Warsaw
“Shakespeare puts us right in the middle of a sick mind,” says the director. "And, like Hitchcock, it starts with an explosion and then the tension builds."
The theme of time, passing, but also the rebirth of the world (after winter always comes spring) is inscribed in the Czech part, in which Perdita, the exiled daughter, in the scene of greeting at the sheep shearing festival, directly refers to the myth of Demeter and Kora. He is a figure of return. And the story of her mother Hermione becomes a sign of her return to earth from the world of the dead. This is the part where the world is born again, coming from darkness, from the abyss, from Hades. Time is a very important character. I think that Shakespeare made a great surprise, also for his contemporaries, by introducing the personification of Time on the stage, which says: “And now, ladies and gentlemen, 16 years have passed. We are in a completely different place and someone else will be the hero of this part." And deal with it. Look at how much repentance, which we would like so much, is real, how much redemption is possible.
Shakespeare throws us right in the middle of a sick mind. And, like Hitchcock, it starts with an explosion and then the tension builds. At the beginning, a detail, a small, unhealthy thought, and in a moment the whole world is turned upside down. It is very interesting, although difficult for the actors. We agreed to prepare a modern fairy tale - with the benefit of all Shakespeare's improbabilities. We go over them on a daily basis. After all, theater is a kind of delusion, an agreement, a creation and at the same time the essence - a kind of squeezing a lemon to the end. We also emphasize the fairy-tale character in the visual layer, in the montage of the scenes of the performance, which in some parts is dreamlike, as if from the borderline of a nightmare and reality. Besides, I think Leontes's obsession and madness is by all means contemporary. The feeling of envy is timeless. Such a destructive mechanism can always be activated in a human being.
"The opportunity to create an elements of magical mapping/animation in theatrical scenery was an amazing experience for us visually.
The whole atmosphere of energy that the theater carries emotionally released in us unbelievable layers of creativity in this production - which is best seen in the final scenes of the scenes with the tunnel.
We are extremely grateful to the director and all the actors, technical crews and all employees of the
National Theater in Warsaw - working with you was pure magic.".
Tving Stage Design
Premiere May 20, 2017
Author William Shakespeare
Title A Winter's Tale
Original title The Winter's Tale
Translator Piotr Kamiński
Directed by Marcin Hycnar
scenography and costumes Martyna Kander
music and arrangement Urszula Borkowska
music Michał Lamża
stage movement Maćko Prusak
lighting direction Maciej Igielski
video projections Tomasz Gawroński
