Pieces of a Woman
'The performance exceptionally effectively transcends dramatic conventions thanks to masterful performances by the actors' - Libération
A feminist family drama set in present day Warsaw, powered by the strength and determination of female characters. A family get-together shows, as if through a lens, the problems and internal conflicts of Polish society.
Run time 150 minutes
Genre Theatre
Language Polish
Surtitles Dutch and English
Please note This performance contains strobing effects.
Pieces of a Woman
The protagonist of the play, 30-year-old Maja struggles with a personal tragedy. In order to get back on track, she must question her old life and rebuild from scratch the relationships with her family. “Pieces of a Woman” is an evocative picture of modern women who fight for the right to decide about their own life. Kornél Mundruczó – director, and Kata Weber – author of the script, portrait each character with great empathy – they don’t judge or criticize any of the characters gathered around the family table. The performance employs cinematographic means of expression and captivates the viewers with intimate narrative, the realism of the details and tenderness of the actor’s creations. “Pieces of a Woman” is a second, after “The Bat” (premiere 2012, prod. TR Warszawa), Kornél Mundruczó’s play produced in Poland. Both performances have gained recognition of Polish and international audiences.
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Pieces of a Woman (Polish title: Cząstki kobiety), written by Kata Wéber and directed by Hungarian theatre and film director Kornél Mundruczó, recently received international recognition in its film version (available on Netflix). However, the cinematic language, the close-ups, the realism of details were already part of the performance that was made for TR Warszawa in Poland well before the film and was repeatedly honoured with prestigious awards (such as the Swinarski Award, the most important award for theatre directors in Poland). The performance toured successfully at Festival Avignon, RomaEuropa and the Athens & Epidaurus Festival, among others.
REVIEWS
Libération
'The performance exceptionally effectively transcends dramatic conventions thanks to masterful performances by the actors, who (…) artfully bring their characters to life even if their lines are limited to small talk – which, by the way, makes the reception of a show in Polish with French surtitles quite manageable. (…) The Avignon audience fell in love with this Polish play from 2018.'
Le Monde
'The most beautiful part in Pieces of a Woman is the young mother, who decides to experience her loss in a way that she finds fit, without any denial or pretense. This grief belongs to her; Maja doesn’t want to benefit from it in any way. The actress who plays this young woman is absolutely brilliant. Justyna Wasilewska, full of grace and internal strength, is the driver of the entire performance.'
Director
Kornél Mundruczó
“The path taken by Maja is the everywoman’s path. Maya experiences what all women experience when their longings are squashed. The are crushed by pain untill the time when they can unfurl and re-open, ready for a life of greater awareness, depth and, of course, joy. The combination of feminine relationships shown in our play is authentic. It contains love, rage, disappointment and healing, associated today with intimacy.”
Credits
Direction Kornél Mundruczó
Text, adaptation Kata Wéber
Cast Dobromir Dymecki, Monika Frajczyk, Magdalena Kuta, Sebastian Pawlak, Julia Wyszyńska, Justyna Wasilewska, Izabella Dudziak
Assistant playwright Soma Boronkay
Set design, costumes Monika Pormale
Music Asher Goldschmidt
Lighting director Paulina Góral
Camera and sound on stage Łukasz Jara , Łukasz Winkowski
Assistant director Karolina Gębska
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Stage manager Katarzyna Gawryś-Rodriguez
Simultaneous, written translation Dr Patrycja Paszt
Text translation Jolanta Jarmołowicz
Set designer assistant, production manager Karolina Pająk
Costume designer assistant Małgorzata Nowakowska
Production TR Warszawa
Partner of the performance Magyar Kulturális Intézet Varsó
Premiere 13-12-2018