Review: DO PENGUINS HAVE KNEES? at Jerzy Szaniawski Dramatyczny Theater in Walbrzych

The newest premiere in Walbrzych is a blast, they made us use to a great level of cultural experience whether we are talking about serious pieces or funny ones. And again this show is hard to classify clearly. In general, it’s funny but with some occasionally unexpected slaps. You will love every minute of it.

The room is small, and the stage is very close and well, this is the reason the piece is so direct. We start from the end and forward action we come back to the first scene. The director, Aneta Groszynska, well known in Walbrzych, presents us with another point of view on the reality in which we all immerse ourselves directly or not: psychotherapy. Graszynska's approach is innovative because we can see the world from the perspective of a psychologist. Have you ever wondered how they (don't) stay sane after listening and being involved in all the craziness around them?

To whom to turn if not to the source of psychotherapy... We are therefore witnessing a hilarious dialogue between a neurotic psychologist (amazing Piotr Mokrzycki) and Sigmund Freud (fantastic Rafał Kosowski). It turns out that the grandfather of psychoanalysis has apparently gotten lost in all the mess we've witnessed in recent years. It takes a lot of courage and self-awareness to step back and assume, in all vulnerability, that the modern world is not helping to keep the balance. For what it's worth, there's no judgment in this show, neither the patients nor the help provider signed up for it, so all they do is look for a safe space and a frustratingly free space.

All the other actors play multiple roles, they jump in and out and it all happens so fast. Kinga Zygmunt, Dorota Furmaniuk, Irena Sierakowska, Piotr Czarniecki, and Wojciech Swiesciak provide us with a lot of fun and artistic workshop. All the action is so high-energy it's hard to catch your breath at times, but hey, you're watching "normal" modern life. At one point we have the impression that the actors are not acting, they are real people who surround us on a daily basis. All the references you find here are (at some point) near you. War, pandemic, inflation, the dominance of one sex or another, global warming, ridiculous television shows that have nothing to do with real life, business, the frustration of those who want more, power, everything is there. You see how ridiculously absurd this is and you laugh as if you realize this is the best medicine for this illness.

And they know how to make you laugh, there are lots of details, gestures, and even simple looks (Dorota Furmaniuk has mastered it) that are funny to the core. The cat's soup, the waving penguin, the child's race to the best school, thanks to these elements, the action flies like a gentle butterfly, and we all know how difficult it is to create this kind of light impression. There is no grotesqueness, no exaggeration, no big voices and postures, and yet the spectacle is big.

For its closeness, laughter, and telling a story about ourselves with great respect for what we are going through, this show deserves a big applause. Still, what a shame there's no resolution, no solution to this crazy puzzle, but then again, maybe it's a laugh?

Marcin Kacki's text is well written and presents with journalistic precision what the struggle to be alive in 2023 in Poland is like. It's wise but not moralizing. It's great that in the theater we can reach young modern texts and they are so good. A big plus for a beautiful scenography (Michal Korchowiec) which changed and adopted as a self-adjusting glove.

It was the 400th premiere at the Walbrzych Theater and there was a celebration for the occasion. It is a great pleasure to be part of the milestones in this warm atmosphere of the building where you feel comfortable. All the best for the next 4000!

Photo: Tobiasz Papuczys

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