Family Tapes

The Malys family has consistently built up its position and accumulated wealth since the early 1990s. Today they can say that they have everything. Everything that can be bought.

The Malys go to the opening of the first individual exhibition of their son, Marcin, organized at the Malarnia Gallery in Poznań. Young and talented Marcin Małys, a graduate of Intermedia at the Poznań University of Arts and a promising name on the Polish visual arts scene, creates video works inspired by his own family history and childhood memories.

The success of the opening is put to the test when Marcin Małys decides to present a new video work in which he will reveal uncomfortable facts about the family home and thus force his parents, sister, partner and best friend to confront deeply hidden secrets and lies.

Do parents have to love their children? Do children need to love their parents? Where is the line between love and admiration? What are the limits of art? Is it possible to lose a multi-million dollar fortune in an hour and a half? Why is it so hard to be a good boy from a good house?

Adaptation: Piotr PacześniakVideo: Natan Berkowicz | Stanisław ZielińskiLight direction: Monika StolarskMusic: Kuba KaraśScenography and costumes: Łukasz MleczakinArtist: Magdalena Matusewicz

The power of the play is not the thread of the plot itself, but the realization of it — materializing under two characters; the scenography and the interpretation of the characters by the actors who play them.

Łukasz Mleczak, responsible for the scenography, realized the director's concept in a unique way. Crossing the doors of the Malarnia (one of the scenes in the Polish theatre in Poznań), we spectators cease to be spectators and become participants in the opening of Marcin Małys; the layout of the room is designed so that the boundary between the theatre and the actual art gallery is blurred as much as possible; the meticulousness and piety of the scenography does not allow us to think otherwise — walls and floor, artistic installations by Maciej or seating for spectators blending into the scenography, introduce us participants into a deep immersion that has me privately several times has led me astray — is that what I am in the world for sure is theatre? — I asked myself in my mind several times. The second component is the actors and their interpretation of the characters. The trio deserves special attention; Alona Szostak, in the role of mother, rises to the heights of acting madness. The extreme emotions that he brings out of himself are a veritable magic for the eyes and ears. Michał Kaleta, in the role of a father, proved more than once that his characters are alive, they are fully material; this is also the case in this case. Finally, I leave Daniela Namiotko, in the role of Martin, a role conducted in an interesting way; one can read the passions and dedication of the actor; sweat, tears and smile appeared alternately in a light and unforced way. (...) The Polish Theater in Poznań once again did not disappoint. The management is not afraid to bet on brave and extraordinary creators, and Pacześniak on the director's stool certainly confirms this. A bold art that touches on a universal theme — family, at the same time breaking with conventions; with the division of scene-audience or actor-spectator, it is a success. We need more such performances, it is they that introduce us to the deepest contemplation. The reverie that accompanies us, not for a fleeting moment after the thunderous applause or on the way home after them. The reverie that I am writing about here pokes, encourages reflection and influences our interior. In other words, it changes us for the better.

An ambiguous story about family relationships, full of strong, but very unobvious emotions, not giving easy answers and unambiguous assessments. Everyone gets a chance to defend their decisions here, even if they seem indefensible. The scenography turns the theater into an art gallery, and the opening of the exhibition, which takes place in it, turns into a psychodrama full of extreme events. The driving force behind this story is a powerful acting game, in many moments clearly, deliberately, exaggerated and redrawn, yet unquestionably moving.

There is no scene as such here. It is separated a little later, as if naturally, when the audience, encouraged to do so, occupies the seats gathered around the place, which then becomes the center of events. Spectators are participants of both the opening of the exhibition, which is a pretext for everything that will happen later, and observers of the incidents provoked by it. The organizers made sure that everyone could feel as if they were actually taking part in the vernissage. Video installations are placed near the walls, which are closely related to the main theme of the art. Even details such as wine for guests have been taken care of. There was no shortage of speeches either. The exhibition was commented on by the curator, the artist himself, and later his mother and father. The speeches of the latter aroused the most emotion, already pointing to certain clues as to the nature of the bonds between the members of the family and even the problems that the family faces, which come to the fore even in such special circumstances. After all, they should encourage common celebration rather than discord. But maybe it is this “holiness” that provokes to come out from under the carpet everything that was tried to sweep under it?

The National Competition for the Exhibition of Polish Contemporary Art aims to reward the most interesting repertory research in Polish theatre, to support domestic dramaturgy in its stage productions and to popularize Polish contemporary drama. The competition is organized by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Zbigniew Raszewski Theatre Institute in Warsaw.

In the first stage of the Competition, the performances are evaluated by the Artistic Committee composed of: Jacek Sieradzki (chairman), Dominik Gac, Piotr Hildt, Anna Jazgarska, Szymon Kazimierczak, Andrzej Lis, Wanda Świętkowska.