The Juliusz Słowacki Theatre in Kraków is showing the play “1989”. Co-produced with the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, the musical tells the story of the Solidarity movement – from the strikes and August Agreements of 1980 to the partially free elections of 1989.

The creators of the play intend to show the fall of communism from a new perspective. In the play, great history is intertwined with life decisions, and events known from textbooks and newsreels will appear on stage seen through the eyes of three couples – the Frasyniuks, the Walesa’s and the Kurońs.

“This performance the a strong storyline. We follow the fates of the three couples and several supporting characters, we observe their political choices, their decision to join the resistance movement, we observe the price they paid for it”, says Marcin Napiórkowski, the originator and one of the authors of the script.

The libretto of the musical is based on the most important facts from the history of Solidarity, including the strikes of 1980, the August Agreements, martial law, persecution, arrests and imprisonment of members of the Solidarity Trade Union, the internment of Wałęsa and women leaders of Solidarity, as well as Danuta Wałęsa receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, talks in Magdalenka between the communist authorities and leaders of the Solidarity Trade Union, the Round Table and parliamentary elections in 1989.

The performance is inspired by the structure of the musical “Hamilton” about one of the founding fathers of the United States, Alexander Hamilton. Like in the American piece, the music that dominates ‘1989’ is hip hop and rap with elements of pop and soul music.

The actors of the J. Slowacki Theatre in Krakow do well in the rhythmic, melorecited phrases and excel (supported by professional dancers) in the sequences of the broadly defined street dance with a particular emphasis on hip hop. As a result, the performance has a youthful energy, at the level of movement and words, and is communicative for teenagers.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński