Discovering oneself through theatre: a journey on the land of Aphrodite
photo taken by: https://www.instagram.com/floresmiart/
In mid-February, I arrived at ETFI in Brussels. I had finished my MA in Creative Management In New Media at the Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School, and before that, I had also completed the Organisation Of Film And Television Production, all of which happened as part of Individual Interdisciplinary Studies, so I was always hooked on other subjects during my education. I worked for a while in Warsaw in the “industry”, but felt that it was still too soon for me to settle down permanently and enter the production race.
In ETFI I met my mentor Helen Ibra who suggested I take part in the Theatre in Palm programme. I used to want to be an actress, but a few years ago I gave up that dream for film, so it was quite a challenge for me to step into the role of an actress. We wanted the idea for the play to come out of me, my thoughts and experiences. We created the play all together i.e. myself along, interns Laura Filipović, Solynn Marchand and our mentors Helen Ibra and Margarita Bouchler. At first the idea came from sung poetry, which I still knew from Poland. I am very fond of Zbigniew Herbert’s poem “Two Drops”, which is the story of inseparable love.
Photos courtesy of Marco Merzi
Then we thought about what we could do with it next. We came up with ideas on how to show love, the need for love, loneliness, all kinds of current artificial intelligence and technology, which, although it sometimes helps in long-distance relationships, is also often the reason for our loneliness. I was greatly helped in the text by Helen, who buckled the text together and made it multi-layered dramatically. I very much appreciate the presence of Margarita, who taught me to understand my character and it was through her that I was able to really feel the Postwoman. Stanislavski’s method walked with me step by step, helping me understand the character. Thaer– a gifted musician played my accompaniment and helped me believe in myself as a singer. The rehearsals together were amazing moments that I will definitely remember for a long time with a smile on my lips. Everyone was very supportive of me.
The fact that I was able to stand on stage in Cyprus during “Roots and Routes” is very important to me, because it shows that life is not always based on setting radical boundaries and dealing with only one thing. It really is possible to be interdisciplinary in life and enjoy many passions. Being in Cyprus and seeing so many people who love art and theatre was in a way my return to my roots, why I started to be interested in art in the first place even before I started my education at university.
Finally, we have created a metaphysical figure of the Postwoman, who knows neither time nor place, but instead knows that she is waiting for the letters that she needs to send so that love can continue. The fact that my audience wrote letters was very touching and remarkable- now we need to devise a plan on what to do to make these letters go further into the world.
Weronika Mikuła (ETFI)
