One of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, directed by Jacques Lassalle, a legendary theatre director, and starring Andrzej Seweryn.
Dated 1603–1606, King Lear is considered one of the greatest ever written. It is based on the mythological King Leir of Britain, whose history can be found in a number of Celtic legends. King Lear has inspired a great many of theatrical productions and adaptations. One of the last century’s best known interpretations was the one by Peter Brook, made famous by its filmed version. King Lear was also the literary inspiration behind Ran, a seminal work of cinema directed by Akira Kurosawa.
The drama is a painful analysis of the frail nature of human dignity, lost in a world without God, where the boundaries between elevation and fall, reason and madness, order of chaos, are set by the flawed and the imperfect. By relinquishing his crown, Lear, a mighty ruler, gives away the sense of safety that his post guaranteed. All of a sudden, he must face himself and the world as a common man.
Jacques Lassalle (born 1936). Actor, theatre and opera director, playwright. In his youth, he was involved with Studio-Théâtre de Vitry. Director of Théâtre National of Strasbourg in 1983–1990. Author of many stage productions on Comédie-Française, of which he was administrative director from 1990 to 1993. In Poland, he directed classic works of European drama (Tartuffe, or The Impostor, La Fausse Suivante, or Le Fourbe Puni, Lorenzaccio) on the stage of the National Theatre. His productions include works by Molière, Shakespeare, Ibsen, Marivaux, Goldoni, Labiche and other playwrights. In Polish Theatre, he directed the play “School for Wives” starring Anna Cieślak, Andrzej Seweryn and Olgierd Łukasiewicz.
5, 6 December 2015 and 12, 13, 14 January 2016 at the Polish Theatre in Warsaw (Large Stage)
Running time: 3 hours 40 minutes (1 intermission)
