When we confuse the world of poetry with the real world, and when we have the feeling of losing ground under our feet, then we can be sure that we’re in a theatre. When it’s difficult to distinguish reality from a dream, then we can be sure that we’ve succumbed to its magic. Such a magical trance can happen to anyone – from a dreamy humanist to a meticulous data-focused mathematician, physicist, chemist or algorithm-oriented IT specialist, who decided to close a laptop for a moment. The play in which everything seems pretended, while actually being serious, is “Right you are! If you think so!”, which is directed by Gianluca Iumiento – as part of the international project “Including Minority” at the Polish Theatre in Wrocław – and inspired by the drama of Luigi Pirandello. Pretended – because it was born in the imagination of its creators, and serious – because it touches our everyday life and the matters that determine our lives. The war in Ukraine – to which there are many allusions in this play – is actually happening, however the director uses it only as a starting point for showing certain socio-political phenomena. The situations created by the director as surrounding elements of this armed conflict are fiction – the images that help to capture certain mechanisms, attitudes and behaviours. They constitute a type of targets used by the artists to reach the centre – the audience’s imagination and consciousness. The line between truth and fiction is quite conventional in the play of this Italian director, however fiction is not a lie in this case. As a result, “Right you are! If you think so” becomes an interesting story about the world surrounding us, and you need the talents of a psychologist, detective, IT specialist, journalist and politician to understand it, interpret it and untangle it.

After all, there are at least a few knots to untangle. Let’s just mention the strongest of them – the family one. Composition of this play provides a young man with the opportunity to go after the thread to the ball. It entangles him in certain stories, in which he has to find himself somehow and then decide, whether he wants to remain in them or to cease being a part of them. There’s no doubt that this is attractive as well as fascinating. Furthermore, this play poses great questions about the current social problems, as well as indicates dilemmas and in a certain sense shows the cyclicality of history, along with timeless lust for power, consequences of manipulation, effects of bad decisions and inconsistency of applied moral principles.

Furthermore, it’s important that it encourages people to reflect on our role in the masquerade of public life and on the sense of putting on masks – often against our will – which is a result of being forced to behave in a certain manner. Moreover, it’s pointless to look for a strictly moralising character in it.

This is a play about human passions, desires, weaknesses, dreams, loneliness and longing, while also being about deceit, fear, anxiety and our inclination to trick others… Furthermore, this play doesn’t end with the falling curtain. Absolutely not! There’s no doubt that it will become a starting point for the discussions on morality, the challenges of our modern world and the human condition… Thus, about ourselves.

Cast:
BOŻENA BARANOWSKA
BARTOSZ BUŁAWA
MARIAN CZERSKI
MILA DOROZHKO (guest appearance)
KRZYSZTOF FRANIECZEK
MACIEJ GISMAN
ANNA HABA
IGOR KOWALIK
KRZYSZTOF KULIŃSKI
ANDRIJ NAZARCZUK (guest appearance)
ERNEST NITA
AGATA OBŁĄKOWSKA-MAZURKIEWICZ

RIGHT YOU ARE! IF YOU THINK SO
text and direction Gianluca Iumiento

MAGDALENA RÓŻAŃSKA
DARIA SALNA (guest appearance)
AGATA SKOWROŃSKA
KLEMENTYNA UMER
ELIZA YAKUNINA (guest appearance)

Producers:
adaptation and drama supervision JACEK KADUCZAK
direction GIANLUCA IUMIENTO
stage design and costume design MARIANNA LISIECKA-SYSKA
music DAVID MAJEWSKI
stage movement ANNA GANCARZ
light direction JAKUB FRĄCZEK
video and camera operator MIKOŁAJ PŁYWACZ
photographs and poster designs TOMASZ KONIECZNY (poster with the character in a balaclava was created in cooperation with MARIANNA LISIECKA-SYSKA)
Suggested age range of audience for this play: 15+