“The Builders” | Performance with translation into Polish Sign Language

Meet the “Builders” who lived and worked in our region. A religious healer from Dorposz Szlachecki, the director of a cultural center in Gostycyn, the wife of the village administrator from Mała Klonia, and the housekeeper of Father Lewańczyk from Łobdowo. There was also Mrs. Zosia from the Rural Housewives’ Club in Sokołów, Renata, the organizer of the Bladowiacy band, Irena, an athlete from Mędromierz, and Amelia, a landowner who gave lessons to women in her palace. What do they have in common? What are their stories? Are they remembered in their hometowns? How have they been remembered by the residents?

The play “Budowniczki” (The Builders) is about memory. It attempts to show, from various perspectives, the world of powerful women who left behind a strong foundation for the development of future generations. They performed titanic work every day, building reality, sustaining life, and caring for values. How have they been remembered in our collective consciousness today? With a touch of irony and humor, as well as an invitation to reflect, a game of summoning spirits takes place on stage.

The event is part of the project “Builders in Kujawy and Pomerania.” The performance will be presented with translation into Polish Sign Language and English subtitles. Polish Sign Language interpreters will be present on stage as “shadows” of the actresses to make it easier for deaf and hard of hearing people to follow the action.
 
Director: Paweł Paszta
Screenplay: Magdalena Jasińska and Paweł Paszta (based on interviews and archival materials collected in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Province, in collaboration with Anna Weistock-Mentel) 
Music: Paweł Paszta
Arrangements: Igor Nowicki
Lighting: Adam Mazurkiewicz, Maciej Eich
Sound: Mikołaj Kiełbasiewicz
Production: Anna Weistock-Mentel, Maja Niedlich

Cast:

• Marta Parfieniuk-Białowicz
• Grażyna Rutkowska-Kusa

The performance uses excerpts from Joanna Kuciel-Frydryszak’s book “Służące do wszystkiego” (“Servants for Everything”) and Father Jan Twardowski’s poem “Nie mogę trafić” (“I Can’t Find It”).

Premiere: November 30, 2024
The performance was created as part of the Festival of Forgotten Cultures “Budowniczki. Herstorie kobiet odważnych” (“Builders. Herstories of Courageous Women”).

The performance is part of the project “Builders in Kujawy and Pomerania,” which is co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund, a state special-purpose fund, and from the budget of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Province Local Government.

Co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund – a state special-purpose fund.

Co-financed from the budget of the Local Government of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Province