A Couple of Poor, Polish-Speaking Romanians
Written by Dorota Maslowska
Translated by Lisa Goldman and Paul Sirett
Directed by Max Truax
Opened May 2009
A Couple of Poor, Polish Speaking Romanians is a hilarious and scathing critique of the relationship between class stratification and national identity. High on drugs, two young Poles set off on a road trip, holding up passing motorists and pretending to be a couple of poor, Polish-speaking Romanians. Told in part from their perspective and that of their xenophobic victims, what exactly happened on their two-day journey is as uncertain as the duo’s true identities. Having assumed the guise of poverty-stricken aliens, the pair become the victims of their own fiction as they emerge from their drug high into a cold and uncooperative reality.
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“Challenging but breathtaking expressionist theater…a gorgeous and off-balanced abstract piece about identity, class and xenophobia. Truly inspired performances from the entire cast.” -NEW CITY Monica Westin
“Well-done contemporary distillation of existential angst, spiritual malaise and vague threat” -WINDY CITY MEDIA GROUP Jonathan Abarbanel
“First-rate ensemble acting and striking minimalist, multimedia design. Highly recommended.” -THE CHICAGO READER, Albert Williams
“The ensemble is amazing.” -CHICAGO STAGE REVIEW, Venus Zarris
Dorota Maslowska is a Polish writer and journalist. At 19, she wrote the internationally acclaimed, award-winning novel, Wojna polsko-ruska pod flaga bialo-czerwona (translated to English as either White and Red or Snow White and Russian Red) a depiction of unbalanced, sexually aggressive, amphetamine-scarred youth both feted for its originality and condemned for its brutal vulgarity. A notable example of post-modernist literature, her book became a best-seller in Poland and was almost immediately translated into several languages, including French, German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Russian, English, Hungarian and Czech. Her second novel is Paw królowej (The Queen’s Peacock). Currently, Dorota Maslowska lives in Cracow, collaborating with a number of magazines, most notably the Przekrój and Wysokie Obczasy weeklies, as well as Lampa monthly and the quarterly BEAT magazine. At 24 she wrote her first play; A Couple of Poor, Polish-Speaking Romanians. The play ran for 2 years in Warsaw, before being produced by the Soho Theatre in London; this is its U.S. premiere.
Cast: Tiffany Bedwell, Marzena Bukowska, Kevin Cox, Marco Garcia, Kinga Modjeska, and David Steiger
Lighting Design: Richard Norwood
Costume Design: Beata Pilch
Set Design: Ewelina Dobiesz
Video Design: Aaron Covich
Sound Design: Aaron DeYoung
Hair and Makeup Design: Zsofi Otvos
Graphic Design/photos: Michal Janicki