We wish to express our solidarity with the creators of the play “The Curse” directed by Oliver Friljc, which premiered on 18 February 2017 at Teatr Powszechny in Warsaw. The assault on the artists, the management of the theatre, as well as the persons involved in its creation constitute an act of violence - unacceptable under any circumstances, including disputes about history, values and aesthetics. We object to the language of confabulation, hatred and contempt employed by many opponents of “The Curse” to distort its meaning, introduce disinformation and antagonise the participants of the public debate.
Theatre is a space for creating new realities, pluralistic dialogue and honest confrontation with the world. Artists have the right to discuss social problems openly and uncompromisingly, to critically interpret culture and to employ their own means of expression to do so. It is a particularly important mission in times of crisis of democracy and rebirth of chauvinistic and xenophobic attitudes and the acceptance of this situation by wider circles of opinion-forming circles, in particular politicians and representatives of the media.
The team of Malta Festival Poznań