Notes from Exile

Photo: Katarzyna-Sadowska

= Notes from Exile, from the Teatr Polonia (Warsaw) is a monologue, an adaptation by actress Krystyna Janda and director Magda Umer of of Sabina Baral’s auotobiography. As a Jew, Ms. Baral was forced to emigrate from Poland in 1968 in a bloodless pogrom.

Ms. Janda stands behind a scrim on which is projected a huge close-up of her; we see her behind the scrim to the side. The close-up image on the scrim is nearly as large as a commercial film screen, although it’s only a few yards from the first row of the audience. This is the equivalent of yelling to make a point. It’s the definition of tastelessness.

For two hours Ms. Janda whimpers the minute details of her exile. There is only one subtext: “Feel sorry for me.” The hyper-amplified whispering never changes. Even when she sings (there’s a small band next to her), she shows not a glimpse of anything but victimhood. What actress - what playwright - would create a character who shows only one side of herself for two hours?

We might find some value in the piece if it generalized to all victims of racism. But we learn in a pivotal line that Ms. Baral doesn’t care about anyone except herself: “Anti-semitism is the lingua franca of fascism.” Other victims do not exist for her.

Emily Dickinson wrote “Tell all the truth - But tell it slant.” Notes from Exile is literal narrative. It is not art. Topical art should discusses an issue; personal art presents an entire person. This monologue only begs for pity. It’s difficult to sit through.

review
Steve Capra
September 2019
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