In April 2023, I collaborated with renowned Polish theatre director Agata Duda-Gracz on the play SZTUMBR (Noise), inspired by the life of Krakow artist Stanislaw Wyspianski and his controversial marriage to Teodora, a woman from the countryside. The production premiered at the Juliusz Slowacki Theatre (MOS) in Krakow, Poland.
The concept
The performance was built on actors’ improvisation, shaped by the director’s instructions I received a week before the premiere. In response, I designed a set that felt light, contemporary, and rule-based, almost like a children’s playground. Instead of recreating the rich 19th-century interiors tied to the story, I chose a minimal, conceptual approach using one of the simplest materials: grey packing paper. Across this surface, I painted Krakow slang words and primitive illustrations to mark the function of each section.
The stage became both a maze and a floor plan, evoking the memory of a grand household while abstracting it into a symbolic, playful structure for the actors to inhabit.
The performance
