D'ARC
Polish National Opera, Warsaw Rising Museum

D'ARC

Live in
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Sung in
Italian
English
Latin
Polish
Subtitles in
English

Produced to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Warsaw Uprising, D’ARC is a contemporary opera written in three time frames and dreams, in which three heroines meet: Joan – a photographer from Paris, the daughter of Polish emigrants; Joanna – a cellist from Warsaw and also an insurgent, and Giovanna – a French national heroine, the Maid of Orléans. 

Especially commissioned for the Warsaw Rising Museum, director Krystian Lada creates a performance encompassing the museum space as well as the museum’s surrounding district Wola. The opera’s libretto by Anka Herbut and Łukasz Barys is based on themes from the diaries of artists participating in the Warsaw Uprising and the story of Joan of Arc. Leading Polish composers of the young generation – Dobrawa Czocher, Teoniki Rożynek, Wojciech Błażejczyk and Rafał Ryterski – have contributed compositions, alongside rarely performed works by Julius Eastman and the artist-insurgent Roman Padlewski. Following the heroines of this story, we travel through the opera to visit Paris in 2024, Warsaw in 1944 and Rouen in 1429. The world that was, that is, and that which only happens in dreams will be guided by cellist Dobrawa Czocher as Joanna, actress Agnieszka Grochowska as Joan, soprano Gabriela Legun as Giovanna, and baritone Szymon Komasa as the Angel of History. More than a tribute to bravery of the Polish nation, D’ARC is also a journey through musical and theatrical conventions, in which the creators experiment with form, structure and space.

CAST

Joan
Agnieszka Grochowska
Joanna
Dobrawa Czocher
Giovanna
Gabriela Legun
Angels of History
Szymon Komasa
Dominik Bobryk
Michał Adam Góral
Wojciech Grudziński
Ensembles
Hashtag Ensemble
Match Match Ensemble
10 cello ensemble
...
Music
Dobrawa Czocher
Teoniki Rożynek
Johann Sebastian Bach
Wojciech Błażejczyk
Rafał Ryterski
Julius Eastman
Roman Padlewski
Text
Anka Herbut
Łukasz Barys
Director, set design, concept
Krystian Lada
Conductor
Lilianna Krych
Set design collaborator
Łukasz Misztal
Costumes
Natalia Kitamikado
Lights
Aleksandr Prowaliński
Choreography collaborator
Wojciech Grudziński
Assistant director
Magdalena Milczarska
Production
Warsaw Rising Museum:
Marta Kuźmiak
Iwa Ostrowska
Beata Spodarek
Video directors
Ewa Krasucka
Marcin Dunin-Borkowski
Sound directors
Michał Polański
Adam Ciesielski
...

VIDEOS

Behind the scenes

Meet the director of D'ARC

An interview with director Krystian Lada, recorded after the dress rehearsal of the contemporary opera D'ARC.

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Behind the scenes

Meet the conductor of D'ARC

What is opera now? Is opera a stage set? Is it a multitude of stories? Or just singing? Conductor Lilianna Krych introduces the contemporary opera D'ARC.

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Behind the scenes

Meet the soloists of D'ARC

An interview with the soloists Agnieszka Grochowska (Joan), Dobrawa Czocher (Joanna) and Gabriela Legun (Giovanna).

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Behind the scenes

Meet one of the composers of D'ARC

An interview with Rafał Ryterski, one of the composers of the contemporary opera D'ARC.

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