November brings a varied programme to the Grand Theatre in Poznań, with familiar operatic favourites sitting alongside contemporary performance, a tribute to one of the city’s most influential dance artists and a new production shaped by young people’s experiences of conflict.
The month includes Charles Gounod’s Faust, Mozart’s The Magic Flute and Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. There is also a special Independence Day performance celebrating choreographer Conrad Drzewiecki, while Art of War turns its attention to the language and emotions of conflict. Ballet workshops offer younger visitors and adults an opportunity to explore dance for themselves.
A modern take on Faust
5 - 8 November, 18:00
Gounod’s Faust opens the month with a production directed by Karolina Sofulak that brings the familiar story into the present day.
Rather than focusing solely on Faust’s pact with the devil, this interpretation considers what happens when a lifetime spent pursuing knowledge leaves someone disconnected from other people. Faust is presented as a scientist confronting mortality, isolation and the limits of his understanding of the world.
His encounter with Mephistopheles leads him into a contemporary society marked by division and tension. It is his meeting with Marguerite, however, that becomes central to the drama. Her empathy, independence and openness challenge Faust to reconsider his assumptions and rediscover his relationship with others.
The production places questions of humanism, responsibility and personal identity at the heart of a story that continues to resonate beyond its original setting.
Conrad Drzewiecki remembered on Independence Day
11 November, 18:00
The Grand Theatre’s annual Marshal’s Concert, organised with the Marshal’s Office of the Wielkopolska Region, marks Poland’s Independence Day with a performance dedicated to Conrad Drzewiecki.
Born in Poznań in 1926, Drzewiecki became one of the defining figures in Polish dance, helping to reshape ballet through a combination of classical technique, contemporary movement, jazz and elements of folk dance.
After achieving international recognition, he returned to Poznań in 1963 to lead the city’s ballet company. His work helped establish the city as an important centre for modern dance, and he later founded the Polish Dance Theatre, which began operating in 1973.
The programme Conrad revisits four of his choreographies: Eternal Songs to music by Mieczysław Karłowicz, Étude in B-flat minor by Karol Szymanowski, Adagio by Tomaso Albinoni and Krzesany by Wojciech Kilar. The orchestra will be conducted by Marta Kluczyńska.
The performance also marks the centenary of Drzewiecki’s birth, bringing the work of a major figure in Poznań’s cultural history back to the local stage.
Tickets cost just PLN 1, with sales starting on 3rd November at 13:00. They will be available from the theatre box office and its official website.
Ballet workshops for children and adults
14 and 28 November
Ballet is not reserved for professional dancers or those who started lessons in childhood. The Grand Theatre’s regular workshops invite participants of different ages to try classical dance in a friendly setting, led by experienced Poznań ballet dancers Anna Gumna and Arkadiusz Gumny.
Children aged four to seven can take part in 45-minute sessions designed to develop rhythm, musical awareness and coordination while giving them a chance to move and have fun.
Adult workshops are aimed at participants aged 18 and over, with sessions lasting around an hour. They offer an alternative way to stay active and an opportunity for those who have always wanted to try ballet to take their first steps.
Both sessions take place in the Malarnia studio.
The Magic Flute explores a divided world
18 to 22 November
Mozart’s The Magic Flute returns in a production by director and performer Sjaron Minailo, who approaches the opera as a contemporary reflection on power, belief and social division.
The familiar journey towards truth and maturity becomes a story about a society caught between opposing forces: light and darkness, reason and emotion, freedom and submission.
Minailo draws connections between the opera’s rituals and the ways political divisions can shape how people understand the world around them. The production’s visual language is equally important, with rotating machinery, illuminated circles, spheres and monumental structures creating an atmosphere that moves between dream and reality.
For audiences familiar with Mozart’s best-known opera, this staging offers a different way to engage with its enduring questions about personal freedom, collective belief and finding one’s own path.
Art of War: young voices confront conflict
20 - 28 November, selected dates
One of November’s most distinctive offerings is Art of War, a contemporary chamber opera created around the experiences and questions of young people living in a world where war, fear and political division are difficult to ignore.
Rather than presenting a conventional narrative with a clear resolution, the production brings together music, movement, rhythm and documentary elements. A chamber orchestra, electronics, a youth choir and two soloists form part of the work, with a singing older performer also invited to perform a lullaby in the finale.
The project explores the gap between the lives young people should be able to imagine for themselves and the realities they are trying to understand. Its central concerns include violence, empathy, community and the difficulty of finding words for experiences that resist easy explanation.
The creators do not set out to offer political answers. Instead, the performance asks its audience to sit with uncertainty and consider what it means to live alongside conflict.
In a departure from conventional theatre etiquette, there will be no curtain call or applause at the end. Silence is intended to give the audience space to reflect on what they have witnessed.
The production premieres in the Drabowicz Hall on 20 November at 19:00, with further performances scheduled throughout the following week.
Rossini’s The Barber of Seville brings comedy to the stage
27 November, 19:00, 29 November, 18:00
For a change of pace, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville closes the month with a comic tale of romance, disguise and elaborate schemes.
Count Almaviva is determined to win Rosina’s heart, adopting different identities along the way with help from Figaro, the resourceful barber whose ingenuity drives much of the action.
The opera also serves as a prequel to Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, introducing Rosina before she becomes Countess Almaviva.
Alongside the romantic intrigue, Rossini’s music gives the production plenty of opportunities for vocal showmanship. The famous aria La calunnia is particularly relevant to the modern world, exploring how gossip can grow into a destructive force capable of damaging reputations and relationships.
It is a fitting choice for audiences looking for a lighter theatrical experience after some of the month’s more reflective productions.
Planning a visit
November’s programme at the Grand Theatre offers several ways to experience Poznań’s performing arts scene, whether through major operatic works, contemporary interpretations of familiar stories or dance rooted in the city’s own artistic history.
The Marshal’s Concert is a particularly accessible option, with tickets priced at PLN 1. Those interested in the ballet workshops should check the theatre’s official ticketing information for booking arrangements and availability.
For the full programme and ticket details, visit the official website of the Grand Theatre in Poznań.
