The American actor John Barrymore was one of the greatest Shakesperean actors of the 20th century. He was particularly famous for his role of Hamlet on Broadway in 1922, and also acted in films, such as "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", "Sherlock Holmes" or "Don Juan". He was an outstanding actor, but his private life was equally colourful. He indulged in luxury, loved women and had a penchant for alcohol. A reveller and a waster, but also every inch of a gentleman. A huge talent and a hero of Hollywood anecdotes.
In "Barrymore" – a play by William Luce – Jerzy Trela gives a real virtuoso performance by playing actually two roles: one of the private Barrymore, who doubts the sense of his work and drunkard’s life and another of Barrymore as an actor incarnating Shakesperean characters. However, the play of the STU Theatre is much more than Barrymore's character. “It is an apotheosis of theatre and a contact with something close to the concept of genius. It is a striking, but extremely beautiful epitaph of an individual. “Barrymore” staged by the STU Theatre is an absolutely unique metaphysical and multidimensional encounter that becomes engraved in the spectator's memory. It is a top-level theatrical experience both for spectators and creators", wrote Magda Bałajewicz in the Krakow magazine "Teatralia".
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BARRYMORE (Polish title: WIELKI JOHN BARRYMORE) – directed by: Krzysztof Jasiński, performed by: Jerzy Trela (leading role) and Aleksander Fabisiak (prompter). Saturday, the 18th of October, 6:00 p.m., tickets: PLN 60/80. Agora Culture Centre, ul. Serbska 5a.
