Based on a True Story: Final Debate
Together with participants from the international student group and the participating artists, they will explore the possibilities and limitations of documentary methods in theater, the readiness of Central European theaters to support such practices, and what international collaboration can offer in a time of escalating political crises.
The discussion will be moderated by Adam Dragun and Olga Ciężkowska and is primarily intended for registered students from art schools in Slovakia (VŠMU Bratislava), Poland (AST Kraków), and the Czech Republic (DAMU and others).
International arts project that brings together three cultural organizations from Central Europe—ARCHA+ (Czech Republic), Komuna Warszawa (Poland), and Projekt Batyskaf (Slovakia). Its goal is to support and implement the curatorial concept by young theater artists Adam Dragun (SK/CZ) and Olga Ciężkowska (PL), titled Based on a True Story. The project focuses on contemporary theater and performance practices that employ documentary approaches and research-based artistic processes. More information can be found here.
Tickets can be purchased individually for each performance or as a festival pass.
Adam Dragun
director, writer, and performer, as well as the frontman of the band Berlin Manson. He is a writer, director, and performer in multi-genre projects. He studied at Charles University and the Academy of Theater Arts in Kraków, and is currently completing his studies at DAMU (Alternative and Puppet Theater).
His directing credits include the production *The Last Time My Parents Were at Komuna Warszawa* (Komuna Warszawa, 2022), *Prcat* (P*AKT, 2024), and *Reprise*—part of the triptych *The Slovaks Come to Life*. *Hymn for the 21st Century* (Uhol_92, 2024). At the end of 2025, his original performance *ALEX* (ARCHA+/Batyskaf, 2025) premiered, a work that balances between personal confession, fiction, and documentary. He also contributed to the stage adaptation of *Frankenstein* directed by Petra Tejnorová at the National Theater (2025). Together with Olga Ciężkowska, he serves as the artistic curator of the *Based on a True Story* project and festival.
Olga Ciężkowska
theater director and a graduate of the AST Academy of Theater Arts in Kraków. She has created productions at traditional theaters as well as in collaboration with independent institutions and artistic collectives.
Her works have been presented and recognized at festivals in Poland and abroad, including Generation After. Showcase 8 and 9, Bliscy Nieznajomi. QueerFest, DramaQueer, and as part of the 28th National Competition for Stagings of Contemporary Polish Plays.
She creates projects based on artistic research, focusing on queer history and biographies. Her projects include *Don’t Kiss Me Now* at Teatr Współczesny in Szczecin, *The Fearless Love of Eve Adams* at the Stary National Theater in Kraków, and *Lesbian Sunset* and *Representation* with the artistic group Teraz Poliż.
Together with artist Adam Dragun, she works as a directing duo. Among other projects, they collaborated on *The Last Time My Parents Were at Komuna Warszawa* at Komuna Warszawa. They are currently developing the curatorial project *Based on a True Story*, which supports performative projects based on long-term research and documentary approaches.
Her main interests include artistic research and modes of knowledge production at the intersection of the arts and the academic sphere. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Gender and Sexuality at the University of Warsaw.
English
120 minutes
Zlatnická 1129/8, 110 00 New Town
