Niko lives is a completely ordinary block of flats in a typical neighborhood from the 70s, with a local store and a bus stop. He knows bus schedules perfectly, follows the daily routine scrupulously and has his own interests, but he lacks friends. It is not that easy to make friends, everyone has it's own problems, hopes and expects someone to beheve one way and not the other. Is there a good recipe for a friendship? How to act the right way for someone to like us?

The play is a ministudy of awkwardness at the beginning of the new acquaintance. It is a story about everyday life, where we are all familiar with the fear of loneliness, lack of acceptance and making the effort to meet a new person (what can be quite clumsy and funny at times).

NIKO meets the needs of a neurodiverse audience. We recommend this performance since it is created with attention to the different needs of spectators, including those on the autism spectrum.

“The performance is dedicated to people on the autism spectrum and, at the same time, an invitation to all those who want to understand others better, who are curious about the world and its diversity. It can be a great starting point for a conversation about neurodivergence and universal themes such as loneliness, lack of acceptance and friendship”.

Lidia Cichocka, Echo Dnia

“The play is staged in a modest setting that represents the places that are most important to the protagonist, such as his apartment or the bus stop where he likes to spend time. On the one hand, the production at the Żeromski Theatre in Kielce has an ostentatiously non-theatrical air as the actors step out of their roles to help the neurodivergent embers of the audience feel more at ease, and on the other, it helps the audience to understand better, through purely theatrical means, the way people like Niko perceive the world. The play is free of sentimentality, pathos or intrusive didacticism”.

Michał Centkowski, Przegląd

The play was created as part of the "Blue Zone" project.

The play takes part in 30. The National Competition for the Staging of Polish Contemporary Art.

The National Competition for the Staging of Polish Contemporary Art aims to reward the most interesting repertoire explorations in Polish theater, supports Polish dramaturgy in its stage productions and popularizes Polish contemporary drama. The competition is organized by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Zbigniew Raszewski Theater Institute in Warsaw.

In the first stage of the Competition, the performances are assessed by the Artistic Committee composed of: Jacek Sieradzki (chairman), Dominik Gac, Piotr Hildt, Anna Jazgarska, Szymon Kazimierczak, Andrzej Lis, Wanda Świątkowska.

Cast

Gallery

Theatre Program

Trailer

Trailer with transcription