The performance is for viewers aged 12 and over.

After a hard day at school, Szarówa goes to bed and wakes up in an unfamiliar place. There, she meets Big Sad, who tells her that this place is called Samoklęski. He came here as a child to hide from his peers, and he has grown up here. The receptionist, Pack of Tissues, then explains that this is a place where people can process their failures. Everyone is assigned their own spot and an unlimited supply of tissues. When Szarówa asks for directions to the exit, she receives no clear answer. However, refusing to give in to sorrow, she convinces Big Sad to explore Samoklęski together.
(source: nowesztuki.pl)

In Samoklęski, one can no longer turn a blind eye to one's own shame, anxiety and sense of inadequacy. There, failure ceases to isolate and instead becomes the beginning of an encounter with another person. Darkness does not signify a threat; only within it can the characters truly hear one another. While modernity constantly encourages the display of success, each character experiences failure in their own way. Only by ceasing to fight it can they move forward.
Although the performance touches on themes of loneliness, shame, and youth depression, the relationships between the characters are filled with tenderness, absurdity, and comedy. Consequently, the narrative's weight is not overwhelming, but leaves room for identification and emotion.
(source: director’s statement)

17.10 | 12:00 p.m.
New Stage
Director: Jakub Drewnicki

Urszula Gołdowska’s play The Company of Total Failure (Kompania Kompletnej Klęski) won 1st Prize in the 36th Playwriting Competition for Children and Youth organised by the Children's Art Centre in Poznań (2025).

Cast