Premiere of this production: 13 December 2024, Teatr Wielki - Polish National Opera, Warsaw (a first production at the Polish National Opera sung in the Kashubian language)

Stream online from 17 April 2025, 7 p.m. CET

Hanuszka and Jaśko fall in love after a chance meeting by a stream. Though her parents seem to approve, they delay the wedding. But then Jaśko learns that Hanuszka is marrying another man. She claims it is ‘God’s Will’ (Wòlô Bòskô), and in despair, Jaśko drowns himself. Seeing his body, Hanuszka also takes her own life. They are buried separately, but lilies grow between their graves. When Hanuszka’s mother cuts the stems, they bleed, symbolising the lovers’ undying bond. 

The tragic story of ill-starred lovers might sound familiar but Wòlô Bòskô is a rare thing: a dramatic song cycle sung in the Kashubian language. The Kashubians are an ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania in north-central Poland. In Kashubia they speak the Kashubian, which is classified as a separate language closely related to Polish. It is the language we hear in this composition for baritone and piano by contemporary composer Łukasz Godyla drawing on a selection of Kashubian texts and traditional melodies made by the baritone Damian Wilma, a native of the region fascinated by its culture. The piece has been adapted for the stage of Polish National Opera by Jarosław Kilian, who puts an emphasis on the metaphysical aspect of the compelling tale of love, fate and death. Kilian sees the cycle as a reminiscence of a woman looking back over a fatal attraction. The young man appears as a ghost recounting his story from the beyond. Is it just a tale of a blighted couple? Or a universal trope repeated for centuries, now set within the scenery of seaside Kashubia?

CAST 

Jaśko Damian Wilma
Białka Danuta Stenka
Piano Karolina Tańska, Aleksander Teliga
Percussions Krzysztof Szmańda Katarzyna Bojaryn-South
Dancers Jakub Piotrowicz Julia Witczak

CREDITS

Music Łukasz Godyla
Script Damian Wilma, Jarosław Kilian
Conductor Grzegorz Brajner
Director Jarosław Kilian
Sets & Costumes Izabela Chełkowska
Choreographer Anna Hop
Lights Maciej Igielski
Sound Director Adam Ciesielski
Filmed by Marcin Dunin-Borkowski