Salzburg Festival hosts provocative production ‘Europa’

The Salzburg Festival is hosting the production ‘Europa’ by Warsaw’s Nowy Teatr, marking the first time Polish director Krzysztof Warlikowski has presented a theater production at the festival. The play, written by Wajdi Mouawad, has prompted extensive trigger warnings due to its graphic and intense subject matter.

Content warnings for the production include depictions of trauma, war, miscarriage, suicide, murder, cannibalism, and sexual violence, including pedophilia. The narrative follows a UN official investigating a massacre from 74 years ago, exploring themes of guilt and the intergenerational transmission of violence. The production features actors Magdalena Cielecka and Andrzej Chyra, navigating a stage that shifts between settings such as a courtroom, a prison, and a classroom.