‘Sometimes I imagine we are making a haunted play – because the world described in the novel is no longer there. The one shown on stage is hanging on by a thread. Meanwhile, the characters refuse to accept it.’ – Weronika Szczawińska

Based on Walter Kempowski’s novel, this adaptation is set in the winter of 1945, somewhere between Olsztyn and Elbląg. But All for Nothing is far more than a theatrical journey into the past. The characters – strange, playing out their own minor dramas amid historic catastrophe – offer a lens through which to examine deeply contemporary mechanisms: denial, wilful ignorance and collective responsibility. This unsettling tale of life in the shadow of war is laced with perverse humour. Directors Weronika Szczawińska and Piotr Wawer Jr. form a creative duo known for developing a distinct artistic language. In their vision, All for Nothing becomes a visually striking fusion of epic scale and intimate detail – a kind of domestic apocalypse.

Walter Kempowski’s most famous novel was published in Polish just last year and quickly became a bestseller. In this landmark work, the German writer presents a sweeping portrayal of the collapse of the German world in East Prussia, examining the roots of fascism while interweaving references to German literary classics.

And what better place to stage All for Nothing than the Stefan Jaracz Theatre in Olsztyn – formerly Allenstein – so close to the fictional Georgenhof manor where the novel is set?