GRAND OPENING OF THE CORE EXHIBITION

We cordially invite you to the much anticipated Grand Opening of POLIN Museum’s Core Exhibition, a journey of a thousand years. From 28 to 30 October you can visit the Core Exhibition and take part in a vast range of cultural activities free of charge.

Events marked (E) are available in English. 

OCTOBER 28, TUESDAY:

• 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM – 

  (E)

   Opening Performance

  Museum of Life – this title, referring to POLIN Museum, is also the motto of the Opening Performance, featuring klezmer virtuoso David Krakauer and jazz trumpeter Tomasz Stańko, who will premiere his suite compositions dedicated to POLIN Museum during the event. The poetry of Julian Tuwim as well as popular songs in Polish and Yiddish will also be performed. The Museum façade will turn into a gigantic screen on which art by young Polish street artists will be projected.

• 9:00 PM – 12:00 PM 

  – (E)

   

  Night visits 

  
  Late night visits to the Core Exhibition A 1000-Year History of Polish Jews and the temporary exhibition How to Make a Museum? Last entry at 11.00 PM.
  Prior reservation required.
   
• 10 PM 

  Balagan Meschhugge Party Warsaw 

  Warsaw edition of the hot DJ event that has already made Vienna and Berlin dance to the tunes of Mizrachi Pop and Yiddish and Israeli music.

OCTOBER 29, WEDNESDAY

• 10 AM – 11 PM – (E) Visits to the Core Exhibition A 1000-Year History of Polish Jews and the temporary exhibition How to Make a Museum? Last entry at 10.00 PM  Prior reservation required. 
   
• 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM – (E) Eight Galleries, Eight Stories – meeting with Core Exhibition curators
  
  Have you ever talked to a museum curator about their creative process? Challenge the gallery curators, ask questions and make your own suggestions. 
   
• 3:00 PM – (E)  Raise the Roof: the Gwoździec Synagogue – film screening 
  
  The reconstructed roof and ceiling of the 17th-century wooden synagogue of Gwoździec is one of the most spectacular objects in the Core Exhibition. Discover how it was brought to life by over 300 experts and volunteers. 
   
• 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – The Jewish Town – family workshops 
  
  We invite parents and children aged 4 to 12 to explore the Jewish Town gallery – the Jewish home, the marketplace, and Jewish religious life in the 17th and 18th centuries. Tour followed by a workshop at the Education Center. Reservation required.
   
• 5:00 PM – (E) 

  The Historian in the Museum – lecture by prof. Antony Polonsky

   

  Prof. Antony Polonsky (Brandeis University), chief historian of POLIN Museum, will discuss the challenges faced by the creators of the Core Exhibition. 

• 6:30 PM – (E) My Happiest Day, film, dir. Michał Bukojemski, 2013
  
  Can the “happiest day” in one’s life be one’s first day in Auschwitz? Marian Turski (b. 1926) explains this paradox, sharing his personal story. Screening followed by a meeting with Mr. Turski and the director, Michał Bukojemski. 
   
• 8:00 PM – Polin – museum game 
  
  Visitors of all ages are invited to discover key figures and moments in the history of Polish Jews. Storytellers and musicians will provide clues. Winners will receive their very own Polin game. Number of places limited; reservation required.

• 8.00 PM  Ircha: Mikołaj Trzaska’s clarinet quartet – concert

  Improvised music by four clarinettists: Mikołaj Trzaska, Michał Górczyński, Paweł Szamburski and Wacław Zimpel, combining Hasidic tradition and modern jazz. 
   
• 8:30 PM – (E) Minkowski | Saga, film, dir. Rafael Lewandowski, 2013
  
  The renowned French conductor Marc Minkowski returns to Poland to explore the history of his family – assimilated Jews, who belonged to the elite of the Second Polish Republic. Screening followed by a meeting with the director, Rafael Lewandowski. 
   
• 9:30 PM – Polin Choir – premiere concert
  
  A month ago POLIN Museum invited Varsovians – professional musicians and amateurs – to take part in choral workshops inspired by the Polin legend. The choir is conducted by Sean Palmer, an independent British artist and conductor.

• 10.00 PM – David Krakauer’s Ancestral Groove – concert
  
  From Szeroka Street to POLIN Museum: the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow invites you to a concert by legendary New York clarinettist David Krakauer and his Ancestral Groove band. 

OCTOBER 30 – THURSDAY

• 10 AM – 11 PM – (E) Visits to the Core Exhibition A 1000-Year History of Polish Jews and the temporary exhibition How to Make a Museum? Last entry at 10.00 PM  Prior reservation required. 
   
• 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM – (E) Eight Galleries, Eight Stories – meeting with Core Exhibition curators
  
  Have you ever talked to a museum curator about their creative process? Challenge the gallery curators, ask questions and make your own suggestions. 

• 4.00 PM – (E) Fifth Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising – film

  Reconstructed 10-minute documentary in Yiddish, presenting the unveiling of the Monument to the Ghetto Heroes in 1948. Screening followed by a meeting with Yaakov Gross, the director’s son. 
   
• 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – On the Jewish Street – family workshops 
  
  Parents and children aged 4 to 12 will discover the interwar gallery, On the Jewish Street. We will visit a pre-war cinema and youth club, learn Polish words derived from Yiddish and write our names in Hebrew. 
  
  Number of places limited; reservation necessary (NOT AVAILABLE)
   
• 5:00 PM – (E) Core Exhibition, a Story in Many Voices – panel discussion
  
  How did the exhibition evolve from the first conception to its realization today? What makes this exhibition different from others? What were the greatest challenges? Join Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Kathy Jones and Mirosław Nizio to learn the answers. 
   
• 6:30 PM – (E) Krakowiaczek Ci ja…, film, dir. Tomasz Magierski, 2011
  
  An intimate retrospective of Yoram (Jerzy) Gross, who escaped from the Krakow ghetto and survived the war in hiding to become a creator of animated films. Screening followed by a meeting with Mr. Gross and the director, Tomasz Magierski. 
   
• 8:00 PM – Polin – museum game 
  
  Visitors of all ages are invited to discover key figures and moments in the history of Polish Jews. Storytellers and musicians will provide clues. Winners will receive their very own Polin game. Number of places limited; reservation required.

• 8.00 PM

  The New Tradition – concert by Adam Baldych and Yaron Herman

  A Polish violinist living in France and an Israeli pianist construct their musical language in a time when jazz is being redefined. 
   
• 8:45 PM – (E) H I Jew Positive, dir. Ronit Kerstner, 2013
  
  Agnieszka, Leszek, Małgosia, Larysa and Łukasz discovered their Jewish origins when they were teenagers or adults. Their parents did not reveal their Jewish roots to them for various reasons. Now, they have to decide – who are they? Screening followed by a meeting with director Ronit Kerstner and the protagonists. 
   
• 9:30 PM – Polin Choir – premiere concert
  
  A month ago POLIN Museum invited Varsovians – professional musicians and amateurs – to take part in choral workshops inspired by the Polin legend. The choir is conducted by Sean Palmer, an independent British artist and conductor.

• 10.30 PM – Ceratitis Capatita – concert by Paweł Szamburski

  Szamburski – a clarinet improviser and composer of film and theater music – engages in a dialogue with the musical traditions of five religions originating in the Mediterranean.

• 11.00 PM – Klezzmates – concert

  The Klezzmates from Krakow, led by violinist Bartosz Dworak, explore relations between Jewish music and the world of contemporary sound. 

The Grand Opening program also includes:

• Meetings with Witnesses of History 

   (E)
  
  Come face to face with personal experience of key events of the 1920s and 30s, the Second World War, and the postwar period. Discover the history of Polish Jews through the eyes of witnesses. 

• Our Way of Showing 1000 Years of History – film (E)

  Why tell the story in many voices from the past, when a historian could narrate the whole exhibition? Why focus on the experience of “ordinary” people? We invite you to listen to the voices of the scholars and curators who created the Core Exhibition. (E)

• Opening of the Resource Center

  Find out more about your family or hometown, explore the history of Polish Jews and Jewish life in Poland today. You will find local history, genealogical, and oral history resources: books, historical maps, archival material, and databases. 

• Chill-out Zone / Silent movie theater with music

  Relax in the Chill-out Zone, inspired by pre-war cinema, watching silent movies accompanied by soft background music.

• Grand Opening Tram

  Hop on a special historical tram, which drop you off near the Museum and provide you with all the information you need on the Museum and the Grand Opening. 

• Jewish cuisine across Warsaw

  Restaurants, cafes, and clubs are invited to join in the celebrations by featuring Jewish specialties on their menu during the Grand Opening, October 28–30. 

We also invite you to participate in the events prepared by our partner institutions:

• The Grand Theater – National Opera (Teatr Wielki – Opera Narodowa)
  
  Jewish Artists in Post-War Poland (1948-1989) – exhibition, from 20 October
  
  Exhibition featuring works by Artur Nacht-Samborski, Jonasz Stern, Mieczysław Berman, Erna Rosenstein and Alina Szapocznikow. Paintings, sculptures and drawings will be accompanied by a collage of films by Andrzej Munk, Wanda Jakubowska, Aleksander Ford and Janusz Morgenstern.
   
• Jews, Sports, Warsaw – exhibition, from 20 October
  
  Discover the world of sports in pre-war Jewish Warsaw. Meet discus thrower Helena Bersohn, football player Józef Klotz and the Maccabi ice-hockey team. Browse through sports magazines from the 1930s and admire boxer Szapsel Rotholc in the ring.
   
• Prayer, Happiness, Covenant – concert by the Opera Academy of the Grand Theater, 29 October
  
  An intimate evening of traditional Jewish music and songs composed by Polish Jewish songwriters and composers of the pre-war and post-war era. Graduates of the Academy, talented young singers and pianists, will perform together with their teachers.
   
• YIVO Institute for Jewish Research (New York)
  
  Letters to Afar – exhibition, from 21 October
  
  Multimedia installation by Péter Forgács with music by The Klezmatics based on amateur films from the 1920s and 30s, made by Jews from the USA who visited their home towns in Poland. Exhibition prepared in collaboration with POLIN Museum.
   
• The Forum for Dialogue Among Nations
  
  25 Years of Dialogue – exhibition on Irena Sendler Lane (next to the Museum), from 25 October
  
  Outdoor exhibition presenting recent developments in Polish public dialogue, commemoration and appreciation of Poland’s Jewish legacy.
   
• Jewish Theater
  
  Mazel Tov – performance, 26 October
  
  The Jewish Theatre and Zygmunt Rolat invite you to this humorous music and dance performance about the everyday life of Jews from Warsaw’s Nalewki district. The evening’s Special Guests will include Yaakov Lemmer, an outstanding young cantor from New York, and Frank London’s band.
   
• Shalom Foundation
  
  And I Still See Their Faces… – Photographs of Polish Jews – exhibition at the Jewish Theater, from October 26
  
  This unique exhibition, returning to Warsaw after a tour of over 50 museums worldwide, is composed of over 8,000 selected photographs of Polish Jews submitted in response to a call from the Shalom Foundation.
   
• Makabi Warszawa
  
  Makabi Warszawa vs. ŻKS Kraków – football game, 26 October
  
  In July, both Jewish teams played their first friendly match after a 70-year break. Their re-match will take place at the KS Polonia Stadium.
   
• IMKA Theater
  
  Remember This: Walking with Jan Karski – performance, 29 & 30 October
  
  A performance devoted to the emissary of the Polish Underground State with Academy Award nominee David Strathairn as Karski. He will be supported onstage by students from the Ludwik Solski Academy of Dramatic Arts in Krakow.
   
• Jewish Historical Institute
  
  SALVAGED. Artworks from the collection of the Jewish Historical Institute – exhibition, from 30 October
  
  The exhibition will present the phenomenon of Polish Jewish culture and art from the end of the 19th century up to the middle of the 20th century. The works, collected all over Poland since 1944, are an important memento of Poland’s Jewish history.

During Museum Open Days all events and exhibitions are free of charge. Reservations are necessary for touring the Core Exhibition, workshops, and museum game. All other events are open to the public. Number of participants is limited.

Grand Opening of the Core Exhibition under the Honorary Patronage of President of the Republic of Poland

Educational program of the Museum Open Days is supported by Norway grants and EEA grants

offered by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway

www.eeagrants.org, www.norwaygrants.org 
Więcej o projekcie „Żydowskie dziedzictwo kulturowe”

Supported by Boeing Company