The last Polish king's affair with Tsarina Catherine the Great was no secret. It was to the Russian ruler that the monarch owed his assumption of the throne in Warsaw. The performance 'The King and the Tsarina', directed by Jerzy Zelnik, is based on a selection of correspondence between Tsarina Catherine and King Stanisław August.

In 1755, the secretary to the English envoy, a young Polish aristocrat, Stanislaw Antoni Poniatowski, arrived in St Petersburg. He attracted Catherine's attention, losing his head for her himself. Her husband, Peter, discovered the affair. He reacted with anger, but quickly brought it under control. He himself, moreover, had a history of extramarital relationships. So he blessed the lovers' happiness. In July 1762, he had to die. On the orders of his wife, moreover, who had him murdered. Two years later, already as Tsarina, Catherine made Stanisław Poniatowski ruler of Poland. Thirty-one years later, however, she deprived him not so much of the throne as of his kingdom, leading to the third partition of the Commonwealth.

The filmmakers present a psychological and emotional portrait of the King and the Tsarina - former lovers who, under the guise of an ever-maintained sister-brotherly relationship, wage diplomatic war over conflicting national aspirations and goals.

Director: Jerzy Zelnik

Cast: placeholderHalina Rowicka as the Tsarina, Jerzy Zelnik as the King, Stefan Kiniorski as the Fiddler, Stańczyk.

Genre: drama
Set design: Anna Czyż
Music: Mikołaj Hertel
Light: Adam Sobala
Choreography: Anna Czyżykiewicz
Costumes: Anna Czyż
Duration: 70 min