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Odyssey in Poland & Fryderyk Chopin
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The World Premiere of the Polish Film, The Pianist, Gdansk, Poland, September 6, 2002
   


Luckily, I could get a chance to see the world premiere of the polish film, "The Pianist" on September 6 in this very country when I was in Gdansk, Poland.

On the first day of the roadshow, I went to the cinema complex, called Superkino in front of Gdansk Central railway station. There were far too many people but I could manage to get a seat. I found lots of cameras and press medias at the lobby although it was not Warsaw where the location of this film was.

I had already read the book, "The Pianist" by Wladyslaw Szpilman before I knew the film would be made, and yet, it told me not just how cruel and ruthless it had been, but it really made me think what living and surviving were in that Szpilman came close to death a few times but he endured to survive somehow in the Nazi-occupied Warsaw.

I was so haunted by it all day that I saw the film again at another theater in Old Town later in the afternoon. I asked one of a theater staff if any posters of the film are available to me. She then ripped one of posters off the wall and kindly gave it to me. Dziekuje Bardzo!

One thing has been cleared up. There are two Nocturnes in C sharp minor by Chopin. In the book, Chopin's Nocturne in C sharp minor appeared a few times and I had been wondering whether it would be No. 7 or No. 20. It turned out to be No. 20.

On the previous night, there was a TV program for the ceremony of the film and I got excited to see the director, Roman Polanski and an actor, Adrian Brody celebrating the film live from Warsaw Philharmonia where Chopin Piano Competition was held every five years. Further, in the "Zycie" newspaper dated September 6, I found a-few page article on the ceremony at Philharmonia and about the film in detail.
 
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