Three Palaces at Yalta


Three Palaces at Yalta is set in February of 1945, at the Crimean resort town of Yalta. The Second World War is drawing to a bloody conclusion in Europe, with the armies of Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich being driven back on all fronts to Berlin. 


The “Big Three” of the Allied heads of state - Marshal Josef Stalin of the USSR, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of the United Kingdom, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the United States - have gathered for a "summit" to discuss strategy and policy. Each leader is housed in a former Imperial Russian palace - Yusupov,  Vorontsov, and Livadia - the settings for each act. 


In each of the three acts, Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt respectively voice their plans, concerns and aspirations. Of particular interest to them is the future of Poland - whose invasion by Germany in 1939 ignited the global war, and which has become a symbol of potential conflict in post-war Europe. 


The three palaces in the title also represent Fear, Honor, and Hope - aspects of the motivations and character of the statesmen who occupy them. 



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