Ludwik Solski Academy for the Dramatic Arts
Encyclopedia
Ludwik Solski Academy for the Dramatic Arts (Polish: Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Teatralna im. Ludwika Solskiego, often shortened to PWST), located in Kraków
, Poland
, was founded in 1946 by a well-known Polish actor, Juliusz Osterwa, who took the initial steps leading to the establishment of the Academy through the amalgamation of three local studios, the Theatre Actors' Studio at Stary Teatr, the Słowacki Theatre Actors' Studio, and Iwo Gall's Dramatic Studio connected with Juliusz Osterwa's Reduta Theatre.
Academy began in 1946 with a three-year training course in drama for prospective actors. In 1949 the name of the school was changed to the State College of Acting (Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Aktorska), and the curriculum extended to four years. Its current name, the Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Teatralna, was determined in 1955. From 1954 to 1964 the college also provided courses in puppetry and the puppet theatre, reactivated in 1972 as an independent Puppet Theatre Faculty located in the city of Wrocław.
The new Faculty of Directing was created in 1955 and continued in its original form till 1962. In 1973 the Faculty was re-established as the Faculty of Play Directing with several students pursuing a four-year programme. The next important stage in the development of the Academy was the establishment in 1979 of the Actors' Faculty in Wrocław.
From its beginnings the Academy for the Dramatic Arts was run by some of the most prominent Polish dramatic artists, Juliusz Osterwa, Tadeusz Burnatowicz, Władysław Woźnik, Eugeniusz Fulde, Bronisław Dąbrowski, Jerzy Krasowski, Danuta Michałowska, Jerzy Trela, and Jerzy Stuhr
. The Academy's history was shaped by outstanding teachers and trainers as well as by famous theoreticians, including its own graduates who have made a substantial impact on the theatre scene in Poland and abroad. The following celebrities have also conducted practical classes in acting, directing and music: Jerzy Jarocki, Tadeusz Kantor
, Mieczysław Kotlarczyk, Władysław Krzemiński, Ewa Lasek, Krystian Lupa, Krzysztof Penderecki
, Anna Polony, Krystyna Skuszanka, Marta Stebnicka, Konrad Swinarski, and Roman Zawistowski. Many of these artists are still teaching at the Academy. The most important directors in the last two decades have been predominantly graduates of the school: in the 1990s these included Krystian Lupa and Mikolaj Grabowski's students Krzysztof Warlikowski, Grzegorz Jarzyna, Anna Augustynowicz and Paweł Miskiewicz, and in the first decade of the 21st century, directors Maja Kleczewska, Jan Klata and Michal Zadara
.
Some of the Academy's more outstanding graduates in its first decade included Zbigniew Cybulski
, Jerzy Grotowski
, Leszek Herdegen, Gustaw Holoubek, Jerzy Jarocki, Bogumił Kobiela, and Halina Mikołajska, while subsequent decades produced further prominent alumni: Jerzy Bińczycki, Teresa Budzisz-Krzyżanowska, Ewa Demarczyk
, Jan Nowicki, Jan Peszek, Anna Polony, Maciej Prus, Wojciech Pszoniak
, Anna Seniuk, Jerzy Stuhr
, and Marek Walczewski. Many of its students and graduates have been involved with the emergence of new dramatic initiatives, such as the establishment of Teatr STU
and the Stanisław Witkiewicz Theatre in Zakopane
.
From its early years the Ludwik Solski Academy was a source of continuity for the Polish theatre thanks to the fact that its teaching staff often belonged to different generations including actors from before the Second World War, with many of them (i.e. Tadeusz Burnatowicz, Halina Gallowa, Władysław Krzemiński, Wacław Nowakowski and Władysław Woźnik) completing drama courses in prewar Poland. Close ties with the local theatre scene defined the unique character of the school from the very start. This uniqueness has been maintained even during the difficult period of the 1950s, when the authorities and the Soviet training model barred students from active participation in professional theatre. The directives of the Stalinist Ministry of Culture marked the introduction of Socialist Realism
in a schematic and vulgarized way. The repertoire of the Academy was narrowed down mostly to Russian and Soviet drama with no contemporary Western plays whatsoever. The repressive political climate lasted until after the Polish October
of 1956.
Close links to the leading theatres in Kraków contribute to the Academy's status. There is a direct correlation between the condition of the city's theatres and the condition of the Academy with staff composed of a fair number of Cracovian
theatre personalities whose views on drama and the teaching methods cover a wide range of philosophies. In recent years, the school has opened a new department of theatre dramaturgy.
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, was founded in 1946 by a well-known Polish actor, Juliusz Osterwa, who took the initial steps leading to the establishment of the Academy through the amalgamation of three local studios, the Theatre Actors' Studio at Stary Teatr, the Słowacki Theatre Actors' Studio, and Iwo Gall's Dramatic Studio connected with Juliusz Osterwa's Reduta Theatre.
History
The history of the Ludwik SolskiLudwik Solski
Ludwik Solski , born Ludwik Napoleon Karol Sosnowski,was a Polish stage actor and theatre director. From his stage debut in 1876 until his death he played in nearly a thousand roles.Between 1905 and 1913 he was the director-general of the municipal theatre in Cracow...
Academy began in 1946 with a three-year training course in drama for prospective actors. In 1949 the name of the school was changed to the State College of Acting (Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Aktorska), and the curriculum extended to four years. Its current name, the Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Teatralna, was determined in 1955. From 1954 to 1964 the college also provided courses in puppetry and the puppet theatre, reactivated in 1972 as an independent Puppet Theatre Faculty located in the city of Wrocław.
The new Faculty of Directing was created in 1955 and continued in its original form till 1962. In 1973 the Faculty was re-established as the Faculty of Play Directing with several students pursuing a four-year programme. The next important stage in the development of the Academy was the establishment in 1979 of the Actors' Faculty in Wrocław.
From its beginnings the Academy for the Dramatic Arts was run by some of the most prominent Polish dramatic artists, Juliusz Osterwa, Tadeusz Burnatowicz, Władysław Woźnik, Eugeniusz Fulde, Bronisław Dąbrowski, Jerzy Krasowski, Danuta Michałowska, Jerzy Trela, and Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr is one of the most popular, influential and versatile Polish actors. He also works as a screenwriter, film director and drama professor...
. The Academy's history was shaped by outstanding teachers and trainers as well as by famous theoreticians, including its own graduates who have made a substantial impact on the theatre scene in Poland and abroad. The following celebrities have also conducted practical classes in acting, directing and music: Jerzy Jarocki, Tadeusz Kantor
Tadeusz Kantor
Tadeusz Kantor was a Polish painter, assemblage artist, set designer and theatre director. Kantor is renowned for his revolutionary theatrical performances in Poland and abroad.- Life and career :...
, Mieczysław Kotlarczyk, Władysław Krzemiński, Ewa Lasek, Krystian Lupa, Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Penderecki , born November 23, 1933 in Dębica) is a Polish composer and conductor. His 1960 avant-garde Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima for string orchestra brought him to international attention, and this success was followed by acclaim for his choral St. Luke Passion. Both these...
, Anna Polony, Krystyna Skuszanka, Marta Stebnicka, Konrad Swinarski, and Roman Zawistowski. Many of these artists are still teaching at the Academy. The most important directors in the last two decades have been predominantly graduates of the school: in the 1990s these included Krystian Lupa and Mikolaj Grabowski's students Krzysztof Warlikowski, Grzegorz Jarzyna, Anna Augustynowicz and Paweł Miskiewicz, and in the first decade of the 21st century, directors Maja Kleczewska, Jan Klata and Michal Zadara
Michal Zadara
Michal Zadara is a Polish theatre director and set designer. He has worked primarily in Warsaw and Krakow, but he also staged several plays abroad, in Germany, Israel and the United States...
.
Some of the Academy's more outstanding graduates in its first decade included Zbigniew Cybulski
Zbigniew Cybulski
Zbigniew Cybulski was a Polish actor, one of the best-known and most popular personalities of the post-World War II history of Poland.-Life:...
, Jerzy Grotowski
Jerzy Grotowski
Jerzy Grotowski was a Polish theatre director and innovator of experimental theatre, the "theatre laboratory" and "poor theatre" concepts....
, Leszek Herdegen, Gustaw Holoubek, Jerzy Jarocki, Bogumił Kobiela, and Halina Mikołajska, while subsequent decades produced further prominent alumni: Jerzy Bińczycki, Teresa Budzisz-Krzyżanowska, Ewa Demarczyk
Ewa Demarczyk
Ewa Demarczyk is a Polish singer. She is generally associated with the Piwnica pod Baranami cabaret.Demarczyk is recognized as one of the most talented and charismatic singers in the history of Polish music. She is praised for her unique interpretations, expression and unusual stage personality...
, Jan Nowicki, Jan Peszek, Anna Polony, Maciej Prus, Wojciech Pszoniak
Wojciech Pszoniak
Wojciech Pszoniak , is a Polish film and theater actor.Pszoniak gained international visibility following Andrzej Wajda's 1975 film The Promised Land, in which he played Moritz, one of the three main characters....
, Anna Seniuk, Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr is one of the most popular, influential and versatile Polish actors. He also works as a screenwriter, film director and drama professor...
, and Marek Walczewski. Many of its students and graduates have been involved with the emergence of new dramatic initiatives, such as the establishment of Teatr STU
Theater Scena STU
Theater Scena STU is located at 16 Krasinskiego Street in Kraków, Poland. Established in 1966 by Krzysztof Jasiński, it started as a member of a group of nonprofessional student theaters. It is considered to be one of the city's most important cultural institutions....
and the Stanisław Witkiewicz Theatre in Zakopane
Zakopane
Zakopane , is a town in southern Poland. It lies in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. From 1975 to 1998 it was in of Nowy Sącz Province, but since 1999 it has been in Lesser Poland Province. It had a population of about 28,000 as of 2004. Zakopane is a...
.
From its early years the Ludwik Solski Academy was a source of continuity for the Polish theatre thanks to the fact that its teaching staff often belonged to different generations including actors from before the Second World War, with many of them (i.e. Tadeusz Burnatowicz, Halina Gallowa, Władysław Krzemiński, Wacław Nowakowski and Władysław Woźnik) completing drama courses in prewar Poland. Close ties with the local theatre scene defined the unique character of the school from the very start. This uniqueness has been maintained even during the difficult period of the 1950s, when the authorities and the Soviet training model barred students from active participation in professional theatre. The directives of the Stalinist Ministry of Culture marked the introduction of Socialist Realism
Socialist realism
Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism...
in a schematic and vulgarized way. The repertoire of the Academy was narrowed down mostly to Russian and Soviet drama with no contemporary Western plays whatsoever. The repressive political climate lasted until after the Polish October
Polish October
Polish October, also known as October 1956, Polish thaw, or Gomułka's thaw, marked a change in the Polish internal political scene in the second half of 1956...
of 1956.
Close links to the leading theatres in Kraków contribute to the Academy's status. There is a direct correlation between the condition of the city's theatres and the condition of the Academy with staff composed of a fair number of Cracovian
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
theatre personalities whose views on drama and the teaching methods cover a wide range of philosophies. In recent years, the school has opened a new department of theatre dramaturgy.
Organizational structure
Faculties- Faculty of Acting in KrakówKrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
- Department of Dramatic Acting
- Department of Concert Singing and Acting
- Department of Dance Theatre
- Faculty of Theatre Directing in KrakówKrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
- Department of Theatre Directing
- Department of Theatre Dramaturgy
- Department of Puppet Theatre Directing
- Faculty in Wrocław
- Department of Acting
- Department of Puppetry
- Postgraduate study of Children's Theatre Directing
Enrollment
At present the Academy recruits new students for the Actors' Faculties in Kraków and Wrocław, the Faculty of Play Directing in Kraków, and the Puppet Theatre Faculty in Wrocław. Since 1946 well over a thousand students have graduated from the Ludwik Solski Academy, and found employment on theatre stages in Poland and abroad.See also
- Polish theatre
- Teatr NarodowyTeatr NarodowyThe National Theatre in Warsaw, Poland, was founded in 1765, during the Polish Enlightenment, by that country's last monarch, Stanisław August Poniatowski.-History:...
- Juliusz Słowacki Theatre
- Culture of KrakówCulture of KrakówKraków is considered by many to be the cultural capital of Poland. It was named the European Capital of Culture by European Union for the year 2000. The city has some of the best museums in the country and several famous theaters...