Cruise

PREMIERE of the concert “CRUISE” by MUR/BETON & Gadający Pies | Poland

Concept and lyrics: Konrad Dworakowski

Music: Piotr Klimek

Cast: Przemysław Buksiński, Maciej Cempura, Joanna Chmielecka, Konrad Dworakowski, Michał Jóźwik, Piotr Klimek, Małgorzata Pawluk & guests

Premiere: August 18, 2023, International Theatre Festival Retroperspektywy

Date: 18.08.2023 / Friday

Time: 9 pm

Place: Outdoor stage in Art Factory in Lodz

Admission: free

Duration: 60 minutes

Viewers' age: no limitations

DESCRIPTION OF THE CONCERT

Concert “CRUISE” (“Rejs”)  by MUR/BETON & Gadający Pies (CONCRETE/WALL & Talking Dog) is a musical-literary project illustrating the author’s vision of the city as a metaphor of the human fate. Committed projects in the area of socio-cultural revitalisation, resulted in the formation of a collective of artists interested in creating a new language for urban narratives. Compilation of an experimental method of working with the local community, as well as methods based on the experience of improvisation and storytelling, created the figure of the Talking Dog. It - the collector and carrier of stories - launches a story about the city presented in the form of a backyard musical, this time focusing primarily on the emotions of residents and interpersonal relationships. The Talking Dog is a collective alter ego of the authors of the project, which processes, metaphorises, twists and confabulates collected stories to save what is the most important for the Dog - the story told by the human voice. Performative singing by the MUR/BETON collective is realised as a part of the Art Scholarship of the City of Lodz 2023.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Konrad Dworakowski - director and actor, graduate and teacher of the Białystok Department of Puppet - Theatre Arts at The Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw. Teacher at the Grazyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz University of Music in Lodz, and of the Theatre Education at the Institute of Polish Culture of University of Warsaw. In 2003-2005 he was the artistic director of Guliwer Puppet Theatre in Warsaw. He has directed in puppet and dramatic theatres in Poland and abroad. The most important productions: “Mikrokosmos / Microcosm”, “Hydrokosmos / Hydrocosm” of the Pantomime Theatre in Wroclaw, “Balladyny i romanse / Balladynas and Romances”, “Bruno Schulz - Historia występnej wyobraźni / Bruno Schulz - History of Immoral Imagination”, “Chłopcy z Placu Broni / The Paul Street Boys”, “Don Kichot” of Pinocchio Theatre in Lodz, “Król Maciuś I / King Matt the First” of Banialuka Theatre in Bielsko-Biała and “Dumanowski side A” of Stary Theatre in Kraków. Konrad Dworakowski is the author of scenarios and lyrics, he writes both for children and adults. He also conducts his own workshops on the theatre of form. He was the director of Teatr Pinokio in Lodz in the years 2009-2019. The originator of projects related to social and cultural revitalization in Lodz, Wałbrzych and Katowice (including “Punkty Kultury / Culture Points”, “Wjeżdżamy w bramy / We enter the gates”, “Bramogranie / Playing at the gates”). The originator and artistic director of the International Festival “Teatralna Karuzela / Theatrical Merry-go-round”.

Piotr Klimek - a composer and a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire in the Hague (1997) and Ignacy Jan Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznań (institute of composition in the class of Grażyna Pstrokońska-Navratil). He received his Ph.D. of Musical Arts in the discipline of composition in 2003 (Ignacy Jan Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznań). He has had his extra one-to-one tutorials with Prof. Marek Jasiński and Prof. Włodzimierz Kotoński. Since 1998 he has been a lecturer of musical subjects at the University of Szczecin and the Academy of Art in Szczecin. A visiting professor of composition at the Royal Conservatoire in the Hague in 2003 and the Zurich University of Arts in 2009. As of 2009 a visiting professor at West Pomeranian University of Technology, Szczecin. He cooperates with the National Academies of Dramatic Art in Warsaw and Krakow. A musical consultant of cultural institutions in Szczecin. The director of Centre for Promotion and Development at the Academy of Art in Szczecin between the years 2010 and 2011 and as of 2012 Artistic Affairs and International relations Deputy Chancellor of that entity. The director of Animation Theatre (Teatr Animacji) in Poznań since 2017. The grant holder of Friends of Szczecin Society Burgemeester van Kolfschotenfonds, Stefan Batory Foundation, Stiftung Kulturfonds Berlin and Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst. Writes symphonic music, choral, chamber and electronic music. As of 1991 strongly connected with the theatre, wrote music for more than 200 theatre performances in-house and outside. Creates installations and sound events, takes part in the projects on the brink of various art disciplines. Runs an original, experimental program of musical education for the deaf. 

Przemysław Buksiński - activity organiser, organiser of artistic and performative projects. Lecturer at the Maria Curie Skłodowska University. President of the Poławiacze Pereł Improv Teatr Foundation. He specialises in theatrical techniques and methods. Together with Pinocchio Theatre in Lodz, Poddańczy Theatre in Bialystok and Puppet and Actor Theatre in Walbrzych he co-created projects for the artistically excluded local communities, for example: “Bramaturgia”, “We are entering the gates”, “We are sweeping the backyards”. He implements projects combining a story of place and people with the theatrical improvisation techniques: “ImprOpowieści Lubelskie i Dominikańskie”, “Old City Legends”. The culture of the spoken word instructor and the laureate of Nationwide Polish Recitation Contests. As the actor he cooperates with such theatre directors as: Łukasz Witt-Michałowski, Paweł Passini, Jerzy Satanowski, Joanna Lewicka, Konrad Dworakowski. He has learned theatrical improvisation from a Canadian group “Uncolled for Improv”. He founded one of the first improv groups in Poland “No Potatoes”. The founder of Poławiacze Pereł Improv Theatre, which implements theatrical projects about the history of cities, i.a.: “The Legend of the Devil’s Handprint”, “Lublin Capital City” and arranges training on practical and stage improvisation techniques for companies and cultural institutions.

Ma­ciej Szy­mon Cem­pu­ra - gra­du­ate of the Ac­cor­dion Class in Mu­sic Scho­ol in Płock and the Alek­san­der Ze­lwe­ro­wicz The­atre Aca­de­my Branch in Bia­ły­stok of the Fa­cul­ty in Ac­ting. He is the au­thor of mu­sic for some in­de­pen­dent the­atre pro­duc­tions: "Wen­dy", "Mid­sum­mer Ni­ght’s Dre­am" (di­rec­ted by the en­sem­ble), "The Mis­fits”, "Ro­man­ce" (di­rec­ted by Na­ta­lia Sa­ko­wicz). As a com­po­ser or as­si­stant com­po­ser, he works with di­rec­tors such as Kon­rad Dwo­ra­kow­ski ("Bal­la­dy­na" in The Aloj­zy Smol­ka Opo­le Pup­pet The­atre), Pa­weł Aigner ("Cy­ra­no de Ber­ge­rac" sta­ged in The Po­lish The­atre in Biel­sko-Bia­ła, "Oże­nek" sta­ged in The Mia­sto The­atre in Gli­wi­ce), Ju­sty­na Żar ("Cin­de­rel­la" with Dra­ma The­atre in Bia­ły­stok), fur­ther with Ma­rek Idzi­kow­ski ("Je­zio­ro Zło­tych Ryb" [transl. The Lake of the Gol­den Fi­shes”] in Bia­ły­stok Pup­pet The­atre), Anna No­wic­ka ("Smo­ki" / "Dra­gons"] in Ba­nia­lu­ka Pup­pet The­atre in Biel­sko-Bia­ła). On top, he wor­ked with Ani­ta Pio­trow­ska ("Ga­pi­szon i Zu­zia” Ani­ma­tion The­atre in Po­znań, "Wło­sy Mamy” Ba­nia­lu­ka Pup­pet The­atre in Biel­sko-Bia­ła), To­masz Ka­czo­row­ski ("Kró­lo­wa Śnie­gu” / "Snow Whi­te" in The Aloj­zy Smol­ka Opo­le Pup­pet The­atre). Cem­pu­ra is also the au­thor of the solo pa­ra­the­atri­cal con­cert en­ti­tled: "ME­TAL".

Joanna Chmielecka - actress, vocalist. She gained her first stage experience at the Anilis Theatre (director: Anna Ciszowska). A graduate of Cultural Studies at the University of Lodz, her diploma thesis was the best theatrical thesis of 2008/09. Since 2008, she has been working at the CHOREA Theater and Fabryka Sztuki in Lodz as a coordinator and producer of artistic and educational projects. Since 2010, she has been working on the International Theater Festival Retroperspektywy. In the years 2008-23 she played in over 35 CHOREA Theatre and music productions. Since 2015, she has been regularly working in projects created by director Konrad Dworakowski, composer Piotr Klimek and stage designer Marika Wojciechowska. In 2015-19 she performed in spectacles and concerts of the Pinocchio Theatre in Lodz. In 2019, in a duet with Tomasz Rodowicz, she directed and performs in the play “me, god”, based on Jerzy Grotowski's texts. Since 2020, she has been performing in the play “ The Lady of the Flies” at the Ludowy Theatre in Krakow. She has collaborated with directors: Ewgienij Korniag, Ruthie Osterman, Robert M. Hayden, Jim Ennis, Waldemar Raźniak, Juni Dahr, Łukasz Kos, Paweł Głowaty, Przemysław Buksiński; and composers: Tomasz Krzyżanowski, Monika Dalach, Verity Standen, Zorka Wollny, Igor Gawlikowski, Łukasz Lach, Grzegorz Fajngold. In 2022, she received the “Silver Ring” award for the best theatre actress of the 2021/22 season.

The project is realised in terms of the Artistic Scholarship of the President of the City of Lodz 2023.