Theatre History
With over a hundred years of tradition, the Poznań Opera House has, in recent seasons, been gaining an increasingly important position not only on the Polish but also on the European opera scene. Since Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska took over as director in 2012, the Poznań Opera House has significantly expanded its repertoire and become a recognizable brand, known for boldly embracing contemporary stage productions and playing the role of patron for young creators. Through its active involvement in the Opera Europa association, Poznań Opera House participates in the OperaVision project, which aims to make opera performances accessible via a streaming platform. Reviews and information about Poznań Opera House are consistently featured in media outlets in the United States, Italy, France, Denmark, and Germany. The theatre receives numerous awards annually and was recently nominated in three categories for the prestigious Opera Awards, often referred to as the “Oscars” of the opera world. The premiere of Moniuszko’s Paria (June 2019) was recognized as one of the most important events of the Moniuszko Year. Additionally, the production and its creators received five nominations for the Jan Kiepura Music Theatre Awards.
Later Performances
In its first two decades, the repertoire of Poznań Opera House included works by Polish composers and 19th-century classics of Italian, French, and German opera. During this period, twelve premieres of Polish operas and ballets were staged, including the Polish premiere of Karol Szymanowski's ballet Harnasie (April 9, 1938), as well as eighteen Polish premieres of operas and operettas, including Mozart's Così fan tutte, Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos, Borodin's Prince Igor, Verdi's The Sicilian Vespers, Puccini's La Rondine, and Gluck's Alceste. The cast and creative team were carefully selected and featured some of the finest opera artists of the time, including Karol Urbanowicz, Maria Janowska-Kopczyńska, Zygmunt Szpingier, Maksymilian Statkiewicz, Bolesław Fotygo-Folański, and Mieczysław Rozmarynowicz. They were often joined by exceptional guest artists, such as Jan Kiepura, Toti dal Monte, Mario Battistini, Wanda Wermińska, Ada Sari, Ewa Bandrowska-Turska, Adam Didur, Stefan Belina-Skupniewski, and even Pietro Mascagni, who conducted his own Cavalleria Rusticana in 1925.
Following a wartime hiatus, Poznań Opera House was the first in the country to resume artistic activity in the fall of 1945 under the leadership of Zygmunt Wojciechowski. The inaugural operatic premiere of Karol Kurpiński’s The Krakowians and the Highlanders (June 2, 1945) was preceded by a series of concerts and recitals held in the building damaged by the war. Starting with the first full postwar season, the direction of the theatre was entrusted again to Zygmunt Latoszewski, a distinguished figure on the Poznań stage. This exceptional artist, gifted with a remarkable intuition for opera management, soon enhanced the soloists’ roster with outstanding voices, including Antonina Kawecka, Stanisława Zawadzka, Jerzy Sergiusz Adamczewski, Franciszek Arno, and Marian Woźniczka. The repertoire developed under his leadership helped the theatre earn a reputation as the country’s foremost musical stage, a standing that became firmly rooted in its history and tradition. Under Latoszewski’s direction, the Poznań company performed outside its venue for the first time, giving 35 performances from its postwar repertoire to audiences in Warsaw, with several performances broadcast on the radio.
International Performances
The theatre ensemble has successfully participated in international music, theater, and ballet festivals, returning from these artistic journeys with numerous awards and honors. These include the Golden Rose from the Saint George Foundation in Venice and a special prize from the International Music Festival in Salsomaggiore for their interpretation of Verdi’s works.
The Polish premiere of Marcel Landowski's opera Galina, staged at the Poznań Opera House on May 30, 1999, received such widespread acclaim that it was invited as the only Polish opera theater production to be presented at the World Expo 2000 in Hanover.
With the appointment of Michał Znaniecki as director on July 1, 2009, Poznań Opera House entered a period of new artistic challenges, marked by numerous co-productions with leading opera stages worldwide. The 2009/2010 season opened with Verdi’s Ernani, co-produced with the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv and ABAO-OLBE in Bilbao.