Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska

Biogram

Since July 2012, Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska has served as the General Manager of the Poznań Opera House, and prior to that, she was the Deputy Artistic Manager of this institution. From 2016 to 2022, she was a member of the board of Opera Europa. Thanks to her active involvement in the association, she facilitated the Poznań Opera House's participation in the OperaVision project and collaboration with major institutions in Europe, such as La Monnaie / De Munt in Brussels, Welsh National Opera, Die Oper: Bühnen Halle, Grange Park Opera, and the Grand Theatre – National Opera in Warsaw.

Since 2017, she has been a tutor for the annual Opera Management Course. She served on the jury for the 10th edition of the European Opera-directing Prize organized by Camerata Nuova Association, and in 2019, she ensured that Moniuszko's opera "The Haunted Manor" became the theme of the next edition of the competition. In 2018, Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska represented Poland at the World Opera Forum in Madrid and was a jury member for the 73rd AsLiCo Competition for Young Opera Singers (2022), the 12th edition of the "Guido Cantelli" International Conducting Award Competition in Turin (2022), and the FEDORA Digital Prize (2023).

In June 2024, she participated in the Opera Conference & World Opera Forum in Los Angeles, where she was invited as a speaker among 60 official delegates from six continents. During the forum, discussions included the future of opera, organizational and artistic strategies considering social, technological, and cultural changes, and building communities of informed and engaged cultural audiences. Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska presented, among other things, the activities of the Poznań stage concerning the promotion of Moniuszko's legacy. She considers the promotion of the theatre's patron's works and their universal character in Poland and abroad as one of the most important aspects of the Poznań Opera House's mission.

The confirmation of the right direction in which this institution has been consistently moving for years is the International Opera Awards – the most prestigious awards in the opera world. The Poznań Opera House was twice honored with the "opera Oscars," as the IOAs are commonly known, in the "rediscovered work" category for Moniuszko's titles: the first statuette was received in 2021 for the production of "Paria" directed by Graham Vick and conducted by Maestro Gabriel Chmura, and the second in 2023 for "Jawnuta" staged by Ilaria Lanzino and conducted by Rafał Kłoczko. Key events of the Poznań Opera House promoting Moniuszko's compositional legacy include concert presentations of his operas at the Berlin Philharmonic: German and Polish audiences listened to a brilliant interpretation of "Halka" (2019 – Moniuszko Year), later were delighted with "Paria" (2023), and "The Haunted Manor" (2024). These concerts were not only well-received by music lovers but also appreciated by German media and renowned critics.

With the financial support of the Greater Poland Voivodeship Local Government and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, General Manager Borowska-Juszczyńska ensured the timely completion of a comprehensive renovation in the areas of stage mechanics, lighting, electroacoustics, and safety. The over two-year-long modernization was the largest in the Theatre's history, and the scope of the work carried out was unprecedented in cultural institutions. Thanks to the renovation, the Poznań Opera House became the first opera house in the world with an immersive 360-degree spatial sound system, L'Acoustic L-Isa Hyperreal, supported by the Ambiance acoustic system.

Renata Borowska-Juszczyńska promotes socially engaged activities and educational projects (MovINg Opera, Next Stage – Opera Matters, Opera Helps U, Fortissimo), which demonstrate how to act in a more sustainable, inclusive way, taking into account technological development, and ensuring access to art for groups often excluded, overlooked in the process of creating and receiving art, as well as promoting young creators and contemporary opera (Opera Theatre Laboratory, United States of Opera, composing commissions).

She is the founder and long-time president of the Nuova Foundation, which organizes artistic events, including the Spring Festival and Poznań Live. She also served as vice-president of the Malta Theatre Festival Foundation.

From 1997-2003, she was associated with the Henryk Wieniawski Music Society in Poznań. During this period, she co-created the Polish Artistic Presentation at EXPO in Hannover and organized the promotion of the Henryk Wieniawski Competitions at MIDEM CLASSIC fairs in Cannes, and from 2002-2003, she served as Director of the Board Office. Her earlier professional experiences include working at Polish Television, cooperating with the Four Cultures Dialogue Festival in Łódź, and co-organizing the first New Classic Form Europe Festival in Łódź.

In 2016, she received the silver medal "Labor Omnia Vincit," and in 2017, the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań awarded her the "Alumno Bene Merenti" distinction.