The Groteska Puppet, Mask and Actor Theatre in Kraków is one of the earliest and the most renowned puppet theatres in Poland. It was founded in 1945 by outstanding theatre artists Zofia and Władysław Jarema – stage directors and pioneers of the modern concept of puppet art and artistic theatre in post-war Poland.  

From the very beginning the artistic vision of the theatre has been co-created by such artists and stage designers as Kazimierz Mikulski, Jerzy Skarżyński, Lidia Minticz and Ali Bunsch. The theatre repertoire was basically addressed to children while, at the same time, reached for new forms of the mask and actor theatre, appealing to an adult audience. Some outstanding productions of the Groteska Theatre under the Jaremas include the staging of works by  Sławomir Mrożek, Tadeusz Różewicz, Konstanty Idefons Gałczyński, Bertolt Brecht and Alfred Jarry. The next Director, Freda Leniewicz, focused on a repertoire for children. Under Director Jan Polewka, an outstanding artist and producer, Groteska’s productions were inspired by Oriental art, comedia dell’arte and Spanish painting.

Since 1988, Adolf Weltschek has been the theatre director at Groteska. He is a graduate of philology and stage direction studies. His idea of theatre goes far beyond the stage itself. He addresses his theatrical productions at Groteska to a multi-generational audience. Performances for children and young people offer interesting themes using various forms of theatrical expression – various techniques of puppet animation, masks and costumes are of major importance for Groteska’s stage productions. A separate stage for the adult audience is active, offering pieces by Sophocles, Voltaire, Mikhail Bulhakov and other world-renowned writers. This stage shows how powerful effects can be achieved when sophisticated form is applied to a traditional grand repertoire. Groteska is a theatre with a focus on visual arts – the form, colour, texture and movement combine in constant pursuit for new means of theatrical expression. This approach helps to overcome language barriers.

Currently numerous eminent stage directors, stage designers and composers from Poland and abroad work with the theatre. Groteska enjoys great interest from the audience; performances are often fully booked. The theatre gives around 450 performances annually for an audience of nearly 100,000 and has been an award-winner at many theatre festivals.  

An Off Stage (Scena Of) also operates dynamically at Groteska. This stage hosts cabaret artists and concert singers. Every year in February the theatre organises a very popular cabaret performance – Reality Shopka Szoł – in which local politicians appear on stage as actors. In June a highly spectacular outdoor show is given - the Dragons’ Parade. It is addressed to a mass audience and watched by around 60,000 spectators each year.

The theatre also runs extensive educational activities addressed to children, young people and teachers (including numerous workshops and competitions on theatrical themes).  It also participates in a number of theatrical actions in public spaces. Groteska is involved in the preparation for the organisation of international projects – the Festival of the Theatre of Form   (planned for October 2010) and thematic seminars (the upcoming project, the Days of Shadow, is planned for May 2009). These projects are aimed to show a puppet theatre in a wider cultural context.

Due to the various streams of its activity, the Groteska Puppet, Mask and Actor Theatre fully deserves the title of a modern theatrical centre.

 

In 2000, the Groteska Puppet, Mask and Actor Theatre launched the idea of the Grand Dragon Parade and has been its organiser ever since. This annual event is addressed to a broad audience and attracts tens of thousands of spectators every year. On one weekend hundreds of dragons arrive in the mediaeval royal city of Kraków. Dragons of different colours, shapes and sizes fill the city for two days of June, completely changing the city’s atmosphere.

The most spectacular event of the dragons’ festival is a sound-and-light show on the water held one day at dusk. Enormous dragons float on the Vistula or hover in the air. The gigantic dragons, sometimes as long as 25 m and as tall as 15 m, are operated on the Vistula river band at the foothill of Wawel. Dynamic dragons are put in motion from barges dashing through the river, and jet skis. Atmospheric music, and an extravaganza of fireworks and laser effects attracting crowds of excited spectators combine to make the dragon show an unforgettable experience.

An extremely important part of the event is a parade featuring dragons, knights and princesses presented by children and young people at the historic centre of Kraków. All the dragons, designed and built by participants of the parade, compete for the title of the finest and most inventive. Over a thousand children take part in the dragon procession along the city’s streets. They are accompanied by various artists; dancers, musicians, jugglers and stilt-walkers. A Dragon Family Picnic continues for two days on the bank of the Vistula. A knight tournament, competitions and concerts also feature on the picnic’s programme.

In 2007, the Groteska Theatre organised the 8th International Dragon Parade titled Myths and Legends of Europe. This international project was possible thanks to financial support obtained under the European Commission Programme Culture 2000. The project was co-organised by the St. Patrick Festival in Dublin, Ireland, and Divadlo Maškaron from Prague, the Czech Republic, in partnership with Teatro do Elefante from Setúbal, Portugal, the Heart of the Dragon of Newcastle, Emlyn, Wales, UK, and the Arlekin Theatre from Łódź, Poland. During the first part of the project many educational and artistic workshops on the roots of contemporary European culture were held in partner countries. Dragon figures were designed and scenarios for performances produced. International cooperation resulted in the production of three outdoor events: in March in Dublin (on St Patrick’s Day), in June in Kraków (the 750th anniversary of Kraków being granted its town charter), and in September in Prague. Accompanied by light, music and firework effects, Kraków dragons, Irish sea snakes and water creatures from Czech legends floated on the waters of the Liffey, Vistula and Vltava rivers. All these events were given wide media coverage, and the Kraków show was broadcasted on the Internet. The project reached an audience of around 600,000 in five countries – Ireland, Portugal, Great Britain, the Czech Republic and Poland. 

Organisers of the dragons’ festival in Kraków plan to promote the Grand Dragon Parade in other cities and countries and seek inspiration in legends about dragons in other cultures.