Description of the Project

Iwona Borowicka (1928 – 1984) was an exceptional Artist. Professionally bound mainly with the Operetta in Cracow, where she made a number of unique, perhaps model artistic creations. Her artistic skills were compared only to the most renowned personalities of the Polish operetta and she gained widespread recognition by both critics and audiences. People went to the Operetta for Iwona Borowicka.

One of the objectives of the CZARDASZ Foundation is to preserve the memory of renowned Polish artists, that is why the Foundation attempted to bring back and preserve the memory of this excellent singer, who is still remembered, often with a touch of tenderness, by music and musical theatre lovers. The traces of her are scattered in preserved reviews, interviews, a few recordings (mostly stored in vast archives of the Polish Radio) as well as in the passing memories of her friends, partners and acquaintances.

The initiator and main organizer of celebration of The Year of Iwona Borowicka is The Polish Artists Assistance Foundation CZARDASZ, whilst its co-organizers are:

The patronage of honour for the Year was taken up by: The Mayor of the City of Cracow Professor Jacek Majchrowski and the artists' priest, mitrate Jerzy Bryła, and, over the competition itself – the voivode of Małopolska Jerzy Adamik.

Collecting these traces, putting them in order and preserving them in a book and a CD album with archival records of the Artist is an unprecedented undertaking. These publications had been long awaited in the environment and enjoy great popularity. The promotion of the book took place on 5 June 2004 at The Historical Museum of the City of Cracow – Branch Dom Pod Krzyżem, ul. Szpitalna 21, and of the album – 30 November 2004 at the Cracow Philharmonic.

In the period from 2 June to 30 September the first exhibition, after the Artist's death took place, exhibiting preserved photos and documents, which show the course of her singing and artistic career, her costumes and the designs of those costumes (coming from the theatrical collection of the museum and archive of the Cracow Opera), as well as personal items, made available by the Artist's family. The exhibition made it possible to recall this renowned Cracow Artist.

During the period of the anniversary celebrations numerous meetings of a retrospective character took place. They were organized at cultural centres in the city, illustrated by lectures, vocal recitals, recordings, interviews with partners and people close to the Artist.

The first concert took place on 26 January 2004 at ŚOK cultural centre (the place of the last concert of Iwona Borowicka).

On 27 February 2004 at the Cracow Opera, on the stage located at ul. Lubicz 48, a spectacle entitled The Czardas Princess, dedicated to the memory of Iwona Borowicka, was shown.

On 30 August 2004, in Saint Florian Church at Pl. Matejki (exactly on the anniversary of her death) Holy Mass combined with the memories of the Artist and a short recital of sacred music dedicated to her was held.

In September, on the Artist's vernacular stage there were Gala Concerts entitled The charm of old memories.

IWONA BOROWICKA – on the anniversary of her death

30 August 2004 is the twentieth anniversary of Iwona Borowicka's death – the Great Prima Donna of Cracow and Polish Operetta. She died too soon, she was only 55 years old and, until the end, she gave concerts, played and sang. She was buried in Rakowicki Cemetary, in the Alley of Meritorious Citizens. There are always flowers and candles on her grave, put there by her numerous adoring fans who remember her and bid her such an emotional farewell. More than 15 thousand Cracovians attended her funeral!

She was born in Łódź, where she received musical and vocal education, began her artistic life and performed in operetta for the first time (Arsena in The Gypsy Baron by J. Strauss). She was spotted there by Anatol Wroński, who, at that time, organized the Cracow Operetta and persuaded her to move to Cracow. This took place in 1954, and, since that time, she remained faithful to our city for the following 30 years.

In Cracow, she made her debut in the title role in Countess Maritza by E. Kalman and immediately became the audience's favourite. Her natural grace, excellent vocal and moderation in acting are the basic qualities of her artistic skills, repeated many times in the following, successful premieres, such as Liza in The Land of Smiles, Hanna in The Merry Widow, the title role of The Circus Princess, Annina in A Night in Venice, Victoria in Victoria and her Hussar, Sylva in The Czardas Princess, Susanna in The Chaste Susanna, Saffi in The Gypsy Baron, Gabrielle in Vienna Blood. In total, there were 37 roles on the Cracow stage. They all contributed to strengthening her high artistic position, made her vocal and acting famous and drew lots of fans. She always fascinated the audience and listeners with her temperament, energy, beauty and voice and she could always count on her fans' mutuality. In Cracow, people went to the Operetta for Borowicka.

She had excellent reviews and, indeed, she deserved them: a beautiful voice of a dark, metallic sound, a large scale and wide volume, perfect diction and reliability in acting. She enchanted both audiences and partners. As for the latter, she always had excellent ones: Kazimierz Rogowski, Kazimierz Pustelak, Roman Węgrzyn, Janusz Żełobowski, Edward Adler, Włodzimierz Kotarba.

Iwona Borowicka is still alive in the memory of music lovers. Though not present physically, shrouded in the legend of a great star, she still shines, being a style for herself in any role. Her creations, even peripheral ones, although they are no longer vividly applauded and not all of them were recorded, are still remembered, constituting a unique point of reference and a model to follow. They are the ones to which contemporary productions and creations of present-day artists are compared. And long may it last!

Jacek Chodorowski

Co-organizers of The Year of Iwona Borowicka

Events completed within the celebration of The Year of Iwona Borowicka

The Operetta Competition

An exceptional event on a national scale was The Iwona Borowicka First Polish Nationwide Operetta and Musical Music Performance Competition, which took place between 3 and 5 November 2004. The final of the competition, crowned with the gala concert with laureates and operetta guest stars, which had been invited, took place on 7 November on the stage at ul. Lubicz.

The competition was a presentation of the skills and possibilities of contemporary artists of musical stages presenting this kind of performances. It became an interesting and valuable experience for vocal and theatrical academies of music, which educate potential operetta soloists, providing methodological and practical guidelines to teachers and learners in this area of music. As a cyclical and media event, the competition promotes young artists, enabling them a start in the profession and popularizes this type of music in the Polish society. It is possible that it will become a flagship event for Cracow in the united Europe through the music which integrates all representatives of this kind of art.

The Competition was not a one–off event. The second edition is being prepared at the moment. The Foundation undertakes activities which aim at the holding the competition every two years. The periods between the competitions will be filled with a cycle of concerts promoting the laureates The traces of Iwona Borowicka.

I Edition – 2004

II Edition – 2006

III Edition – 2008

Jacek Chodorowski