ZYGMUNT DUCZYŃSKI

Zygmunt Duczyński (1951-2006) - founder of the Kana Theatre, author of scripts and directors of all performances of the Kana Theatre, founder of the Kana Theatrical Centre and author of all artistic project accomplished there.

Since 1979 (the year The Kana Theatre was established) he continued his artistic and workshop activity, preparing new performances and training the team of actors to work on stage. The most important performances he directed include "Spektakl" ["A Performance"] (1979); "Abaddon" (1981); "Księga o życiu, śmierci i twórzosci Osipa Mandelsztama" ["The Book of Life and Death and Art of Ospi Mandelstam"] (1982); "Czarne Światła" ["Black Light'] (1985); "Bezsenność" ["Sleeplessness"] (1987 - street performance); "Moskwa - Pietuszki" ["Moscow-Petushki"] (1989); "Noc" ["Night"] (1993); "Szlifierze Nocnych Diamentów" ["Cutters of Night Diamonds"] (1997); "Ja, Henryk Bilke" ["Me, Henryk Bilke"] (2000); "J.P. odkrywa Amerykę" ["J.P. Discovers America"] (2000); "Rajski Ptak" ["Bird of Paradise"] (2000), "Miłość Fedry" ["Phaedra's Love"] (2002); "Widmokrąg" ["The Circle of Ghots"] (outdoor performance - 2003).

"Moscow-Petushki" and "Night" were presented in all most important festivals in Poland, and several times in Great Britain, USA, the Netherlands, Russia, and Germany, gaining enthusiastic reviews in such newspapers and magazines as "The Times", "Los Angeles Times", "Los Angeles Weekly", "The Herald", "The Scotsman", "Backstage" (Critics Picks Award for the best performance of the week in Los Angeles - February 1997).

"Noc" won two main prizes of the World Festival of Art in Edinburgh in 1994: First Fringe and Critics Award, and in 1995 it was performed there again, honorably invited by the organizers. The same year "Night" was the opening performance of the British Festival of Visual Theatre in London and the International Theatrical Festival in Nitra (Slovakia).

Zygmunt Duczyński received the Aritsitc Award of the Szczecin City Mayor, and the winner of the "Outstanding" title in the plebiscite organized by the journalists of a local newspaper "Głos Szczeciński".

Besides directing of performances Zygmunt Duczyński was also the organizer of the Theatrical Centre. He changed convention of the All-Polish Festival of Small Theatre Form KONTRAPUNKT and the member the Artistic Committee of the festival; the new name of the festival, KONTRAPUNKT, invented by him.