I SET OFF ON A JOURNEY, THE ROAD IS VERY LONG by Polski Tetar Tańca

Premiere: June 05th, 2025

Location: Limes Park, Archaeological Park Viminacium, Serbia

CREDITS:

Choreography: Slawomir Juszczak

Dancers: Michelle Stolarek, Ewa Krzywicka, local dancers from Amadeus ballet school and Dance Club Royal

Costumes: Adrianna Cygankiewicz

Light design: Michał Stenzel

Music: School for elementary and middle music education ‘’Stevan Mokranjac’’

Special credits to Radmila Dordevic – writer/poet and Violetta Markovic (art historian)

Production team: Polski Teatr Tańca

The performance will be inspired by a journey through the motifs of commemoration, memory and transience born under the influence of the archaeological discoveries of Viminacium, especially the mausoleum – the burial place of the ancient Romans. The performance will be an interpretation of the feelings surrounding the site and an interpretation of the history of the ancient Romans’ handling of death. The archaeological heritage of the site will be an exploration of the theme of memory as a precious phenomenon, something that must be protected. The interpretation of architectural qualities, regional culture and the involvement of a local painter is a reflection on one’s own memories and the importance of memory in creating identity.

SŁAWOMIR JUSZCZAK

Sławomir Juszczak is a dancer and choreographer. Graduate of the faculty of Dance (dance theater actor) of the Department of Dance at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice. Graduate of the AWF in Cracow. His research work and boneXposed performance created on its basis were presented in 2024 at such festivals as DO Festival in Gdansk, Zukunft Tanzt in Frankfurt am Main, [Sic!]Saute in Warsaw. He explored the somatic approach by co-creating the 116 images that nasa wants to show aliens (Art Spaces Katowice 2023). His solo root(re)integration, was qualified for the finals of the 3…2…1…Dance! competition at the Krakow Dance Festival 2023. He collaborated with Krakow Dance Theater as a dancer and pedagogue (2023-24). He performed in performances: Tender – chor. Anna Nowak (2024), Be Water My Friend – chor. Wen Xudong (2024), Treatise – chor. Milana Tomasik (2024), To Dance Malevich – dir. Filip Jaskiewicz, chor. Julia Lewandowska (2023), Modern Baroque – chor. Monika Witkowska (2023), Translations – chor. Eryk Makohon (2023), Matrix – chor. Michał Przybyła (2023), Beaver Machines – chor. Bartłomiej Mieszczak (2023), Acis&Galatea – dir. Aleksandra Dziurosz, chor. Janusz Skubaczkowski (2022).

DANCERS

MICHELLE STOLAREK

Michelle Stolarek – dancer. (Polish-Taiwanese) is a multidisciplinary artist, dancer, and performer based in Poland. She has lived and worked in London, Paris, Mumbai, and Beijing, but has now returned to her roots. Currently, she is a student of the National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kracow Department of Dance Theatre in Bytom. Often performative, her work involves collaboration with actors, dancers, choreographers, composers, designers, and filmmakers to create interdisciplinary art. She has been gaining knowledge and experience both in Poland and abroad, working with renowned figures in the dance community. She values her meeting with Francesco Scavetta the most. She was selected in 2023 to participate in the student exchange program at the prestigious Beijing Dance Academy in China, where she majored in Chinese classical dance. In 2024, she received a scholarship for the Summer Dance Academy organized by the Krakow Dance Theater as part of the Beyond Front@ program, a Creative Europe project (2023–2026). Recipient of the Rector’s Scholarship for the Best Students of the National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kracow

EWA KRZYWICKA

Ewa Krzywicka is a dancer. Graduate of dance studies with a specialization in dancer-choreography at the AHE in Lodz. Second degree student in the field of performing arts with specialization in choreography at the Grazyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Lodz. Dancer of the Unknown Dance Theater operating in Poznan under the supervision of Katarzyna Leszek and Filip Hylewicz (‘Absolutist.’, ‘Holy melancholy’, ‘Holy melancholy: perfect families and how to find them’). Co-creator of the performance ‘Fantasia, a warm dance for the harmony and voices singing in your head’ as part of the Residency/Premiere project of the 14th Gdansk Dance Festival under the artistic supervision of Hannes Langolf. Participant in, among others, the Spaces of Art Lublin Program, Kaleidoscope Festival in Bialystok, Central Dance Stage in Warsaw, Mandala Performance Festival in Wroclaw.