Tomasz Konina (23 June 1972 – 26 August 2017) was a Polish

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

and

stage designer Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained ...

Biography

Born in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

in 1972, Konina graduated from the National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw in 1996. He made both his theatre and opera debut in 1998: Chekhov's ''

Uncle Vanya ''Uncle Vanya'' ( rus, Дя́дя Ва́ня, r=Dyádya Ványa, p=ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1898, and was first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre under the direct ...

'' at the Teatr Ateneum in Warsaw and Mozart's ''

Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...

'' at the

Wrocław Opera The Wrocław Opera ( Polish: ''Opera Wrocławska'') is an opera company and opera house in the Old Town of Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in t ...

. In 2002 he was granted the scholarship of Vilar Young Artists Programme (presently: Jette Parker Young Artists Programme) at the

Royal Opera House Covent Garden The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...

in London. Graduate of the University of Economics in

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

(Managerial Postgraduate Studies on Business Management, Institute of Contemporary Management, at the Faculty of Management, 2013). From 2007 to 2015 he was the artistic and executive director of the

Jan Kochanowski Jan Kochanowski (; 1530 – 22 August 1584) was a Polish Renaissance poet who established poetic patterns that would become integral to the Polish literary language. He is commonly regarded as the greatest Polish poet before Adam Mickiewicz. Li ...

Dramatic Theater in

Opole Opole (; german: Oppeln ; szl, Ôpole) ; * Silesian: ** Silesian PLS alphabet: ''Ôpole'' ** Steuer's Silesian alphabet: ''Uopole'' * Silesian German: ''Uppeln'' * Czech: ''Opolí'' * Latin: ''Oppelia'', ''Oppolia'', ''Opulia'' is a city loc ...

Opera, operetta and music productions

* 2000 – Rossini's ''

Tancredi ''Tancredi'' is a ''melodramma eroico'' ('' opera seria'' or heroic opera) in two acts by composer Gioachino Rossini and librettist Gaetano Rossi (who was also to write ''Semiramide'' ten years later), based on Voltaire's play ''Tancrède'' (176 ...

'', Polish National Opera in Warsaw (with

Ewa Podleś Ewa Podleś (; born April 26, 1952) is a Polish coloratura contralto singer who has had an active international career both on the opera stage and in recital. She is known for the agility of her voice and a vocal range which spans more than three ...

in title role, under music direction of

Alberto Zedda Alberto Zedda (2 January 19286 March 2017) was an Italian conductor and musicologist whose specialty was the 19th-century Italian repertoire. Alberto Zedda was born in Milan, Italy, where he accomplished his education in music and humanities, com ...

) * 2001 – Boito's ''

Mefistofele ''Mefistofele'' () is an opera in a prologue and five acts, later reduced to four acts and an epilogue, the only completed opera with music by the Italian composer-librettist Arrigo Boito (there are several completed operas for which he was libret ...

'', Opera Nova in

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...

* 2002 – Beethoven's ''

Fidelio ''Fidelio'' (; ), originally titled ' (''Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love''), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with ...

'',

Grand Theatre, Poznań Grand Theatre, Poznań (Polish: ''Teatr Wielki im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Poznaniu'') is a neoclassical opera house located in Poznań, Poland. It is named after famous Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko. History Designed by German architec ...

* 2004 – Cilea's ''

Adriana Lecouvreur ''Adriana Lecouvreur'' () is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the 1849 play ''Adrienne Lecouvreur'' by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé. It was first performed on 6 November 1902 at t ...

'',

Grand Theatre, Łódź ''Teatr Wielki w Łodzi'' (The Grand Theater in Łódź) is an opera house in Łódź, Poland. It is the largest theatre in the city, specialising in opera, operetta and ballet. History It was opened on 19 January 1967 and by the end of 2005 it ...

* 2005 – Verdi's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'', Grand Theatre, Łódź * 2005 – Lehar's ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' (german: Die lustige Witwe, links=no ) is an operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt t ...

'', Music Theatre in

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canti ...

* 2006 – Verdi's ''

La traviata ''La traviata'' (; ''The Fallen Woman'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ''La Dame aux camélias'' (1852), a play by Alexandre Dumas ''fils'' adapted from his own 18 ...

'',

* 2007 – ''Be like Callas'' (based on own scenario), Music Theatre in Łódź * 2013 – Verdi's ''

Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

'',

* 2014 – Boito's ''

,'' Cracow Opera * 2015 – Strauss's ''

The Gypsy Baron ''The Gypsy Baron'' () is an operetta in three acts by Johann Strauss II which premiered at the Theater an der Wien on 24 October 1885. Its German libretto by Ignaz Schnitzer is based on the unpublished 1883 story ''Saffi'' by Mór Jókai. Jokai ...

,'' Grand Theatre, Łódź * 2015 – Boito's ''

'' z

Trondheim Symphony Orchestra The Trondheim Symphony Orchestra & Opera ( Norwegian: ''Trondheim Symfoniorkester & Opera'') is a Norwegian orchestra based in Trondheim, Norway. Its principal concert venue is the Olavshallen. The orchestra is organised as a trust and receives p ...

* 2017 – Verdi's ''

La forza del destino ' (; ''The Power of Fate'', often translated ''The Force of Destiny'') is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, ' (1835), by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas, wi ...

'',

Silesian Opera Silesian Opera in Bytom ( pl, Opera Śląska w Bytomiu) is an opera company in Bytom, Silesia, Poland, that was founded in 1945. Its home is the former City Theatre, designed by architect Albert Bohm, that was built in Neoclassical style between ...

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', german: Beuthen O.S.) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital ...

Konina directed many works which had never been staged in Poland before: * 2002 – Debussy's ''

Pelléas and Mélisande ''Pelléas and Mélisande'' (french: Pelléas et Mélisande) is a Symbolist play by Maurice Maeterlinck about the forbidden, doomed love of the title characters. It was first performed in 1893. The work never achieved great success on the stage, ...

'', Polish National Opera, Warsaw * 2003 – Rossini's ''

Il viaggio a Reims ''Il viaggio a Reims, ossia L'albergo del giglio d'oro'' (''The Journey to Reims, or The Hotel of the Golden Fleur-de-lis'') is an operatic dramma giocoso, originally performed in three acts,Janet Johnson: ''A Lost Masterpiece Recovered'', pp. 37 ...

'', Polish National Opera, Warsaw (with Ewa Podleś as Marchesa Melibea, under music direction of Alberto Zedda) * 2005 – Ullmann's ''

The Emperor of Atlantis ' (''The Emperor of Atlantis or The Disobedience of Death'') is a one-act opera by Viktor Ullmann with a libretto by Peter Kien. They collaborated on the work while interned in the Nazi concentration camp of Theresienstadt concentration camp, There ...

'',

Warsaw Chamber Opera The Warsaw Chamber Opera ( pl, Warszawska Opera Kameralna, WOK) is a Polish opera company founded in 1961 by Stefan Sutkowski, its managing and artistic director from its inception until his retirement in 2012. On 15 October 1986, the Warsaw Cham ...

* 2005 – Bernstein's ''

Candide ( , ) is a French satire written by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment, first published in 1759. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled ''Candide: or, All for the Best'' (1759); ''Candide: or, The ...

'', Grand Theatre, Łódź * 2010 – Ptaszynska's ''The Lovers From the Valldemosa Monastery'', Grand Theatre, Łódź

Theatre productions

* 2001 – Suassuna's ''A Dog's Will'',

Cyprian Kamil Norwid Cyprian Kamil Norwid, a.k.a. Cyprian Konstanty Norwid (; 24 September 1821 – 23 May 1883), was a nationally esteemed Polish poet, dramatist, painter, and sculptor. He was born in the Masovian village of Laskowo-Głuchy near Warsaw. One of hi ...

Theatre in

Jelenia Góra Jelenia Góra (pron. ; Polish: ; german: Hirschberg im Riesengebirge; Exonym: ''Deer Mountain''; szl, Jelyniŏ Gōra) is a historic city in southwestern Poland, within the historical region of Lower Silesia. Jelenia Góra is situated in the Low ...

* 2008 – Schimmelphennig's ''For a Better World'',

Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2008 – Chekhov's ''

The Cherry Orchard ''The Cherry Orchard'' (russian: Вишнёвый сад, translit=Vishnyovyi sad) is the last play by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1903, it was first published by ''Znaniye'' (Book Two, 1904), and came out as a separate edition ...

'', Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2009 – Dumas's ''

The Lady of the Camellias ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article An article is any member ...

,'' Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2009 – Dostoevsky's ''

The Idiot ''The Idiot'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Идиот, Idiót) is a novel by the 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published serially in the journal ''The Russian Messenger'' in 1868–69. The title is an ...

,'' Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2009 – Iwaszkiewicz's ''The Maids of Wilko'', Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2010 – Andersen's ''

The Snow Queen "The Snow Queen" ( da, Snedronningen) is an original fairy tale by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It was first published 21 December 1844 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. Second Collection'' (''Nye Eventyr. Første Bind. Anden Samli ...

'', Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2013 –

Lewis's Lewis's was a chain of British department stores that operated from 1856 to 2010. The owners of Lewis's have gone into administration many times over the years, including 1991. The first store, which opened in Liverpool city centre, became ...

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' (1950–1956). Among all the ...

'', Jan Kochanowski Dramatic Theater in Opole * 2014 – Andersen's ''

'',

Teatr Polski Polish Theatre in Warsaw ( pl, Teatr Polski im. Arnolda Szyfmana w Warszawie) is a theatre in Warsaw, Poland. It is located at ul. Karasia 2. The current artistic director is Andrzej Seweryn. The theatre was initiated by Arnold Szyfman and design ...

in Warsaw

Other

As a manager, he initiated cooperation with a number of important theatre festivals: *

Shakespeare's Globe Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse for which William Shakespeare wrote his plays, in the London Borough of Southwark, on the south bank of the River Thames. The original theatre was built in ...

in London * Seoul Performing Arts Festival in Korea * Tbilisi International Festival of Theatre in Georgia *

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theatre founded in 1961 by Ellen Stewart, African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer. Located in Manhattan's East Village, the theatre began in the ...

in New York * The Studio Players in Istanbul * Teatr International Festival Minsk in Belarus * Istanbul Theatre Festival in Turkey * Uijeongbu International Music Theatre Festival in Korea * Eurothalia Theatre Festival Timișoara in Romania As director of the theatre in Opole he invited the cooperation of many famous artists like:

Agnieszka Holland Agnieszka Holland (born 28 November 1948) is a Poles, Polish film and television director and screenwriter, best known for her political contributions to Polish cinema. She began her career as assistant to directors Krzysztof Zanussi and Andrzej ...

, Maja Kleczewska, Aleksandra Konieczna, Monika Strzępka, , , , ,

Jacek Poniedziałek Jacek Poniedziałek (born 6 August 1965, Kraków) is a Polish film, theatre and television actor as well as a theatre director and translator. Life and career He was born on 6 August 1965 in Kraków and grew up in the city's Olsza II District. ...

, , and many others. He has enabled many theatrical debuts for people who have later become recognised artists, such as , Paweł Świątek and Jędrzej Piaskowski.

Sources

Tomasz Konina in ''Polish Theatre Encyclopedia''

Portal Operabase – list of Tomasz Konina opera productions

List of Tomasz Konina productions in Polish National Opera Archives

* [http://trubadur.pl/archiwum-trubadura/biul-20/conversation-with-tomasz-konina ''Scores written by geniuses are always contemporary'' – conversation with Tomasz Konina (English version), ''Trubadur'', 3(20)/2001]

References

External links

*
Tomasz Konina's profile of Trulinked / Classical Music
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Konina, Tomasz Polish opera directors People from Warsaw Polish theatre directors 1972 births 2017 deaths