Ballet studio

History

The Krakow Opera Ballet Studio was established in September 1963 by the Musical Theatre’s director, Kazimierz Kord.

The main mission of the Theatre was to promote dance culture on as wide a scale as possible and to attract young people to join its ranks. Most of all, however, it was intended to inject new blood, creating a talented backup for the Krakow Opera Ballet.

Director Kord asked Lili Beron, who looked after the teaching at the Ballet Studio, to work with the ballet company. After Beron had left, all work related to the Studio was bestowed on Maria Dimitrov, who remained in that role for nearly 40 years. Since the 2008/2009 season, Magdalena Malska has been in charge.

In the period of more than 50 years of its existence and teaching efforts, the youth educated at the Studio has joined many professional ballet companies, including the Krakow Opera, the Silesian Opera, Opera Nova in Bydgoszcz, the Grand Theatre in Łódź, the Grand Theatre in Poznań, the Gliwice Operetta, the Wrocław Operetta, the Henryk Tomaszewski Pantomime Company, and the Polish Dance Theatre – Ewa Wycichowska’s Poznań Ballet.

Many of the Studio’s graduates have also performed in Krakow’s university stage performance groups and dance groups, enjoying successes both at home and abroad. Many have gone on to become successful dance teachers and ballet-related initiative organisers.

Stage activity

The Krakow Opera Ballet Studio is also active on stage. Every year both its youngest students and graduates are given the opportunity to showcase their skills during the Ballet Studio Show, which is open to the public. These highly entertaining dance shows are a chance to witness the wide range of skills acquired at the Studio, and for the artists – to present their strengths before a real (and often demanding) audience.