Piwnica pod Baranami
Encyclopedia
The Piwnica pod Baranami (The Basement, or the Cellar under the Rams) is a Polish
literary cabaret
located in Kraków
, Poland
. For over thirty years, in the People's Republic of Poland
, Piwnica pod Baranami served as the most renowned political cabaret in the country, until the end of (and beyond) the communist era. Created by Piotr Skrzynecki in 1956, the cabaret continues its activities, contrary to rumours that it has been closed after the death of its founder in 1996. It resides at its original location in the medieval Old Town district, at the Main Market Square
(next to Vis-á-vis café).
At first, the facility was a meeting place for Kraków students. It was a club for creative youth (Klub Młodzieży Twórczej), part of the Old Town Community Centre in the Palace under Arieses. The stage was formed by young artists of many different genre
s: writers, musicians, visual artists and actors, as well as their friends and faithful audiences. After nearly fifty years Piwnica became a legend of local eccentricity, and the style of the Piwnica cabaret entered the colloquial language as the "underground (piwnica) style" of performance. An account of the cabaret performance at Piwnica is given in a 2010 book A Long, Long Time Ago & Essentially True by Brigid Pasulka.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
literary cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
located in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. For over thirty years, in the People's Republic of Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
, Piwnica pod Baranami served as the most renowned political cabaret in the country, until the end of (and beyond) the communist era. Created by Piotr Skrzynecki in 1956, the cabaret continues its activities, contrary to rumours that it has been closed after the death of its founder in 1996. It resides at its original location in the medieval Old Town district, at the Main Market Square
Main Market Square, Kraków
The Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
(next to Vis-á-vis café).
At first, the facility was a meeting place for Kraków students. It was a club for creative youth (Klub Młodzieży Twórczej), part of the Old Town Community Centre in the Palace under Arieses. The stage was formed by young artists of many different genre
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
s: writers, musicians, visual artists and actors, as well as their friends and faithful audiences. After nearly fifty years Piwnica became a legend of local eccentricity, and the style of the Piwnica cabaret entered the colloquial language as the "underground (piwnica) style" of performance. An account of the cabaret performance at Piwnica is given in a 2010 book A Long, Long Time Ago & Essentially True by Brigid Pasulka.
Artists of Piwnica pod Baranami
- Bronisław Chromy
- Ewa DemarczykEwa DemarczykEwa Demarczyk is a Polish singer. She is generally associated with the Piwnica pod Baranami cabaret.Demarczyk is recognized as one of the most talented and charismatic singers in the history of Polish music. She is praised for her unique interpretations, expression and unusual stage personality...
- Leszek Długosz
- Anna DymnaAnna DymnaAnna Dymna is a Polish TV, film and theatre actress. Foundress of a charity foundation Mimo Wszystko...
- Wiesław Dymny
- Janina Garycka
- Jan Güntner
- Krzysztof KomedaKrzysztof KomedaKrzysztof Komeda was a Polish film music composer and jazz pianist. Perhaps best-known for his work in film scores, Komeda wrote the scores for Roman Polanski’s films Rosemary’s Baby, The Fearless Vampire Killers, Knife in the Water and Cul-de-sac...
- Zygmunt KoniecznyZygmunt KoniecznyZygmunt Konieczny — Polish composer of theatre music and film music.Zygmunt Konieczny spent his childhood in the village of Szczyrzyc. He debuted in the 1950s in the cabaret Piwnica pod Baranami in Kraków. Since then Konieczny composed many pieces for film, theater performances and singers such as...
- Andrzej KurylewiczAndrzej KurylewiczAndrzej Kurylewicz , was a Polish jazz musician, composer, pianist, trombonist and conductor....
- Tadeusz Kwinta
- Kika Lelicińska
- Krzysztof Litwin
- Stanisław Radwan
- Barbara Nawratowicz
- Jan NowickiJan NowickiJan Nowicki is a Polish actor. He has appeared in 90 films and television episodes since 1967.-Selected filmography:* Colonel Wolodyjowski * Family Life * The Hour-Glass Sanatorium * Spiral...
- Maria Nowotarska
- Mirosław ObłońskiMirosław ObłońskiMirosław Obłoński is a Polish writer, poet, singer and artist associated with the Piwnica pod Baranami cabaret.He graduated from the Jagiellonian University in Kraków with a degree in history...
- Joanna Olczak - Ronikier
- Agnieszka OsieckaAgnieszka OsieckaAgnieszka Osiecka She was a poet, writer, author of theatre and television screenplays, film director and journalist...
- Krzysztof PendereckiKrzysztof PendereckiKrzysztof Penderecki , born November 23, 1933 in Dębica) is a Polish composer and conductor. His 1960 avant-garde Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima for string orchestra brought him to international attention, and this success was followed by acclaim for his choral St. Luke Passion. Both these...
- Joanna Plewińska
- Mieczysław Święcicki
- Irena Kika Szaszkiewiczowa
- Jerzy TurowiczJerzy TurowiczJerzy Turowicz was a leading Polish Catholic journalist and editor for much of the post-Second World War period.He edited the Catholic weekly Tygodnik Powszechny from 1945 until his death in 1999, with only a three-year interruption beginning in 1953....
- Andrzej WajdaAndrzej WajdaAndrzej Wajda is a Polish film director. Recipient of an honorary Oscar, he is possibly the most prominent member of the unofficial "Polish Film School"...
- Kazimierz Wiśniak
- Dorota Terakowska
- Grzegorz TurnauGrzegorz TurnauGrzegorz Turnau is a Polish composer, pianist, poet and singer.He was born on 31 July 1967 in Kraków, Poland. At age seventeen he won First Prize at The Student Song Festival in Kraków in 1984...
- Leszek Wójtowicz
- Krystyna ZachwatowiczKrystyna ZachwatowiczKrystyna Zachwatowicz-Wajda , born Krystyna Zachwatowicz, is a Polish scenographer, costume designer and actress. She is a daughter of architect and restorer Jan Zachwatowicz and Maria Chodźko h. Kościesza, and wife of film director Andrzej Wajda. Member of the Polish Film Academy. She is a...
- Andrzej Zarycki
- Dorota Ślęzak