Waldemar Dąbrowski
Polish National Opera
Director
Waldemar Dąbrowski is the Director of the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera, organizer of cultural activities, politician, minister of culture in 2002–2005. As minister of culture, he developed a system for financing infrastructural projects in culture from European funds and the Norway Grants, which resulted in more than 700 projects all over Poland.
In the 1980s, he ran the Studio Arts Centre together with Jerzy Grzegorzewski. He co-founded the Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra with Franciszek Wybrańczyk and chaired the Chopin Year 2010 celebrations, beginning his activity as a manager and organiser of culture in the 1970s when he became head of the Riviera-Remont student club.
During his tenure, the Polish National Opera received its first nomination for the International Opera Awards (the opera equivalent of the Oscars) in 2016, in the best opera company category, while the opera house’s artistic director, Mariusz Treliński, was chosen the world’s best opera director in the same prestigious contest in 2018.
In 2017 he was appointed representative in charge of organising the celebration of 2019 as the Year of Stanisław Moniuszko, as announced by a resolution of the Polish parliament.
He also initiated the launch of the vod.teatrwielki.pl platform streaming works by the greatest Polish composers. This was a consequence of a consistent repertoire policy under which the Warsaw opera house produced works such as Halka, The Miracle or Cracovians and Highlanders, The Haunted Manor, and Goplana. This last production directed by Janusz Wiśniewski received the International Opera Award for best rediscovered work in May 2017.
In 2019, he received the International Opera Award for leadership in opera, for special achievements in running an opera company.
In the 1980s, he ran the Studio Arts Centre together with Jerzy Grzegorzewski. He co-founded the Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra with Franciszek Wybrańczyk and chaired the Chopin Year 2010 celebrations, beginning his activity as a manager and organiser of culture in the 1970s when he became head of the Riviera-Remont student club.
During his tenure, the Polish National Opera received its first nomination for the International Opera Awards (the opera equivalent of the Oscars) in 2016, in the best opera company category, while the opera house’s artistic director, Mariusz Treliński, was chosen the world’s best opera director in the same prestigious contest in 2018.
In 2017 he was appointed representative in charge of organising the celebration of 2019 as the Year of Stanisław Moniuszko, as announced by a resolution of the Polish parliament.
He also initiated the launch of the vod.teatrwielki.pl platform streaming works by the greatest Polish composers. This was a consequence of a consistent repertoire policy under which the Warsaw opera house produced works such as Halka, The Miracle or Cracovians and Highlanders, The Haunted Manor, and Goplana. This last production directed by Janusz Wiśniewski received the International Opera Award for best rediscovered work in May 2017.
In 2019, he received the International Opera Award for leadership in opera, for special achievements in running an opera company.