Dada von Bzdülöw Theatre was founded in 1993 by artistic directors Leszek Bzdyl and Katarzyna Chmielewska. The company's performances have their origin in the theatrical tradition, while their basic language of communication is rooted in contemporary dance. Dada von Bzdülöw has produced more than 30 performances. The company has partnered with City Theatre in Gdynia since 1995. From 1997-2000, Dada created a cycle of artistic events called A Day of Beautiful Society. From 1998-2001, Dada participated in projects at Baltic University of Dance, co-creating and performing in such choreographies as In the Body, Zaspa by Avi Keiser (Germany), and Papugai by Tatiana Baganova (Russia). The company members have also worked in international productions in Germany, Belgium, Sweden and England - most notably Piotr Cieplak's The Rape of Europe - Landscape X (Intercult, Stockholm, 1998). From 2004-2006, Dada participated in the Trans Danse Europe project. Since 2000, the company has been affiliated with Klub Zak/Gdansk, where the company initiated a new contemporary dance festival called Gdansk Dance Corporation. Teatr Dada von Bzdülöw has toured internationally to England, Belgium, The Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Russia, Slovenia and Switzerland. Upcoming engagements include performances in Denmark, Germany, Finland, France, Ireland, Iceland, Slovenia, and Switzerland. TEATR DADA VON BZDÜLÖW - BIOGRAPHIES Leszek Bzdyl began his professional stage career in 1987 (Henryk Tomaszewski's Wroclaw Pantomime Theatre 1987-1990; Wojciech Misiuro's Expression Theatre 1990-1992). As a director, choreographer, and dancer he appears in most of the Dada von Bzdülöw Theatreproductions. He has been honored with awards for his artistic achievements by the Mayor of Gdansk (1998) and the Mayor of Gdynia (1999). In 1999 Bzdyl was granted the Minister of National Education award and in 2002 he received a Gdansk City Art Grant. As a choreographer and stage movement director, he has cooperated with many theatres all over Poland, participating in nearly 40 productions, the most important being Dog's Will (dir. P.Cieplak, Rozmaitosci Theatre, Warsaw); The Power (dir. J. Englert, The National Theatre, Warsaw); An Angel descended to Babylon (dir. J. Wernio, City Theatre, Gdynia); Winnie P. (dir. P.Cieplak, Studio Theatre, Warsaw); and Hamlet (dir. J.Glab, Drama Theatre, Legnica). In City Theatre in Gdynia, he performed as a dramatic actor, performing as Caliban in The Tempest, David in Unidentified Human Remains (Brad Fraser), and Clarin in Life is a Dream (Calderon de la Barca). He has participated in many international productions including The Rape of Europe - Landscape X (Intercult, Stockholm), In the Body and Papugaj (Baltic Dance University, Gdansk), and Drop Dead Gorgeous (co-production with Vincent Dance Theatre/England). In 2004 within the international SEAS project on the premises of the Gdansk Shipyard, he directed the ODYS-SEAS event. Between 1997-2000 at the City Theatre in Gdynia he was a patron of a cycle of artistic events called A Day of Beautiful Society. Since 2002, has been a patron of The Gdansk Dance Corporation Festival. Since 1990 has been giving theater workshops and dance classes in Poland and abroad (UK, Germany, Sweden, France, Finland). Bzdyl has also taught at the The National Ballet School in Gdansk as well as in the Performing Arts School at the Musical Theatre in Gdynia. Katarzyna Chmielewska is a dancer and choreographer who has trained and performed with the National Ballet School in Gdansk (1984-93), Ballet Group of The National Baltic Opera-House (1993-94), Gdansk Dance Theatre (1994-95), Contemporary Dance School P.A.R.T.S in Brussels (1995-96), and City Theatre in Gdynia (1997-2000). In 1993, together with Leszek Bzdyl, she established the Dada von Bzdülöw Theatre, where she teaches contemporary dance technique and realizes her own choreographies: /Si/ (2000), Dialogues in Conventione (2001), so beautiful (2002), Bonsai and Juicy Flesh (2005). She has performed in most of the company's theater productions, including Magnolia, Several Witty Observations, Trans Danse Europe and Eden. She has worked with several choreographers including Roberto Olivan, Melisa Monteros, Tatiana Baganowa and Magdalena Reit'r. Chmielewaka also works as a choreographer in Polish drama theaters. Her credits include the international project Landscape X in Stockholm (1997-2000); X-group - a project for young contemporary dance artists (an initiative of P.A.R.T.S, Brussels 2000, European Union), where she created works with Magdalena Reiter; a dance workshop with Thomas Houert in Prague; Seas Festival/ ODYS-SEAS performance, directed by Leszek Bzdyl; Angels of Stealth - a multimedia performance by Rodney Place; and co-Operacja - an exchange lab for choreographers from Gdansk, Geneva and Paris. Rafal Dziemidok is a dancer, actor, choreographer who worked from 1992 to 1997 with companies like Dada von Bzdülöw, Gdanski Teatr TaDca (Poland), and Compagnie Yvette Bozsik (Hungary) .Since 1997, he has worked independently creating solos (Departure-Arrival), Separateness, Yes, yes, yes, yes, etc.) and duets: Duet (with Patrycja Kujawska), Dreams of the Fleecy River (with Magdalena Jedra), and taken part in projects with other artists and companies from different art forms (musicians, sculptors, writers) in such collaborations as Performances File 01 (with Made Inc.), and Arrow of Time (with Dorota Brodowska, painter, and MirosBaw Zbrojewicz, actor), which premiered at taniec_pl, Warsaw, in 2003. Several Witty Observations (with Dada von Bzdülöw) and 2moreless (with Theatregroup TRAVA) are other examples of such collaboration. His choreographies have been presented in Polish and foreign venues and festivals (e.g.: Baltic University of Dance in Gdansk, Body-Mind in Warsaw (2001), International Conference of Contemporary Dance in Bytom, Gdansk Dance Corporation (2002-03), Baltic Dance in Vilnius, Springdance/Preview in Utrecht (2002), DanceZone in Prague (2002), KulturBrauerei in Berlin). He also choreographs and performs in theatre and film productions. His most recent choreographies for drama theaters include Dangerous Liasons - Teatr Nowy, Warsaw; Polish-Russian war - Teatr Wybrzeze, Gdansk; and Le Bal - Teatr Studio, Warsaw. Rafal Dziemidok currently lives and works in Warsaw. His education in dance began at Bard College in 1991. ORIGINAL MUSIC COMPOSER Mikolaj Trzaska is a saxophonist, bass clarinetist, composer, and one of the founders of the "yass" scene in Poland (yass being an improvised avant-garde form of jazz). He started studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in 1987 and at that time he met Ryszard Tymon Tymanski, who invited him to play in the group Milosc (Love). Fascinated by the life and music of John Coltrane, he started playing the alto saxophone and does it until now. Milosc absorbed him so completely that he left the Academy after two years of studies. In 1993 he founded the group Loskot (Clatter), which had its debut at the Gdynia Summer Jazz Days Festival. The following year he formed a duet, Maslo (Butter), together with Tymanski. In 2001 he left Milosc and concentrated on work with Loskot and solo projects. He also formed a trio - Oles/Trzaska/Oles - together with Marcin Oles, double bass, and Bartlomiej Oles, percussion. So far Trzaska has collaborated with Lester Bowie, Peter Brötzmann, Tomasz Stanko, John Tchikai, Noel Akchote, Joe Giardullo, Peter Ole Jorgensen, Clementine Gasser, Jan Luc Cappozzo, Adam Pieronczyk, and Leszek Mozdzer. He has recorded more than 30 albums, half of them his own self-composed projects. Considered one of the best Polish jazz musicians, he performs all over Europe. More recently he has been composing theatre music, while concentrating on solo projects. Since 2001 he and his wife Ola have been running an independent recording company, "Kilogram Records".
