After Warsaw, Wrocław was the first city in Poland to be included in this project. I had the opportunity to visit this amazing city in June and October of 2021, and develop seven sessions for the project. There’s still a lot to be shown but, at the moment, after Warsaw, is the polish city that is better represented in Dancers and their Cities project. In June, I had the pleasure to collaborate with several students and professional dancers (by order of sessions): with the ballet student Anastasiia Gulanowska (at Hala Stulecia and at the Zwierzyniecki bridge), with the ballet student Oliwia Korczyc (at the Japanese Gardens and also at Hala Stulecia) and with the professional ‘b-boy’ dancer Jacek Skoczeń (at the well known sculpture ‘Passage’ and in the area around).
In October, I have collaborated with the rhythmic gymnasts students Emilia Wójcik, Laura Lewińska, Nina and Wiktoria Hamera (at the Nicolaus Copernicus Park, Wrocław Puppet Theater and at the National Forum of Music), with the professional dancer and teacher Aneta Mazur (at the outdoor installation Nawa in the Daliowa Island and at the Sand Bridge), with the sisters and ballet students Lena and Julia Sanecka (at the Cathedral of the St. John the Baptist, National Museum of Wrocław and at the Tumski Bridge) and with the professional contemporary dancer Maja Lewicka (at the Sky Tower and the area around). Since these sessions are quite recent I will add them later in this page.
Wrocław it is the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. The history of the city dates back over a thousand years at various times it has been part of the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Hungary, the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria, the Kingdom of Prussia and Germany. Wrocław became part of Poland again in 1945 as part of the so-called Recovered Territories, the result of extensive border changes and expulsions after the Second World War. It was placed among the top 100 cities in the world for the Mercer Quality of Living Survey 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and in the top 100 of the smartest cities in the world in the IESE Cities in Motion Index 2017 and 2019. In June 2020, the population of Wrocław was estimated at 643,782 individuals. The Old Town of Wrocław is listed in the Registry of Objects of Cultural Heritage and is, since 1994, on Poland’s prestigious list of National Monuments. The Wrocław Opera House, Monopol Hotel, University Library, Ossolineum, the National Museum and the castle-like District Court are among some of the grandest and most recognizable historic structures.