Teatr Syrena > Mission and history

Mission and history

Taking inspiration from musicals from all around the world, as well as our own tradition and the tradition of the city of Warsaw, we aim to build a lively, modern, and socially engaged musical theatre. We strive to be a friendly place for our audience and to evolve in accordance with their needs. We conduct artistic activities as well as educational. We popularize knowledge about the musical genre in the form of the Warsaw Centre for Musicals, and we stimulate the development of Polish musicals.

The mission of the Syrena Theatre

1945

The Syrena Theatre is established

232

The number of premieres in the entire history of our theatre

306

The number of performances of our plays in the 2023/24 season

85 600

The number of theatre attendees in the 2023/24 season

The most Warsaw theatre

Although it was established in Łódź, and operated there for the first years!

Where did Syrena come from?

The theatre was established in 1945, right after the end of the Second World War. It was created by a group of actors and actresses, playwrights and satirists, artists performing the pre-war vaudeville and cabaret in Warsaw. It was led by Jerzy Jurandot and his wife Stefania Grodzieńska. The theatre aspired to bring happiness and entertainment in the new post-war era.

The capital of Poland was so devasted at that time that it wasn’t possible to secure a building for the theatre there. It was therefore decided that it will be opened in Łódź. At the time, it was unclear whether Warsaw will even be rebuilt, with the government considering to move the parliament to another city, and Łódź was considered for the new capital.

Our name was created by costume designer Krystyna Wolińska. “Syrena” (“Mermaid” or “Siren”) was to symbolize a union between the old and the new – between the traditions of Warsaw and the everyday life of Łódź, rolling to the rhythm of factory sirens.

The name was left unchanged after the theatre was relocated to Warsaw in 1948. The symbol of the capital indicated in the name contributed to the fact that for many years Syrena was described as “the most Warsaw theatre”, even though it started out in emigration.

Well-known and liked – a relay of stars

The Syrena Theatre also became known as “a theatre of stars”. It is no wonder, considering that the first company included Adolf Dymsza, the king of Polish comedy and one of the most popular pre-war actors, as well as Ludwik Sempoliński, known as “the Polish Chaplin” – a giant star of pre-war vaudeville. Another figure who performed with them was Kazimierz Krukowski, a crucial member of such cabaret groups as Qui Pro Quo, Morskie Oko, Cyganeria and Cyrulik Warszawski.

Our theatre would welcome many generations of actors who continued to build on the traditions of their predecessors. Alina Janowska and Kazimierz Rudzki began performing already in our chapter in Łódź, and remained in our theatre for many years. Irena Kwiatkowska and Hanka Bielicka were called great dames of the stage located on Litewska street. Zofia Czerwińska, Barbara Krafftówna, Teresa Lipowska, Lidia Korsakówna, Krystyna Sienkiewicz, Kazimierz Brusikiewicz, Roman Kłoskowski, Tadeusz Pluciński and many, many others – thanks to their work, the Syrena Theatre remained one of the most popular theatres in Warsaw for many decades.

In the later period, this generational relay was continued by, among others, such artists as Hanna Śleszyńska, Krystyna Tkacz, Wojciech Malajkat, Piotr Polk, Zbigniew Zamachowski, Jacek Bończyk, Jan i Marian Kociniak, Tomasz Sapryk and Piotr Szwedes. The “constellation of stars” of our theatre remains one of the most impressive among the performance stages in Warsaw.

Syrena’s constellation of stars

A plethora of stars who have been performing at the Syrena Theatre for years

History

The most important dates in the history of the Syrena Theatre

The premiere of the play “Inne czasy” takes place in the Łódź chapter – the first in the history the Syrena Theatre. The day before, post-German garden chairs arrived from the Coast, and the directors of the theatre spent the entire night writing numbers on the backs of the chairs. As Stefania Grodzieńska recalled, after the premiere, “guests walked around, admiring the rather lopsided numbers stamped out on their backs”. And the play itself? Again, Grodzieńska: “Everyone cried. The actors, because they heard applause for the first time in five years. The theatre attendees, because the program reminded them of their beloved pre-war Warsaw theatres, and the audience – what’s there to hide? – was filled with survivors from the ruins of Warsaw. No, no one ever had an audience like that. They would throw themselves at as on the streets, wait in front of the theatre after the play. They would give us presents”.

The theatre moves to a new address on Litewska 3 street in Warsaw. It still operates at this address today. Before the war, the building functioned as a horse riding school. Its enormous hall was easily adapted into a theatre stage and audience. During the war, the building was part of the German police district, thanks to which it avoided demolition. A memento of its former use is a sculpture of a horse’s head, decorating the pediment of the building, where offices and the entrance to the theatre are located. Before the theatre was opened to the public in 1948, many actors and other artists, including Adolf Dymsza, helped in the construction works. In the following years, both the building and the theatre itself underwent numerous renovations and adaptations.

The newly relocated theatre opens with the premiere of the play “Nowe prorządki” (the program of the play can be seen on the photograph). The play was in the form of a variety show – a collection of songs, sketches and monologues, offering a satiric perspective on reality. The Syrena Theatre would indeed specialize in similar “variety shows” until the 1990s, and they remained a pillar of its program, together with revues and musical comedies.

In the period of censorship imposed on culture, art and media in the People’s Republic of Poland, the Syrena Theatre was one of the few places where it was possible to talk about reality with the use of allusion, as well as to smuggle a glimpse into a more “light-hearted” and “better” world. Adapting to the new reality, the theatre nonetheless continued its pre-war style of entertainment. This was possible thanks to the work of excellent writers: Jerzy Jurandot, Stefania Grodzieńska, the artistic duo of Zdzisław Gozdawa and Wacław Stępień (shown on the photograph, with Jurandot sitting in the middle) and Witold Filler, Zbigniew Korpolewski and Ryszard Marek Groński. Other outstanding literary figures also wrote for our theatre, including: Julian Tuwim, Antoni Słonimski, Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński. Both Sławomir Mrożek and Stanisław Tym debuted on our stage.

After the turn of 1989, the Syrena Theatre had to find itself in the new reality. The previous program, focused on revues and satires, was enriched by comedy and musical plays, often referencing the history of Warsaw songwriting. The theatre also began to make ambitious attempts to tackle a more artistically ambitious repertoire.

The theatre was run by the director Barbara Borys-Damięcka (on the photo, “Rozkoszna dziewczyna” from 1997, directed by her), who expanded the program with popular comedies and numerous plays presenting a more ambitious and contemporary approach to musical theatre.

During the management of Wojciech Malajkat (pictured) and Jakub Biegaj, dramatic plays were added to the repertoire, including adaptions of great works of world literature. The Syrena Theatre became a more versatile and fearless theatre, one that was not afraid of artistic experiments. Based on the popularity gained throughout the years, it steadily and more strongly marked its presence in the diverse landscape of Warsaw culture.

A reconstructed, stylish neon sign with the name “Syrena” returned above the entrance to the theatre. The original neon brighten up the street from the 1960s until the end of the 1980s. It was created by the renowned graphic designer, Eryk Lipiński. Today, the project is also used in our theatre’s logo.

Under the management of Jacek Mikołajczyk and Monika Walecka (pictured), the Syrena Theatre changed its profile and became a modern musical theatre, functioning as the Warsaw Centre for Musical. The program consists of premieres of world hits, transferred to our stage straight from the West End and Broadway, as well as musicals written and composed by Polish artists invited by the Syrena Theatre. Our offer is complimented by smaller projects, referencing the history and tradition of Warsaw, but also with plays addressed to families and children, which break records of popularity among school audiences.

Musical traditions of the Syrena Theatre – from songs to musicals

Since the beginning of our theatre’s history, music has been echoing within its walls, and continues to do so today. Throughout the years, the position of musical director was filled by Wiktor Osiecki, Czesław Majewski and Ryszard Poznakowski. Many of the greatest names in Polish popular music and post-war songwriting were associated with the Syrena Theatre. Irena Santor was our artist at the turn of the 1960s and 1970s. In the middle of the 1970s, Stan Borys joined our company. Violetta Villas was a major star of our theatre since 1979. The 1980s belonged to the actor, singer and greatest showman – Bohdan Łazuka. Izabela Trojanowska gained her theatrical experience here, and Ewa Kuklińska excelled for years as a dancer, choreographer, singer and actress.

Today we continue our musical tradition, inviting the most popular artists of the contemporary Polish musical scene to perform on our stage, oftentimes the recipients of the Jan Kiepura Theatre Music Awards in the category of best musical performer.

Syrena Theater performances