Piotr Fronczewski – Portrait of a Friend
“…to perceive truth and a sense of humor…”
Printed edition coming soon!!!
fot. Roman Anusiewicz
Piotr Fronczewski – an actor with an extraordinary voice and remarkable talent. His versatility on stage and screen is widely recognized and admired. Piotr is beloved by fans of film, theatre, television, and cabaret – and even the youngest generation knows him from video games.n Hamlet, Caligula, King Oedipus, characters from Gombrowicz, Pan Kleks, the Consul… Franek Kimono. He is a giant of the acting craft. A man full of charm, warmth, humor, and humility. A true friend – and my idol since childhood. I invite you to meet my “buddy,” as he once called me – a great actor and a wonderful human being: Piotr Fronczewski.
This book from the Portraits of Friends series features conversations between Dariusz Domański and Piotr Fronczewski,
tributes in his honor, a biographical essay, as well as reflections from distinguished figures of theatre and film about Piotr Fronczewski —including a conversation with Gustaw Holoubek about the actor himself.
“…Piotr Fronczewski is an actor endowed by nature in the fullest sense. Charming and graceful, with a great sense of humor and a rare inner tact — both toward others and toward himself. He captivates with his humility — a humility that goes hand in hand with all these qualities I mention.
It is not a feigned modesty, but one that stems from a deep fear of existence and of the creative act itself….”
Gustaw Holoubek (1987)
Gustaw Holoubek as René Bertillon in Room 108 by Gérald Aubert,
directed by G. Holoubek, Television Theatre (Teatr TV),
2004 (with Piotr Fronczewski)
“Hamlet.” “King Oedipus.” A Gombrowiczian actor…
“Franek Kimono.” “Pan Kleks.” Feuerbach’s actor… In Piotr Fronczewski’s theatre, you can buy a few principles,
sell off some sentiment, bargain with tradition. In Fronczewski’s Market Stalls, you’ll find sentimental songs
(Hallo Szpicbródka, The Boys from Our Street…),
manifestos (To be or not to be…), truths, punchlines, skits, real people,
scraps of our daily lives, conversations with the world (Camus),
fame, ideals, exhaustion, a good deal of pain,
fetishes, longings — and a touch of foolishness. But always, in every one of these stalls, Fronczewski himself matters more than his work. A strange and wondrous tangle of poetry, greatness, kitsch, art, gravity,
and disarming directness — all blending into a unique artistic cocktail.
Dariusz Domański
„Darek is a man with immense knowledge about theatre, about actresses, actors, and our entire artistic community.
All of my encounters with him — as I recall — were truly pleasant. I especially remember his first book — which, well, was his first book. I recall I had an upcoming premiere, and suddenly this man from Kraków appeared and began taking up quite a bit of my time. At one point, he asked: “If you found yourself on a desert island, what would you do?”
I was a bit fired up at the time and replied, “Well, I suppose I’d need a dinghy… to get home.” That’s how our conversations went — although not only like that, of course. His questions were often thoughtful, original, and quite challenging. Darek was truly curious and very original — unlike any other ‘interrogators’, if I may put it that way. Because in our conversations, there was always something warm, something kind.
I must admit: Darek liked me. And — how to put it — he respected my work as an actor…”
Piotr Fronczewski
Piotr Fronczewski and Dariusz Domański on Wilcza Street, 1987
Piotr Fronczewski, Dariusz Domański, and Jan Nowicki at the Forum Hotel, 1995
Piotr Fronczewski, Jerzy Jarocki, and Dariusz Domański at the Forum Hotel in Kraków – book launch of Piotr Fronczewski Described, 1995
Edward Dziewoński
„…I had the chance to work directly with Piotr three times…
He is a consummate professional of the highest order — responsible, insightful, and always fully aware of what’s at stake. I’ve never seen him fall short. Always above and beyond. He has an innate sense of humor, and his cascading, silvery, unstoppable, and sincere childlike laughter never fails to spark a surge of affection for him in me.…”
„Piotr Fronczewski was an outstanding teacher, well liked by his students.
He worked on the fundamentals of acting tasks, often discovering highly original and formally inventive solutions.”
Tadeusz Łomnicki
Anna Seniuk
„…Piotr is talent, versatility, professionalism, diligence, humility, camaraderie, and a sense of humor.…”
„Piotr Fronczewski — these two words evoke in me the warmest feelings associated with the acting profession. It’s difficult to define Piotr. He is an extremely shy person — it’s almost astonishing that he became an actor, that he chose this profession at all.
He is gentle, and I don’t think he has ever hurt or offended anyone.
I believe it was something of a misfortune that he crossed paths with cabaret — as if cabaret had stolen from us a great dramatic actor…”
Krystyna Janda
*The materials published on this website are taken from the publishing series Portraits of Friends by Dariusz Domański and have been used with the author’s permission.