Discover the fairy tales "More Precious than Gold", "Otesanek" and many others (Nie Teatr) - tickets

Event Description

The 'BaśnioGranie' project was created out of love for fairy tales, legends, songs, and folk chants, everything that takes us on a journey to the past, helping us to go back centuries and discover extraordinary worlds that we know thanks to our ancestors. As part of the III Czech Days at Nie Teatr, we will get to know Czech fairy tales and folk songs performed by Katarzyna Gruszewska, Dorota Jarząbek - Rogaczyk, and Joanna Mazewska.

Fairy tales, legends… Wonderful relics of the past, with which each of us has certainly had contact since early childhood. Passed down from generation to generation, from grandparents to grandchildren, they carry the wisdom of our fathers in stories with morals, their ancient beliefs, and a fantastic world that has stimulated human imagination since the dawn of time. Fairy tales are an inseparable part of every culture in the world. Every nation has its stories, its heroes, its favorite motifs. However, the motifs of these original stories wander in an extraordinary way between countries, evolve, and repeat themselves in the fairy tales of other nations - slightly changed, yet easily recognizable, although often surprising.

In fairy tales, one is never too young or too old - they are for everyone and can still teach us a lot: about the countries they come from, about the values that the people living there cherished, about life then and today, and also… about ourselves. Fairy tales connect us with history, with bygone times, with people who are no longer here, and with whom we can still feel a connection through the stories we learn and tell now, just as they told them once. For storytelling itself and the role of the storyteller return to the fore, competing with other forms of storytelling, such as theater or films. Isn’t it beautiful, in times when instead of reading, we can see everything, and instead of using our imagination, we just have to believe in what someone has already invented for us, that in modern times, we can still beautifully listen and see with the eyes of our imagination the worlds that each of us sees differently? We can and want to, regardless of age.

Fairy tales during traditional storytelling are sometimes accompanied by music, just as films are accompanied by a soundtrack, and theatrical performances have musical arrangements. Music, like fairy tales themselves, is highly characteristic and different for every corner of the earth from which it comes. Here too, it cannot be missing - besides fairy tales from the Czech Republic, we will also present to you instruments that are elements of the folk culture of our neighbors. After all, as BaśnioGranie, it is BaśnioGranie!

The co-organizer is the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Poland.
The partner of the III Czech Days is the Czech Center in Warsaw.

Artists:

Kachna - That is Katarzyna Gruszewska (but she prefers when people call her Kasia). She comes from Olsztyn and currently lives in Warsaw. In our fairy tale team, she plays various flutes, pan flute, guitar, ukulele, karimba, bells, maracas, storm, tambourine, rain stick, and drums. Fairy tales were told to me by my grandmother when I was a few years old, I used to travel to her in the countryside. I often used to hide under the blanket and my grandmother would recite poems, stories, and fairy tales. Now I read fairy tales myself, and when I do, I discover interesting and fascinating stories, as well as human traits and flaws that are still relevant today. I love telling fairy tales because through this, I help others to transport themselves to a beautiful fairy-tale land, moreover, fairy tales have therapeutic power, they are sometimes a remedy for human melancholy, providing encouragement and courage, showing that it is worth fighting for dreams, but also helping to find the good in people and acting on listeners in an incredibly inspiring way. Both when reading and telling fairy tales, I transport myself for a moment to the wonderful world of imagination and carefree childhood, thus detaching myself from daily obligations, I identify with the heroes experiencing their worries and joys. Such a moment of forgetfulness and balm for the soul, which safely becomes addictive. I especially like stories that have a good ending, regardless of which cultural circle they come from - from each one can learn a lot, in the fairy tales of every nationality I have my own pearl. Fairy tales are worth reading because they shape the value system, educate, show what is important in life and what 'broń' is effective. From the wisdom of fairy tales, one can and should draw abundantly. They develop an incredibly vivid imagination and inspire to create legends independently and find stories where they have not yet been created, e.g., in a well that one passes by on a walk. My favorite fairy tales include 'A Little Bit of a Drop' and 'Brother and Sister', which tell about the power of a good heart. As for the fairy tale that we have presented to you, my favorite is the one about the golden rat - it shows that even a small creature can achieve a lot if we just give it a chance.

Joanna - That is Joanna Mazewska. She comes from Łomża, now lives in Warsaw, but you never know where she will go in search of new fairy tales. In our fairy tale team, she plays guitar, bells, cymbals, drum, rain stick, karimba, storm, tambourine, dates, and drums. Fairy tales, legends, and stories have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Since childhood, I have been pestering my grandmothers, grandfathers, and parents to read or tell me fairy tales - I loved it. I learned to read very quickly, and then I could spend as much time as I wanted in the land of fairy tales - although I still liked it when others told or read them to me. I also sometimes - most often with my grandfather - invented stories. And so it has remained to this day - I constantly read, invent, and tell. Even in childhood, I discovered how much reading, storytelling, and even acting out fairy tales can bring joy not only to me but also to others. I remember well how after reading some fairy tale, I would rush to the yard and together with my girlfriends and friends, we would act out what I had told them. With joy, I state that people still like it when I tell them. I love to observe how much they get absorbed in the story and when they themselves engage with me in its telling. Now I read for myself for relaxation, for adventures in the land of imagination, and for inspiration. My favorite fairy tales are those about magic, extraordinary powers, magical creatures, knights, mysteries to discover, and tasks to perform, in which something is always happening. Fairy tales that are long and elaborate, which surprise and do not always lead where I expected them to go. Definitely those that have an interesting ending, in which good is rewarded, evil punished, and from which we can all learn something. I also love to recognize familiar motifs in fairy tales, which, however, combine into a completely new, previously unknown story. With joy, I discover new fairy tales from various corners of the world. Some seem more understandable or interesting to me, others less so, but I always joyfully discover new cultures and traditions through them. That is why it is worth reading them - because thanks to fairy tales, one can beautifully and interestingly get to know the world, tame and understand differences, and learn a lot - about the world, about other people, and about oneself. Not to mention all those fantastic adventures that we can experience along the way. My beloved fairy tales, to which I always return with sentiment, are the French fairy tale 'Yv and Finetta' (or 'the giant', as I called it when my grandmother told it to me), 'The Fairy Tale of the Enchanted Duck' and 'The Hunchback Pony'.

Dosia - That is Dorota Jarząbek - Rogaczyk from Ostrowia Mazowiecka, but permanently lives in Warsaw. In our fairy tale team, she plays ukulele, guitar, bells, rattles, maracas, janczars, rain stick, karimba, storm, tambourine, dates, and drums. I feel that I have always known fairy tales. I don’t remember that first moment… that first story… I do remember how my mom read me the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm before bedtime, and I never looked at the pages because I was afraid of hitting illustrations that scared me. When I now browse that book, I still feel a thrill of emotions from years ago. I love reading fairy tales because I feel that I go back in time, traveling through various corners of the world. My imagination is so stimulated, as if I were a child again… Or maybe I am still a bit of a child thanks to them? Often when I finish reading an interesting story, I immediately have to tell someone about it! And if there’s no one around? I mark it with exclamation marks and underline it… Fairy tales still want to be heard! I am grateful that there are adults who want to listen to non-trivial stories, who bring their children to continue what our grandmothers did. My grandmother sang and told me fairy tales before bed when only my eyes were sticking out from under the thick duvet. And who told you beautiful and scary stories? If not, it’s not too late - I will gladly tell you! I love fairy tales in which animals help people. They know our language and have some magical gift. I am also fascinated by symbols that often repeat themselves in various fairy tales, e.g., the youngest of the brothers is often the dumbest, magical situations happen at midnight, and a young man must undertake a journey and perform many tasks along the way to win his beloved. I also like to get to know the same fairy tale in a slightly different version, e.g., the story 'The Orphan Who Became a Lady' recorded by O. Kolberg is very similar to Cinderella. You can check it yourself! The closest to me are Polish fairy tales. When I read them, it often turns out that I have already heard them somewhere… where do I know them from… Apparently, they have been with me throughout my life, I didn’t even pay attention to them because it was something normal, everyday… With fairy tales from other nations, I have never experienced this. By getting acquainted with the fairy tales of various nations, I get to know the culture and tradition of a given country. In some places in the world, fairy tales were not exclusively entertainment for children. They often had the task of frightening, had a historical thread, or made people start talking to each other. I am fascinated by the fact that thanks to these stories, I enter someone’s family or village, which does not necessarily lie in Poland. My first beloved fairy tale that I read myself was 'Jarzębinka'. I borrowed it once a month from the school library and read it over and over again. The 'Daisy' by Andersen made a huge impression on me. It was my first fairy tale that did not have a good ending. I often return to it. I also love the fairy tale about Maćko Bała, which my grandmother told me - and that even quite recently!

Czech Days at Nie Teatr by Martina Trchová, Jakub Medek

Martina Trchová is a Czech author of lyrics, vocalist, guitarist. We will get to know the Czech reality of contemporary musical culture with her. She is an absolute self-taught artist, not only writing, composing, performing, but also drawing, painting, and illustrating, so alongside the concert, we will also be able to see her illustrations for books. By birth, she is from Prague, but she will come to us from Brno, where she currently lives. Martina will perform at Nie Teatr solo, although behind the scenes, there will be a whole family band, as the artist has recently become a mother for the second time and will come with her whole family. Her creativity boldly crosses genre boundaries, from blues, through folk, jazz, pop. In her singing, she moves between fragility and strength, even in a hip-hop rhythm, and in her lyrics, she can be rawly self-questioning, but also funny and smiling at life. This year, she will be our link and intermediary with the entire Czech musical universe. Tickets available at: KupBilecik.pl

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