The FAMA Academic Youth Arts Festival has been one of Poland's largest and most significant cultural events for the last thirty years. It is the only interdisciplinary event of its scale to integrate young artists from throughout the country and throughout its history has proved to be a springboard for Poland's stage artists, many of whom have debuted there.
FAMA has been drawing students from all over Poland to the seaside town of Swinoujscie since 1966. They arrive ready to present what are often their most outrageous ideas. As an interdisciplinary festival, it is one of the most creative events in Poland and a place where many young people build generational and community-based bonds. Past winners of the FAMA Festival include musicians Maryla Rodowicz, Magda Umer, Marek Grechuta, Elzbieta Wojnowska, Andrzej Mleczko, Henryk Sawka, Mariusz Lubomski, Renata Przemyk, Adam Nowak with his band Raz Dwa Trzy (One Two Three), as well as music acts like the Irek Dudek Blues Band, Nocna Zmiana Bluesa (Blues Night Shift) with Slawek Wierzcholski, and T-Love. A number of theatre groups, among them the Akademia Ruchu (Academy of Movement) of Warsaw, Teatr STU (STU Theatre) of Krakow and the Pantomima Szczecinska (Szczecin Pantomime Theatre) have also walked away with honors, as have a number of cabaret acts, including the Salon Niezaleznych (Salon of the Independents), Elita (Elite), Kon Polski (Polish Horse), Wladyslaw Sikora, and the Kabaret Potem (Later Cabaret).
The formula of the event has changed naturally over time, reflecting the preferences, needs and moods of young people, as well as the spiritual state of the young generation. The festival invariably includes workshops and presentations. Students arrive with projects they have prepared earlier for the workshops and proceed to perfect them under the eye of exceptional professionals. This results in the creation of entirely new artistic products that then premiere before festival audiences.
Eliminations for this year's edition took place during regional reviews held between March and June of 2003. Regional eliminations are organized by the Union of Polish Students in various university communities, usually in student clubs. Specific artistic communities also organize eliminations for FAMA at venues that regularly address their program to the student community. Most of these venues simultaneously serve as centers for the activities of local artistic communities made up the young. Performers for FAMA are also selected from among the participants of other existing events and festivals, including the Przeglad Kabaretowy PAKA / PAKA Cabaret Review, the Student Song Festival in Krakow, various jazz competitions, as well as numerous student spring festivals.
The program of workshops this year will include sessions focusing on jazz music (workshops lead by Wlodzimierz Pawlik and Ryszard Borowski), rock music (Janusz Grzywacz), creative writing (Jan Wolek), songwriting (Stefan Brzozowski, Jan Kondrak, Olek Brzezinski, Marcin Partyka, Krzysztof Lochowicz, Dominik Klimczak, Piotr Domagalski, Piotr Penkala, Leszek Hurtig, Wojtek Winiarski), club music (Jarek Wasik, Adam Jaworski AKA DJ Adamus), cabaret (Andrzej Talkowski, Adam Grzanka, Adam Malczyk), theatre arts (Jerzy Zon, Jerzy Jan Polonski, Jarek Gawlik), journalism (Jan Poprawa, Krzysztof Haich, Patrycja Nowak), and the visual arts (Tomek Sawka). This year's edition will be the first to include a scientific meeting for sociologists, who will complete a project commissioned by the Swinoujscie town authorities. This will also take the form of a workshop, though one that will be somewhat different in form.
Concerts in the Amphitheatre of Swinoujscie headline the FAMA Festival and this year will include "Ocalic od zapomnienia, czyli ostatnia noc Mistrza Ildefonsa" / "Rescue from Oblivion, or The Last Night of Master Ildefons" and a variety show titled "Laureaci FAMA 2003" / "Winners of FAMA 2003." Other performances have been scheduled for the concert hall in the Municipal Cultural Center in Swinoujscie, the bandstand located alongside the town's seaside promenade, and the Festival Club. These venues will host a number of recitals, theatre presentations, and variety shows. The beach and seaside promenades, on the other hand, will be the site of parades, happenings, and numerous competitions.
Organizer: Union of Polish Students
Zrzeszenie Studentow Polskich
www.fama.zsp.org.pl