Kazimierz Braun (born June 29, 1936) is a Polish director, writer, and scholar.

Education

Braun was born in Mokrsko Dolne. He earned a master's degree in Polish literature from

Poznań University Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

in 1958 and a master's in directing from the

Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw The Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw () is a public higher education institution in Warsaw, Poland. Its focus is on the theatre arts. It is headquartered in the Collegium Nobilium, an eighteenth-century building ...

in 1962. He earned a Ph.D. in letters from Poznań University in 1971, a

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...

in theatre from

Wrocław University Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central ...

, and a habilitation in directing from the Warsaw School of Drama in 1988.

Career

Braun became a tenured professor at the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public university, public research university in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. ...

in 1989. He made his debut as a professional theatre director in 1961, and as a professional television director in 1962. He has directed works at the

Polish Theatre in Warsaw Polish Theatre in Warsaw () is a theatre in Warsaw, Poland. It is located at ul. Karasia 2. The current artistic director is Andrzej Seweryn. The theatre was initiated by Arnold Szyfman and designed by Czesław Przybylski. Opened on 29 January ...

, Teatr Wybrzeże in Gdańsk, the

Juliusz Słowacki Theatre Juliusz Słowacki Theatre () is a 19th-century Eclectic-style theatre and opera house located in the Old Town of Kraków, Poland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Erected in 1893, it was modeled after some of the best European Baroque and Ecle ...

in Kraków, and Teatr Solskiego in Tarnów, as well as in Canada, Germany, Ireland, and the United States. He was the artistic director of Teatr Osterwy in Lublin from 1967 to 1971, and general and artistic director there from 1971 to 1974. He was general and artistic director of the Contemporary Theatre in Wrocław from 1975 to 1984, but was fired by the Communist authorities because of his oppositional activities. Since 1985, Braun has lived and worked in the United States. He has directed at the

Guthrie Theatre The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The concept of the theater was born in 1959 in a series of discussions among Sir Tyrone Gut ...

in Minneapolis, the Odyssey Theatre in Los Angeles, the Chicago Actors Ensemble, and Kavinoky Theatre in Buffalo. His best-known directorial works include plays by

Cyprian Norwid Cyprian Kamil Norwid (; – 23 May 1883) was a Polish poet, dramatist, painter, sculptor, and philosopher. He is now considered one of the four most important Polish Romanticism, Polish Romantic poets, though scholars still debate whether he is ...

(13 shows), Tadeusz Różewicz (19 shows),

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

(12 shows in Polish and English), and

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. He also largely influenced Ukra ...

(two shows). He has taught at the

University of Wrocław The University of Wrocław (, UWr; ) is a public research university in Wrocław, Poland. It is the largest institution of higher learning in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, with over 100,000 graduates since 1945, including some 1,900 researcher ...

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...

, the

University of California, Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...

, and the University at Buffalo. Braun has translated works from

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

into

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

, and from Polish, French, and

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

into English.

Personal life

Braun's father, Juliusz Braun, was a lawyer, professor of ecology, Catholic activist, and

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...

under

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

. His mother was Elżbieta Korwin-Szymanowska. They both died in 1990. Braun is married to Zofia Reklewska-Braun, a writer and theatre historian. They have three children (Dr. Monika Braun, a writer and academic;

Grzegorz Braun Grzegorz Michał Braun (born 11 March 1967) is a Polish politician. He served as a member of the Sejm, the lower house of Poland's parliament, for Rzeszów from 2019 to 2024. He has been Chairman of the Confederation of the Polish Crown (abbrev ...

, a politician; and Dr. Justyna Braun, an academic) and five granddaughters (Anna, Joanna, Aniela, Zofia, and Elżbieta).

Credits

Between 1961 and 2016 Braun directed 155 theatre productions in Poland, the United States, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, Germany and other countries, including: * 1961: ''Karol /'' ''On the Sea /'' ''Strip-tease'' (

Sławomir Mrożek Sławomir Mrożek (29 June 1930 – 15 August 2013) was a Polish dramatist, writer and cartoonist. Mrożek joined the Polish United Workers' Party during the reign of Stalinism in the People's Republic of Poland, and made a living as a politic ...

), Gdańsk * 1962: ''The Ring of a Great Lady'' (Cyprian Norwid), Warsaw * 1962: ''Two Theatres'' (

Jerzy Szaniawski Jerzy Szaniawski ( Zegrzynek, 10 February 1886 – 16 March 1970, Warsaw) was a Polish writer, playwright, and essayist; an elected member of the prestigious Polish Academy of Literature in the interwar period. He is best remembered for his serie ...

), Warsaw * 1963: ''Caucasian Chock Circle'' (

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

), Gdańsk * 1963: ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' (William Shakespeare), Warsaw * 1965: ''The Wedding'' (

Stanisław Wyspiański Stanisław Mateusz Ignacy Wyspiański (; 15 January 1869 – 28 November 1907) was a Polish playwright, painter, poet, and interior and furniture designer. A patriotic writer, he created symbolic national dramas accordant with the artisti ...

), Toruń * 1967: ''November's Night'' (Wyspiański), Gdańsk * 1968: ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' (Shakespeare), Lublin * 1968: ''Kleopatra and Cezar'' (Norwid), Lublin * 1970: ''Interrupted Act'' (Tadeusz Różewicz), Lublin * 1970: ''Behind the Wings'' (Norwid), Kraków * 1971: ''The Ashes'' (

Stefan Żeromski Stefan Żeromski ( ; 14 October 1864 – 20 November 1925) was a Polish novelist and dramatist belonging to the Young Poland movement at the turn of the 20th century. He was called the "conscience of Polish literature". He also wrote under ...

), director's adaptation, Television Theatre * 1972: ''The Deliverance'' (Wyspiański), Lublin * 1973: ''The Old Woman'' (Różewicz), Lublin * 1977: ''Operetta'' (

Witold Gombrowicz Witold Marian Gombrowicz (August 4, 1904 – July 24, 1969) was a Polish writer and playwright. His works are characterised by deep psychological analysis, a certain sense of paradox and absurd, anti-nationalism, anti-nationalist flavor. In 1937, ...

), Wrocław * 1978: '' The Forefathers' Eve'' (Adam Mickiewicz), Wrocław * 1979: ''Birth Rate'' (Różewicz), director's adaptation, Wrocław * 1982: ''The Forefathers' Eve'' (Mickiewicz), director's adaptation, Wrocław * 1982: ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola an ...

'' (Shakespeare), Wrocław * 1983: '' The Plague'' (

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, world federalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the s ...

), director's adaptation, Wrocław * 1984: ''The Trap'' (Różewicz), Wrocław * 1986: ''Rhinoceros'' (

Eugène Ionesco Eugène Ionesco (; ; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre#Avant-garde, French avant-garde th ...

), Minneapolis * 1987: ''The Hunger Artist'' (Różewicz), Buffalo * 1988: ''The Shoemakers'' ( Witkacy), Los Angeles * 1989: ''

King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...

'' (Shakespeare), Buffalo * 1990: ''Immigrant Queen'' (Braun), Toronto * 1991: ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wil ...

'' (Shakespeare), Buffalo * 1995: ''Tango'' (

), Knoxville, Tennessee * 1996: '' A Man for All Seasons'' (

Robert Bolt Robert Oxton Bolt (15 August 1924 – 20 February 1995) was an English playwright and a screenwriter, known for writing the screenplays for '' Lawrence of Arabia'', '' Doctor Zhivago'', and '' A Man for All Seasons'', the latter two of which w ...

), Buffalo * 1999: ''

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

'' (Shakespeare), Buffalo * 2003: ''Europe'' (Jerzy Braun), Tarnów * 2004: ''Paderewski's Children'' (Braun), Buffalo * 2006: ''The Fall of a Stone House'' (Brandstaetter), Tarnów * 2006: ''Card Index Scattered'' (Różewicz), Buffalo * 2008: ''The Tales of Pola Negri'' (Braun), Toronto * 2010: ''The Book of Christopher Columbus'' (Paul Claudel), Steubenville, Ohio * 2011: ''Father Maximilian's Cell'' (Braun), Tarnów * 2012: ''Ordonka's Mysteries'' (Braun), Toronto * 2012: ''

The Power and the Glory ''The Power and the Glory'' is a 1940 novel by British author Graham Greene. The title is an allusion to the doxology often recited at the end of the Lord's Prayer: "For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen." ...

'' (

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...

), director's adaptation, Buffalo * 2014: ''

The Tempest ''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...

'' (Shakespeare), Buffalo * 2016: ''Norwid Returs (Braun)'', Tarnów

Scholarly books

* 1967: ''Teofil Trzciński'' (with Zofia Reklewska-Braun), PIW, Warsaw * 1971: ''Cyprian Norwid's Theatre Without Theatre'', PIW, Warsaw * 1972: ''Theatre of Communion'', Wyd. Literackie, Kraków * 1975: ''New Theatre in the World'', WaiF, Warsaw * 1979: ''The Second Reform of Theatre'', Ossolineum, Wrocław * 1982: ''Theatre Space'', PWN, Warsaw * 1984: ''The Great Reform of Theatre'', Ossolineum, Wrocław * 1994: ''Polish Theatre 1939-1989'', Semper, Warsaw * 1996: ''A History of Polish Theatre 1939-1989'', Greenwood Press, Westport, Connecticut * 2000: ''Theatre Directing'', Mellen Press, Lewiston, New York * 2003: ''A Concise History of Polish Theatre'', Mellen Press, Lewiston * 2005: ''A Concise History of American Theatre'', Wyd. UAM, Poznań * 2010: ''Lady Designer'', Jadwiga Pożakowska, Muzeum Narodowe, Gdańsk * 2011: ''Brothers Adamowicz'' (with Zofia Reklewska-Braun), Wyd. Uniw. Rzeszowskiego * 2013: ''My Różewicz's Theatre'', Wyd. Uniw. Rzeszowskiego * 2014: ''My Norwid's Theatre'', Wyd. Uniw. Rzeszowskiego * 2015: ''Direccion teatral: Arte, etica, creatividad'', Universitado Nat. Aut., Mexico * 2019: ''The Bright Light of Gietrzwałd'' (with Zofia Reklewska-Braun), Wyd. Osuchowa * 2019: ''The Great Reform of Theater'' (with Justyna Braun), Mellen Press, Lewiston * 2020: ''Theatricality of Lif''e, Wyd. A. Marszałek * 2022: ''The Second Reform of Theatre'' (expanded edition), Wyd. Volumen * 2023: ''Cyprian Norwid on Frederyk Chopin and His Music'', (translations and essays), Literary Waves, London

Novels and plays

* 1989: ''The Monument'', Instytut Literacki, Paris * 1993: ''Helena: The Story of Modjeska'', High Park Press, Toronto * 1996: ''Farewell to Alaska'', PAX, Warszawa * 1996: ''The Story of Norwid: A One-Man Drama'', Bernardinum, Pelplin * 1999: ''Day of Witness'', Wyd. 4K, Bytom * 2003: ''A Bird on Stilts: Short Stories'', Wyd. A. Marszałek, Toruń * 2005: ''Day of Witness'' (expanded edition), Wyd. Św. Wojciecha, Poznań * 2006: ''Radiation'', Archiwum Emigracji, Toruń * 2008: ''Ten Days in People's Poland'', Norbertinum, Lublin * 2011: ''Maximilianus'', Wyd. Bratni Zew, Kraków * 2011: ''Tarnów's Wind of Freedom'', Wyd. Biblioteka Publiczna, Tarnów * 2013: ''Good Priests'' (with Zofia Reklewska-Braun), Bernardinum, Pelplin * 2016: ''The Alarm Bell'', Volumen, Warszawa * 2018: ''A Rehearsal of the Apocalypse'', Wyd. A. Marszałek, Toruń * 2021: ''Paderewski's Children. Paderewski Returns'' (a bilingual edition), Inst. Dziedzictwa I Myśli Narodowej, Warszawa * 2022: ''Dramas 2022'', Wyd. A. Marszałek, Toruń * 2022: ''Anticipation. Poetry'', 3DOM, Częstochowa * 2023: ''The Pyramid. Memoires'', Volumen, Warszawa Additionally: Books—interviews: * 1989: ''The Languages of the theatre'', with Tadeusz Różewicz, Wyd. Dolnośląskie, Wrocław * 1993: ''A Torn Courtain, conversation'' Stanisław Bereś, Wyd. Aneks, London In total, in 1967-2023, Kazimierz Braun published 78 books.

Awards and honors

* 1963: Best Director, ''Caucasian Chock Circle'' (Brecht), Toruń Theatre Festival * 1964: Best Director, ''Enchanted Circle'' (Rydel), Television Theatre Festival * 1965: Best Director, ''Actor'' (Norwid), Television Theatre Festival and Kalisz Theatre Festival * 1966: Best Director, ''The Wedding'' (Wyspiański), Toruń Theatre Festival * 1970: Best Director, ''Interrupted Act'' (Różewicz), Kalisz Theatre Festival * 1971:

Medal for Merit to Culture The Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture () or Gloria Artis Medal, is a departmental decoration of Poland in arts awarded by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland to persons and organizations for distinguishe ...

, Poland * 1976: Medal for Educational Theatre, Poland * 1978: Gold Cross of Merit, Poland * 1979: Award for the Mise-en-Scène, ''Operetta'' (Gombrowicz), International Theatre Festival, Sitges, Spain * 1980: Golden Fredro Award for Director, ''Birth Rate'' (Różewicz), Wrocław * 1980: Japanese Foundation Award * 1984: Golden Fredro Award for Director, ''The Plague'' (Camus), Wrocław * 1985: Independent Culture Award, Poland * 1990: Guggenheim Foundation Award, United States * 1996: Director, Best Production in Buffalo, ''A Man for All Seasons'' (Bolt) * 1997: Chivalry Cross of the Polish Order of Merit * 2001: Aurum Literary Award, Toronto * 2001:

Fulbright Program The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

, United States * 2003: Turzański Foundation Award, Canada * 2004: Minister of Education Award, Poland * 2005: Polish-American Congress Annual Award * 2005: Medal for Merit to Culture, Poland * 2005: Officer's Cross of the Polish Order of Merit * 2007: Medal for Merit to Culture, Poland * 2011: Golden Owl Award, Austria * 2011: Commander's Cross of the Polish Order of Merit * 2016 Commander's Cross of the Order Polonia Restituta

References

External links

* Webpage: Kazimierz Braun: http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~kaz/ (includes several photographs)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Braun, Kazimierz 1936 births Living people Officers of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland Polish theatre directors People from Jędrzejów County University at Buffalo faculty Recipients of the Meritorious Activist of Culture badge