Stanisław Szymański (dancer)

Stanisław Szymański (17 June 1930 in Kraków – 10 February 1999 in Warsaw) was Polish ballet dancer. In the years 1967–1985, he was the premier danseur of the Grand Theatre, Warsaw.

Life
Szymański was a student of the Janina Jarzynówna-Sobczak School of Artistic Dance in Cracow, where he also studied under Leon Woizikovsky. It was Woizikovsky who finally brought him to Warsaw, where in 1948–1950 he performed in the musical ensemble of Teatr Nowy. In the 1950/51 season he was a ballet soloist at the Poznań Opera, where he also worked under the direction of Leon Woizikovsky. After being drafted into the army in 1951, he performed in the Song and Dance Ensemble of the House of the Polish Army in Warsaw. From 1956 he was a soloist of the ballet of the State Opera in Warsaw, and from 1965 of the ballet of the Grand Theater in Warsaw, where in the years 1967–1985 he held the title of principal dancer. In 1963, during the Warsaw Autumn festival, he received the SPAM "Orpheus" music critics award for his performance of the part of Orpheus in Igor Stravinsky's ballet. As the only Pole, he was honored in Paris with the Prix Nijinski. He has partnered with, among others Barbara Bittnerówna, Olga Sawicka, Maria Krzyszkowska, Barbara Olkusznik and Helena Strzelbicka. However, he became famous above all in demi-classical solo dances, in which he demonstrated technical freedom, dizzying pirouettes, height and lightness of the jump. The audience almost always enthusiastically greeted his every appearance on stage. Many of his performances (especially in Witold Gruca's contemporary ballets) have been captured on film. He performed for the last time in 1994 at the Studio Theater in Jerzy Grzegorzewski's Four Parallel Comedies. As one of the few artists of his time, he did not hide his homosexuality and became an icon of the LGBT community. He was buried along "Avenue of the Distinguished" on Powązki cemetery.

Awards and honors

 * 1954: Golden Cross of Merit
 * 1959: Prix Nijinski in Paris
 * 1963: Musical Critics award „Orpheus” for playing Orpheus in Stravinsky's ballet
 * 1967: 2nd rank Award of Ministry of Culture and Arts
 * 1971: Officer's Cross of Order of Polonia Restituta
 * 1974: Polish State Award Badge, 2nd rank