Composition in Improvisation – Weekend Workshops
with Jacek Owczarek
We invite you to an intensive, weekend workshop in dance and theater improvisation led by Dr. Jacek Owczarek – an outstanding choreographer, professor at the Academy of Music in Łódź, director of the Materia Foundation in Łódź, and one of the most respected improvisation educators in Poland.
During the workshops, we will explore the tools of improvisation – creating, co-creating, deepening presence in the here and now, composing scenes in real time, and developing our movement language.
Who are these workshops for?
We invite:
✨ those interested in the secrets of stage improvisation;
✨ dancers, actors, and passionate amateurs of all arts 🙂
✨ anyone who wants to awaken their creativity, co-create in the here and now, in presence, mindfulness, and play;
✨ seeking deeper connection with the body, the interesting stories that lie within it and can be expressed through movement.
All tools and exercises will be introduced from the ground up, in a safe, friendly, and non-judgmental atmosphere. This workshop format will appeal to both beginners and experienced movement practitioners.
ABOUT THE WORKSHOPS
Stage improvisation is the art of creating a performance in the here and now. How can you build a stage statement without a prior script while maintaining coherence, drama, and authenticity? The key is presence—full immersion in the present moment.
During this workshop, we will explore tools that help develop this presence and translate it into the language of dance and theater. We will focus on how to direct your full attention to a single task, so that what is happening in the room becomes the single and most important reality.
How do you make decisions during improvisation?
How do you grade and differentiate your actions, and compose movement in time and space?
How can we create themes that are moving and engaging?
How can we engage with music, space, emerging impressions, emotions, experiences, and the actions of our partners?
We will answer these and other questions raised by the group through personal and shared explorations in movement.
ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION
The workshop will take place on December 12-13, 2026.
Class hours (Saturday and Sunday): 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM, with a 1:15 minute break.
This amounts to a total of 13.5 hours of workshop work, allowing us to immerse ourselves in the creative process and engage in mind-blowing exploration.
Location: Kontakt, Space of Movement, Dance, and Music in Krakow, Szpitalna Street 40, in the heart of Krakow.
✨Cost:
Early bird (first 5 places), registration no later than October 27th: PLN 490
Regular price: PLN 590
Registration and questions: ruch.od.czucia@gmail.com
About the presenter – BIO
Jacek Owczarek – Dancer, choreographer, teacher, head of the Institute of Choreography and Dance Techniques at the Academy of Music in Łódź, director of Materia.
From 1994 to 2003, he was a dancer at the Alter Dance Theatre, led by Witold Jurewicz in Kalisz, and collaborated with the Bretoncaffe Theatre in Warsaw.
He was an actor and dancer at the Nowy Theatre in Łódź, where he participated in, among others, Piotr Cieplak’s production “Before Noon, Before Dusk.”
He created choreography, stage movement, and performed in dozens of theatre productions, collaborating with, among others, He has collaborated with Paweł Miśkiewicz, Mikołaj Grabowski, Piotr Cieplak, Konrad Dworakowski, and Daria Kopiec.
He has been teaching contemporary dance and contact improvisation since 1996. He co-founded the International Dance Cinema Festival in Łódź (2002–2006).
He has participated in international projects, including at the Volksbühne Theatre in Berlin, in Paris and Mau-Beige in France, as part of the Roma Europa Festival, and at the Museums Quartier in Vienna.
In 2009, he founded the Pracownia Fizyczna group in Łódź and created performances such as Meanderująca rzeka (Meandering River), a3 (a3), and Zdarzenia (Events) in collaboration with musicians Paweł Szamburski and Patryk Zakrocki, Re:akcje (Re:actions), and Fajdros (the latter two were created in collaboration with Dotknij Teatru).
He danced in David Zambrano’s Soul Project / PL, produced by the Physical Studio in collaboration with the Institute of Music and Dance as part of the Choreographic Commissions program.
Finalist of the Teatr Polska 2022 program, Litos.
Since 2020, the Materia Foundation, which he founded with Sonia Nieśpiałowska-Owczarek, has been a new type of cultural institution, based on ongoing collaboration between a non-governmental organization and state and local government institutions. Materia creates a year-round stage in Łódź, a space for rehearsals and the development of programs for audiences and practitioners dedicated to contemporary dance and choreography.