A New World for Kościuszko and Niemcewicz - RADIO PLAY
- Details
- Created on Wednesday, 28 December 2011 14:35
- Written by George Matlock
ORLA.fm is proud to bring you its first-ever radio play. The super play "A New World for Kościuszko and Niemcewicz" by Michal Karski is about the legendary Tadeusz Kościuszko who was a Polish–Lithuanian and American general and military leader during the Kościuszko Uprising. He is a national hero of Poland, Lithuania, the United States and Belarus, yet little is known about his visit to Britain.
Michal's short play for radio formed the centrepiece of our Christmas special broadcasts season in December 2011 when it premiered on Christmas Day, December 25 and was repeated on Boxing Day exclusively on ORLA.fm. The show is presented in English.
The cast comprise of Poles born in the UK and reinforce our Anglo-Polish roots as a radio station.
George Matlock, director of ORLA.fm commented: "Our production team enjoyed working with the voices to create the audio story you will hear. But what made it extra special was the role played by Anglo Poles. That is, British-born Poles like me. I have for a long time been keen to encourage Poles from the UK to get involved in radio and here we have a great example of what that positive energy can achieve."
Copyright © 2011 Radio Orla Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
About the voices you will hear:
Iwona Makowska was born and educated in London. After training as a teacher, she worked in England and abroad, including setting up a language school in Spain. She also trained in dance therapy at the Roehampton Institute and worked in this field for a number of years. She spent 4 years working as an in-house therapist at Canon Research Centre Europe. She is currently teaching English in London. With Tom Wachtel she belonged to the legendary Klub Milenium in 1960s Ealing, a focal point for Polish youth of the day.
Tom Wachtel was born in London in 1950 and educated in Ealing, then art school and film school followed by Universities of York and Sussex. After graduating in linguistics, he spent five years lecturing at the University of Warsaw and a further 20 years in industrial R&D, including for Philips and Canon. He now runs his own company which performs a range of pan-European consultancy work including video production.
Michal Karski was born 1949 in Worcester, England and educated in Worcester, then at Munich American High School in Germany. Returning to England in 1966, he spent a year at Chiswick Polytechnic, then studied for a language degree at Queen Mary College, London. His employment history includes 15 years working for a London-based charity organization. Has known Tom and Iwona since the sixties. Played in a band withTom at Ealing's Klub Milenium.
Alex Karski was born and educated in London. At high school he performed in a number of dramatic productions, including the role of Moon in Tom Stoppard's 'The Real Inspector Hound'. He also performed in several productions of the Artists' Theatre School. He is currently completing an MA in Classics at University College London. During his time at UCL he has played guitar in several productions, including The Rocky Horror Show, RENT and a number of UCLU Jazz Society performances.
Julian Mazowiecki was born in London and grew up in Brussels, Paris and Warsaw. Whilst in Warsaw, he worked part time as a voice actor, recording English as a Foreign Language tapes aimed at school children and, later, businessmen. After studying at University College London, he worked in Brussels, before returning to London.
The music is: Marsz Kosciuszkowców (Kosciuszko's Brigade March) performed by The Polish Army Choir And Orchestra.
FACT: The Kościuszko name lives on political circles. The current Minister for Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing of France Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet comes from a political dynasty with Polish roots (from Józef Tomasz Kościuszko (1743–1789), brother of our play's hero, Tadeusz Kościuszko.
