Michal Zadara is a Polish

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 theatre director and set designer

Scenic design

Scenic design is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers have traditionally come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but nowadays, generally speaking, they are trained professionals, often with M.F.A...

. He has worked primarily in Warsaw

Warsaw

Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

 and Krakow

Kraków

Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...

, but he also staged several plays abroad, in Germany, Israel and the United States. He studied at the American International School of Vienna

American International School of Vienna

The American International School Vienna is a non-profit school international school made up structurally of the parents of each student at the school, and located in Vienna, Austria. The school operates, in part, under the sponsorship of the United States Ambassador to Austria and awards the...

, and at Swarthmore College

Swarthmore College

Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....

.

Early years and education

Born in Warsaw, Zadara left Poland with his parents when he was three years old and moved to Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, and then to West Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. He attended English-language schools. In 1994 he began studying Political Science at Swarthmore College, near Philadelphia. After two years of study, he took a leave of absence from Swarthmore, and studied directing at the Theatre Academy in Warsaw, and then oceanography at Sea Education Association

Sea Education Association

The Sea Education Association is a private, nonprofit educational organization which offers a hands-on experience to college and high school students in sailing at sea. Founded in 1971 by Corwith Cramer, Jr. SEA operates two sailing ships traveling throughout both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...

 in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. Upon returning to Swarthmore he changed his major to Theatre Studies, and earned his B.A.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 with honors with a minor in Political Science in 1999. After his studies, he moved to New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, where he worked as a publicity assistant, theatrical carpenter and computerized-banking assistant. He also directed one show at the no longer existing off-off-broadway stage Collective Unconscious.

In the year 2000 he returned to Poland. After being rejected from the Krakow Theatre School, he worked as an assistant and collaborator of set designer Małgorzata Szczęśniak at Warsaw's Rozmaitości Theatre. In 2001 he was accepted and began studying at the Directing Department of the Krakow Theatre School.

Theatre career

Since 2004 Zadara has directed more than twenty plays and performance art pieces at The Wybrzeże Theatre in Gdansk

Gdansk

Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...

, Stary National Theatre in Krakow, Współczesny Theatre in Wrocław, National Theatre

Teatr Narodowy

The National Theatre in Warsaw, Poland, was founded in 1765, during the Polish Enlightenment, by that country's last monarch, Stanisław August Poniatowski.-History:...

 in Warsaw, Współczesny Theatre in Szczecin

Szczecin

Szczecin , is the capital city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in Poland. It is the country's seventh-largest city and the largest seaport in Poland on the Baltic Sea. As of June 2009 the population was 406,427....

, the Maxim Gorki Theatre in Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

, the HaBima National Theatre in Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

, and a staging of Iannis Xenakis

Iannis Xenakis

Iannis Xenakis was a Romanian-born Greek ethnic, naturalized French composer, music theorist, and architect-engineer. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers...

's opera Oresteia at the National Opera in Warsaw.

He was nominated for the Political Passport

Paszport Polityki

Paszport Polityki is an annual prestigious Polish award presented by the weekly magazine Polityka since 1993.It is presented in six categories: literature, film, theatre, classical music, visual arts and scene. In 2002 a new, seventh category was added: creator of culture.-External links:...

 prize in 2006 and 2007, and was awarded this prize - the Polish equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize

Pulitzer Prize

The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...

 - in 2007. His 2007 production of Witold Gombrowicz

Witold Gombrowicz

Witold Marian Gombrowicz was a Polish novelist and dramatist. His works are characterized by deep psychological analysis, a certain sense of paradox and an absurd, anti-nationalist flavor...

's Operetta was presented in the 2009 Philadelphia Live Arts Festival.