The Palace of Culture and Science (abbreviated in Polish as ‘PKiN’) was open to public in 1955 after 3 years of construction. It was a gift of Stalin for the Polish people. It has always evoked both positive and negative emotions but its significance for the modern Polish culture cannot be overestimated on the whole. The highest building in Poland, 230 metres with the aerial pin, is located in the heart of Warsaw in Defilad Square, and was designed by Lew Rudniew. The architectural design of the Palace deliberately resembles the traditional Polish style as observed by Rudniew in places like Cracow, Zamość or Chełm to name a few.
Today the Palace is both a prestigious and popular venue for various ceremonies and events key for the Polish cultural, artistic and entertainment well-being. It is a crossroads of popular and high cultures. By providing something for everybody its main objective is to promote Polish culture. Its Congress Hall, boasting almost 3000 seats, is the most spacious concert hall in Poland, much larger than the hall at the National Theatre with 1800 seats and the Philharmonic Hall with 1400 seats. It has both beautiful interior design and fabulous acoustics. Obviously the Palace has also been involved in housing ventures organized within the Chopin’s year. For very large ceremonies the Defilad Square space outside the building is successfully used to enable an enormous audience enjoy the show.
Jay Martin's video about the Palace
The artistic calendar for the events taking place in the second half of the year 2010 includes performances by the Aleksandroff Group, the Moscow City Ballet, a Bollywood Gala, and - in tribute to Michael Jackson – the New York musical “Thriller” will be shown. These are just the major events scheduled for November and December 2010.
The Palace of Culture and Science is accessible also for those seeking more down-to-earth pleasures. The building contains such great places like the club ‘Mirage’ and ‘Kinoteka’ art house cinema. For those with a bit finer artistic taste, the Palace can offer a few museums, a cabaret and the Dramatyczny Theatre whose premiers are always interesting. PKiN is also a home for the Sinfonia Iuventus Orchestra. And its youngest offspring, the Sixth Floor Theatre which started operating in March 2010 as the initiative of the leading Polish actor Michał Żebrowski and prominent director Eugeniusz Korin.
Naturally, it is a historical site and is open to tourists who are catered for by 5 tourist agencies organizing visits to the Palace. The tours are available in English and they are a perfect opportunity to discover the intriguing history of Palace – a significant building for the whole contemporary history of Poland.
PKiN’s website: www.pkin.pl
Congress Hall’s website: www.kongresowa.pl
Club Mirage’s website: www.clubmirage.pl
Kinoteka’s website: www.kinoteka.pl
Dramatyczny Theatre’s website: www.teatrdramatyczny.pl
Sinfonia Iuventus on FB: www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10546681026
6th Floor Theatre’s website: teatr6pietro.pl/strona/kontakt
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