Wawel Folk Ensemble

A program like this is more than a television broadcast – it is a means of preserving and promoting cultural legacy to the young generation of Polish Americans and connecting them to their family history. The performance special also provides a rare opportunity for American audiences to experience the incomparable Mazowsze troupe, and share the beautiful and unique artistry of traditional Polish music and dance.

I hope you will join us and help spread the word about the television special’s debut, and make the show a success so that all the PBS stations will want to air it. Many programmers have never heard of Mazowsze and don’t realize what a large fan base they have, and how many Polish Americans they have in their viewing area who will want to see this.
Public television stations will air this show as a fundraiser, and if the stations recognize that there is a good response to the show with many contributions coming in, they will be more likely to air it. A list of the stations that have reported their intention to air follows below.

I thank you in advance for your support in our efforts. We had a great success with our documentary “The Polish Americans” thanks to community members like you, and I hope we can count on you again.

Dziekuje,

Susan Susan HellmanDirector of Communications & Station Relations
WLIW New York

The Music & Dance of Poland: Mazowsze
TV Schedules as of 2/15/07
Alaska One – Saturday, 3/3 at 2:30 pm
Buffalo NY - WNED Wednesday, 3/7 at 7:30 pm
Chicago IL - WTTW Sunday, 3/11 at 6:30 pm
Cleveland OH - WVIZ Saturday, 3/10 at 5:30 pm
Denver CO - KRMA Sunday, 3/11 at 1 pm
Johnstown PA - WPSU Saturday, 3/17 at 11:30 am
Los Angeles CA - KCET Sunday, 3/11 at 1:30 pm
Minneapolis MN - TPT2 Saturday, 3/3 at 4:30 pm
Nebraska Network - Sunday, 3/18 at 2 pm
New York tri-state area – WLIW21 Thursday, 3/1 at 8 pm
Pittsburgh PA - WQED Tuesday, 3/20 at 8 pm
San Antonio TX - KLRN Sunday, 3/18 at 4:30pm
San Francisco CA - KRCB Monday, 3/5 at 7 pm
Seattle WA - KBTC Wednesday, 3/7 at 9 pm
Springfield MA - WGBY Monday, 3/5 at 9 pm

Visit http://www.pbs.org/stationfinder to search for contact information in other cities.

THE MUSIC & DANCE OF POLAND: MAZOWSZE is a thrilling kaleidoscopic display of dazzling movement, vibrant color and stunning beauty. The incomparable Mazowsze (Mah-ZOV-sheh) performance troupe whirl and leap, stamp and glide in a glorious outpouring of sound and motion, rhythm and music that celebrates the cultural legacy of Poland. Polish-American entertainer Bobby Vinton narrates.

While the choreography and musical arrangements represent 39 distinctive ethnographic regions of Poland with traditional performance styles, the appeal of Mazowsze’s dynamic stage show goes beyond audiences of Polish descent. An ensemble of 65 dancers and singers are arrayed in a seemingly never-ending series of handmade traditional costumes -- more than 1,000 in total, one more dramatic and colorful than the next and some weighing as much as 30 lbs., making their energetic gravity-defying leaps, twirls and lifts even more impressive. A full 23-member orchestra performs music ranging from Chopin to simple folk melodies beloved by the Poles for centuries. Strategically mounted high definition cameras and microphones capture this stellar performance, recorded live at the Polish National Opera House in Warsaw, Poland.

Mazowsze is internationally recognized as Poland's cultural ambassadors. In the last 50 years they have performed more than 6,000 shows in cities around the world. The troupe’s founders, singer/actress Mira Zimiñska and conductor/composer Tadeusz Sygietyñski, dedicated themselves to preserve the rich music and dance traditions of Poland after the devastation of World War II.

Produced by WLIW New York. Executive Producer/Director: Roy A. Hammond. Producer/Editor: Roman Brygider. CC and ST.