Borowicka Iwona, née Grochulska, *6 March 1929 Łódź, †30 August 1984 Krakow, Polish singer and dancer. She graduated from the Z. Dąbrowski ballet school in Łódź and studied singing with G. Orłow, then with J. Tisserant-Parzyńska. From 1946, she performed as a dancer and subsequently as a coryphée at the Musical Comedy Theatre “Lutnia” in Łódź, where she began her vocal career (after suddenly replacing another actress in the role of Arsena in J. Strauss’s The Gypsy Baron, she became a solo singer). In 1954, she made her successful debut in Krakow as Maritza in Kálmán’s Countess Maritza. For nearly two years, she sang in Łódź and Krakow, where she decided to stay. She was the undisputed star of the operetta stage at the Municipal Music Theater (later Opera and Operetta) in Krakow. She performed in Kálmán’s Countess Maritza (1954) and The Circus Princess (1956), The Land of Smiles, The Merry Widow (1955) and The Count of Luxemburg (1967) by F. Lehár, A Night in Venice (1957), The Gypsy Baron (1965) and Vienna Blood (1968) by J. Strauss, Victoria and Her Hussar by P. Ábrahám (1958), Clivia by N. Dostal (1960), Die Försterchristl by G. Jarno (1961), La vie parisienne by J. Offenbach (1962), My Fair Lady by F. Loewe (1966), and Der Vogelhändler by C. Zeller (1967). She played various roles in these operettas many times; sometimes she made guest appearances in other cities. At the end of the 1978/79 season, on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of her artistic work, she sang Sylvia in Kálmán’s The Csárdás Princess. She was awarded, among others, the Knight’s Cross (1975) and Commander’s Cross (1983) of the Order of Polonia Restituta, and the Gold Badge of the City of Krakow. She was twice voted the most likeable actress in Krakow. She made numerous recordings.
Borowicka was one of the last great operetta prima donnas in the history of the Polish music scene. Blessed with a beautiful, metallic-sounding soprano voice, with a wide range and volume, balanced in all registers, as well as acting talent, she was able to give her stage performances her own unique tone.
Literature: B. Berger, M. Gdowska Kronika, in: Almanach sceny polskiej 1983/84, Warsaw 1987.
