Dear Fellow Artists and Scholars, Students, and Guests
The 2025/2026 academic year is a special one for the Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw, Branch in Bialystok. As every two years, we are deeply engaged in
preparations for an exceptional event, the International Festival of Puppetry Schools PUPPETNOPUPPET. The theme of the forthcoming edition, FUTURE/PRZYSZŁOŚĆ, is conceived as an innovative creative space within the theatre of form, where modern technologies serve not only as tools but also as a vital part of stage storytelling. This year, for the first time in the festival’s more than twenty-year history, we wish to precede it with a joint scholarly and artistic gathering.
In an age of rapid technological advancement, we find ourselves asking: what do we truly mean by “modern technologies,” and how should we define them? Are they within every artist’s reach?
Do they continue to pose a challenge and offer inspiration? How do they influence the quality and language of artistic expression? And in what ways can new technologies shape the experience
of art for audiences with special needs? These are the questions we will explore together during this year’s festival.
The conference preceding the 12th International Festival of Puppetry Schools PUPPETNOPUPPET 2026 is intended to draw attention to a phenomenon long present in both artistic and academic circles, one that arouses curiosity on the one hand, and concern, or even fear, on the other. Through three discussion panels featuring experts and practitioners, we wish to bring together a range of perspectives on the future of the theatre of form in the context of technological innovation. Above all, our aim is to create an interdisciplinary platform for exchange, collaboration, and mutual inspiration among Bialystok’s artistic and academic communities.
The conference is organised in partnership with three institutions central to the cultural and intellectual life of Bialystok: Bialystok University of Technology, Arsenal Gallery, and the Bialystok Puppet Theatre.
I kindly invite you to take part in the conference.
May this special day become a source of inspiration
for our creative and scholarly pursuits.
Vice-Rector for Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy
of Dramatic Art in Warsaw, Branch in Bialystok
Prof. dr hab. Artur Dwulit
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
10:15 – 12:30 Panel I: Innovative technologies – tools and opportunities within reach?
A panel devoted to the practical dimension of contemporary technologies – from mechanics and robotics to experiments with AI and 3D printing. Speakers will discuss how engineering tools are permeating the worlds of art, design and education, and how they are changing the way we create and think about the creative process.
Speakers:
- A few words about robots… – PhD Eng. Justyna Tołstoj-Sienkiewicz, Bialystok University of Technology
- Technology in theatre – selected innovative technologies in theatre: robotisation, multimedia techniques, digital reality – PhD Eng. Bogusław Hościło, Bialystok University of Technology
- The stage as a laboratory – R&D Developer Maciej Popławski, Bialystok University of Technology
- 3D printing in the service of accessibility – new tools for universal thinking – PhD Eng. Arch. Bartosz Śliwecki, Bialystok University of Technology
13:00 – 14:30 Panel II: Cooperation between art and technology
A panel devoted to contemporary technologies used in art. Speakers will discuss how digital tools, projections, AI, VR/AR and interactive systems function today in theatre, film, computer games and the visual arts. The panel will present examples of artistic works experimenting with technology and consider how it affects the form, narrative and reception of art. Speakers will share their own experiences of working with new technologies on stage and the challenges and opportunities that this combination brings.
Speakers:
- Technologies as instruments that can reveal new cracks in reality. What we can express with their help – Creative Producer Wojciech Markowski
- Media Montage as a Directional Strategy of Visual Theatre: The Intermedial Space – Artistic Director and Founder of KOSMOS THEATRE Žilvinas Vingelis
- Art and technology versus stage practice – President of POLUNIMA, director of the Baj Theatre in Warsaw Ewa Piotrowska
16:00 – 18:00 Panel III: Modern technologies supporting accessibility in the arts
A panel dedicated to modern technologies that support people with disabilities in experiencing art. We will look at how contemporary cultural centres are developing a culture of accessibility by creating solutions such as audio description, live subtitles, PJM translations and induction loops. The panel will show how technology can break down barriers and open up new forms of participation in theatres, museums, performance spaces and the visual arts. Speakers will present examples of good practices and their own experiences of implementing accessibility solutions, as well as the challenges faced by cultural institutions.
Speakers:
- Accessible and modern theatre? – Vice-President of Foundation Kultura Bez Barier Robert Więckowski,
- Accessibility of the Wybrzeże Theatre. Successes, challenges, questions – Accessibility Coordinator and Education Specialist Anna Augustyniak,
- Accessibility of the Wybrzeże Theatre. Successes, challenges, questions – Accessibility Coordinator and Education Specialist Weronika Łucyk
ORGANISATIONAL INFORMATION
20 October 2025, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Venue: Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw, Bialystok Branch
Jan Wilkowski School Theatre, 14 H. Sienkiewicza Street, Bialystok
Conference languages: Polish and English
The conference will be streamed live online, with simultaneous interpretation into Polish and English.
We kindly invite students and faculty members of theatre and technical universities, theatre professionals, representatives of cultural institutions, theatre directors, and all those interested
in the use of new technologies in the theatre of form to take part in the event.
Participation in the Conference is free of charge. Travel and accommodation expenses are to be covered by participants. Those wishing to take part are asked to send their registration
by email to sekretariat.fb@e-at.edu.pl, with the subject line: “Conference TA 2025 – registration”.
At 7:30 p.m., a theatre performance by third-year acting students of the Bialystok Branch will take place at the Bialystok Puppet Theatre (1 K. Kalinowskiego Street). Admission is free.
Duration: 60 minutes.
Organiser:
Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw, Bialystok Branch
Partners:
Bialystok Puppet Theatre, Arsenal Gallery, Bialystok University of Technology
Co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland from the Culture Promotion Fund
