Frycz kept working despite his illness, taking on the role of King Stanisław August Poniatowski last season in "Termopile polskie" at the National Theatre and beginning rehearsals just last week for "Orestea", directed by Luk Perceval.
The National Theatre announced his death on Facebook, describing him as far more than an artist.
"Jan Frycz was an extremely important member of our Company — not only a great artist, but also a friend, and for many of us a mentor", the statement read, adding that colleagues would miss "his charisma at rehearsals, his laughter backstage, long conversations and analyses" and, most of all, "him as a beautiful human being".
Born May 15, 1954, in Kraków, Frycz trained at the State Higher Theatre School there, drawn to acting as an escape from the constraints of communist-era Poland. He debuted in 1978 in "Damy i huzary" at Kraków's Juliusz Słowacki Theatre and went on to spend decades at the city's Stary Theatre, joining in 1989 and appearing in productions by Andrzej Wajda and Jerzy Jarocki, among others. He also had two stints at Warsaw's National Theatre, and became closely associated with director Krystian Lupa, taking on major roles including Ivan in "The Brothers Karamazov" and Pontius Pilate in "The Master and Margarita".
"I applied to theater school out of love for the stage", Frycz told Rzeczpospolita in 2012, recalling his start in the 1970s. "I wasn't thinking about popularity, and the word 'career' meant something different then. It wasn't just about money, but today a person's worth is increasingly measured by financial status".
Though he began appearing on screen in the late 1970s, Frycz was initially dismissive of film work. "I don't like film, I'm afraid of film, I don't believe in film", he said in 1986. He nonetheless built a prominent film career, with roles in "Pożegnanie jesieni", Krystyna Janda's "Pestka", Magdalena Piekorz's "Pręgi" and, more recently, Jan Holoubek's "25 lat niewinności. Sprawa Tomka Komendy".
His work earned him three Polish Film Awards and a best supporting actor prize at the 2003 Gdynia Film Festival, along with Poland's Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta and the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis.
Asked in a 2023 interview about slowing down, Frycz said retirement held little appeal. "For now, the image of myself as an unemployed retiree doesn't appeal to me", he told Onet, adding that he preferred to focus on the moment rather than dwell on questions about his health.
(jh)
Source: PAP