Dorota Segda

Dorota Segda (born 12 February 1966 in Kraków, Poland) is a celebrated Polish actress whose career spans theatre, film, and television, as well as academia. She graduated from Jan III Sobieski High School and the prestigious Ludwik Solski Academy for the Dramatic Arts, both located in her hometown, laying a solid foundation for her artistic pursuits. Since 1987 she has been a permanent member of the renowned Old Theatre (Stary Teatr) in Kraków, where she has tackled a wide repertoire ranging from Witold Gombrowicz's Operetka to Johann Wolfgang Goethe's Faust, earning critical acclaim and two Zelwerowicz Awards for her portrayals of Salome and Margaret. Between 1997 and 2000 Segda expanded her stage work to the National Theatre in Warsaw, notably performing as Rachela in Stanisław Wyspiański's Wesele. Her film debut came with Ildikó Enyedi's internationally praised My 20th Century, where she played identical twins, and she later headlined the biographical drama Faustina (1995). On television she became a familiar face through long‑running series such as Na dobre i na złe, Dziewczyny ze Lwowa, and Echo serca, while also lending her voice to the Polish dub of Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter franchise. In addition to her artistic achievements, Segda pursued an academic path, becoming a Professor of Theatre Arts and, since 2016, the Rector of the AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kraków. Her contributions to Polish culture were recognized in 2015 with the Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis, and she joined the Polish Film Academy in 2012. The daughter of a distinguished sporting lineage—her grandfather Władysław Segda was a double Olympic bronze‑medallist in fencing—she married composer Stanisław Radwan in 2001, further intertwining her personal and professional life with Poland's artistic community.