Jolanta PAWNIK: Jerzy Grotowski in Wrocław

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Jolanta PAWNIK

Journalist, lecturer and media advisor. Enthusiast of new media. A Cracovian in love with her hometown Sandomierz.

On 2 January this year, the Laboratory Theatre, originally called the 13 Rows Theatre, celebrated the 60th anniversary of its move from Opole to Wrocław. Although Jerzy Grotowski directed only two plays here, they earned him worldwide recognition and became part of the 20th-century theatrical canon.

.Grotowski’s theatre moved to Wrocław from Opole, where he had served as the artistic director of the chamber stage for six years. The name 13 Rows Theatre was inspired by the Opole Market Square with its thirteen rows of chairs in the auditorium. The theatre debuted in Opole with a performance of Orpheus on 8 October 1959.

The theatre faced many difficulties. Although the Opole authorities were initially supportive, over time the institution became inconvenient and was criticised for its egalitarianism. Several attempts were made to shut it down. By 1964, its funding had been cut so drastically that continuing its operations became impossible. Professor Bolesław Iwaszkiewicz, chairman of the Presidium of the National Council, invited the artists to Wrocław, offering them significantly improved living conditions and working facilities. In Opole, the actors lived in cramped rooms near the theatre, whereas in Wrocław, they were provided with proper flats or rooms in the Actors’ House.

Like in Opole, the institution wasn’t independent, falling under the administrative control of the Wrocław Friends Association. It was not classified as a theatre, though, but rather as a teaching institution for actors whose skills were showcased in performances. This broad definition granted the creators considerable artistic freedom.

The theatre’s office was located on the third floor of a tenement house at the Old Market Square, accessible via Przejście Żelaźnicze Street. The performance venue was situated in the Centre for Culture and Art (Ośrodek Kultury i Sztuki) at 27 Rynek-Ratusz Street.

Thanks to the efficiency of its first administrative director Jędrzej Sell, the theatre’s space was soon expanded to include the premises previously occupied by the Wrocław Photographic Society on the ground floor. It housed, among other things, the administrative office and Jerzy Grotowski’s office. Shortly thereafter, additional rehearsal spaces were created by adapting former mineral water production facilities and a disused nickel-plating workshop.

In his first year in Wrocław, Grotowski published his Towards a Poor Theatre manifesto, in which he called for eliminating all superfluous elements in theatre and focusing entirely on the relationship between the actor and the audience. This work defined the trajectory of his artistic pursuits for the rest of his life. Grotowski’s productions were entirely actor-centred, with the cast reaching the highest levels of technical and expressive mastery. The actors had full command over their bodies and voices, with every word and gesture meticulously planned.

Upon its move to Wrocław, the institution changed its official name to the Laboratory Theatre of 13 Rows – Acting Method Study Institute (Teatr Laboratorium 13 Rzędów – Instytut Badań Metody Aktorskiej) and operated under this name until the end of 1969. For the next 14 years, until its self-dissolution in 1984, the second part of the name changed to Actor’s Institute (Instytut Aktora). In the 1970s, Grotowski sought yet another name change, intending to drop the second part entirely, but this was never formally implemented.

Jerzy Grotowski directed only two plays in Wrocław, but both were masterpieces that became part of the 20th-century theatrical canon. The Constant Prince (Książę Niezłomy) premiered on 25 April 1965, while Apocalypsis cum Figuris debuted on 11 February 1969. Over the years, the latter underwent various transformations but is remembered as Grotowski’s final theatrical production.

Even after Grotowski ceased directing plays, the core of the theatre’s activities remained experimental paratheatrical projects, including Complex Research Program (1972–1974), Special Project (1973–1976), Workshop Meetings (1974–1975), Meditations Aloud (1974–1981), Opening – the City of Wrocław (1976), Night Vigil (1976–1977), The Road (1977–1979) and others.

During the Wrocław period, the Laboratory Theatre ensemble included Elizabeth Albahacki, Rena Mirecka, Ryszard Cieślak, Zbigniew Cynkutis, Antoni Jahołkowski, Zygmunt Molik and Stanisław Scierski. In the early 1970s, they were joined by Irena Rycyk, Wiesław Hoszowski, Zbigniew Kozłowski, Aleksander Lidtke, Teresa Nawrot, Jerzy Bogajewicz and Włodzimierz Staniewski. Jerzy Grotowski’s artistic endeavours in the theatre were supported by Ludwik Flaszen, who co-founded the theatre in Opole with him, as well as Jacek Zmysłowski and Zbigniew (Teo) Spychalski.

One of the institution’s significant undertakings in Wrocław was Grotowski’s Theatre of Sources (Teatr Źródeł) (1978–1982). These paratheatrical activities took place in Brzezinka and Ostrowina, near Wrocław, as well as during expeditions to Haiti, Nigeria, Mexico and West Bengal in India. Polish and international artists participated in these explorations, studying ancient rituals and seeking the origins of human emotions and experiences across different cultures. The tradition of these relationships and creations continued in Wrocław for many years. When Grotowski’s international collaborators visited his former headquarters in 2009, a Haitian group created a commemorative mural in Przejście Żelaźnicze Street, titled Poto Mitan: Hommage à Jerzy Grotowski (Source of Life: A Tribute to Jerzy Grotowski).

The Laboratory Theatre was dissolved during martial law in Poland. In November 1982, Jerzy Grotowski decided to emigrate to the United States, while his actors took on international contracts. The theatre officially disbanded at the end of 1984, with its members concluding that it had ceased to exist as a cohesive creative group.

Following his emigration, Grotowski taught at Columbia University in New York and the University of California, Irvine. From 1986 he lived in Tuscany, where he co-founded the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski. The results of his work on the origins of Caribbean and African songs are still presented there. Grotowski lectured at numerous universities worldwide and was awarded honorary degrees, including one from the University of Wrocław in 1991.

.Wrocław continues to honour the memory of this extraordinary director through The Grotowski Institute, a municipal cultural institution established on 29 December 1989 under the name The Centre for Study of Jerzy Grotowski’s Work and Cultural and Theatrical Research (Ośrodek Badań Twórczości Jerzego Grotowskiego i Poszukiwań Teatralno-Kulturowych). It is housed in the very same premises where the theatre and its creator operated for two decades. It is accessed through Przejście Żelaźnicze Street at the Market Square – just as it was in 1965.

Jolanta Pawnik

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