The aim of the essay is to reflect on the current substantial and ethical complexity of the research into the history of Shakespeare reception in the post-war period, both within the Polish national context and, by parallel, within a wider context of post-Communist countries. This refers in particular to the large-scale release of documents, testimonies, and archives which cast light on the operation of Communist authorities in respect of artists and men of letters, revealing a variety of manipulative mechanisms such as censorship or selective patronage. Secondly, the essay proceeds to scrutinise the contents of the Archives of Jan Kott, showcasing the traces of Kott's continuous preoccupation with Shakespeare's themes and productions. The (un)finished projects (such as 1973 Hamlet) elucidate Kott's understanding of history and his compelling ability to endow drama with a contemporary and universal appeal.
The article aims to draw attention back to the art of Jacek Woszczerowicz, once a well-known and beloved Polish actor. It focuses on his peculiar acting style by analyzing two adaptations of stage dramas and a documentary of a theatrical masterpiece Richard III (1960). In particular, the author highlights Woszczerowicz’s work on gesture and the role played by hands in building characters. This brief survey will lead us to re-discover the deep process of cognition and experience realized dramatically by the artist and to understand why Jan Kott considered him “the first contemporary Shakespeare”, while Jerzy Grotowski praised him as the greatest “actor of composition”.
The article presents political interpretations of Hamlet in Poland in the turbulent period of politcal changes between the mid-1950s and mid-1960s. The author discusses the relationships between Shakespeare’s tragedy and Polish political context as well as the influence of audience expectations in the specific interpretations. The selected performances are: Hamlet by Roman Zawistowski (at the Old Theatre in Cracow 1956) and Hamlet Study by Jerzy Grotowski (at the Laboratory Theatre of 13 Rows in Opole 1964). They both were hugely influenced by major commentators of Hamlet, i.e. Stanisław Wyspiański and Jan Kott. The author argues that up-to-date readings of Hamlet, which started with Wyspiański’s study in 1905, flourished in the mid-1950s and mid-1960s when concerning specific political events: the Polish Thaw of 1956 and March 1968, when the Jews were expelled from Poland. Thus Hamlet of that time was updated and must be seen through the prism of political events.
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