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Instytut im. Jerzego Grotowskiego
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Home page arrow Archive arrow History arrow The Wroclaw Second Studio
The Wroclaw Second Studio
Administrative and technical staff were appointed over the course of three months. At this stage, still without an artistic company, the WSS formally began its activities on 1st January, 1985.

In the 'Programme Outline for the WSS', Zbigniew Cynkutis wrote about the theatre: 'The aim of the WSS is to form a brand new artistic group in no more than two years from its founding; the group shall be composed of highly qualified actors, directors, and those who are able to act as the driving force of creative processes. This team . . . shall become an active centre of training and research that will not only present performances, but also support other stages in Poland and abroad. . .' The new director did not refrain from giving interviews in the press, in which he presented his conception of the theatre. Asked by Ewa Krupczynska whether the WSS was to become a continuation of any of the lines of research of the Laboratory Theatre, he answered: 'It cannot. Of course, I do not renounce the experiences that shaped me as an artist. However, if I attempted any kind of imitation, I would discover nothing more'. He spoke to Tadeusz Burzynski regarding the name of the institution: 'As for the name, the Wroclaw Second Studio – Second – because it was not the first; the first was the Laboratory. If it had not existed, our Studio would never have been born. With this qualification, I want to refer to a certain tradition – the tradition which shaped me, to which I owe very much, and from which I do not want to, nor could I, dissociate myself, even though I do not wish to be its epigone. Studio – the word emphasises the research character of the institution'. About the actors’ team, he said: 'Actually, there are going to be two groups, connected by various links, yet still separate. One will be Polish, the other international… Additionally, among the group members, there will be a number of specialists, forming what I have provisionally called the "council of instructors". Apart from myself, this council will be composed of specialists in music, singing, bodily expression, literature, and directing. They will conduct systematic training, including both individual and group sessions'.

Cynkutis wanted to compose the Polish ensemble from graduates as well as students from the final-year classes, of theatre academies, as he wanted to appoint a group 'composed of people who have not shared the experience of Grotowski'. The international ensemble was to be composed of professional artists with some experience, to which other actors could refer. Cynkutis predicted: 'The WSS as a new, creative, theatre-orientated institution will, based on similar creative experience, reach its state of maturity in 1987'.

Eventually, in September 1985, the Polish ensemble was complete. It consisted of ten people: Dagmara Chojnacka, Jolanta Cynkutis, Katarzyna Latawiec-Prasal, Jolanta Kurach, Grazyna Blecka-Kolska, Elwira Romanczuk, Mariusz Prasal, Mariusz Siudzinski, Bogumil Gauden and Jerzy Klosinski.

A draft of the performance space for Fedra in the Wroclaw Second Studio, Wroclaw 1986. Phot. Marek GrotowskiThe following months were full of intensive work. However, it was constantly being interrupted by the ongoing renovation of all the spaces – it was at this point that all the walls in the theatre space were plastered and painted white. The group had started work with the instructors: workshops in modern dance, yoga, tai chi and rhythm were being conducted. After that, there came a period of intensive training, when the director worked with the actors either individually or in groups. 'These months of training were quite buoyant. Unfortunately, the fixed rhythm of work was soon interrupted by the unexpected call for a premiere, which came from the authorities. . . The director of the WSS managed only to negotiate that the performance could be subtitled "the first stage of work"'. The performance was Phaedra-Seneca, directed by Cynkutis, which was presented for the first time on 29th January, 1986. 'Generally speaking, the reception was rather cool, yet full of understanding. Most of the reviewers emphasised the social pressure that Cynkutis and his group were subjected to. Almost all of them warned against excessive expectations for a brilliant performance, although this did not stop them from criticising it. The vast majority had constructed their reviews in a similar way: Cynkutis – Grotowski, WSS – Laboratory Theatre'. Soon after, in February 1986, the premiere of the international ensemble’s Phaedra took place.

After the first, unsuccessful performance, the atmosphere in the Polish ensemble slowly began to worsen, igniting increasingly serious conflicts. As a consequence, half of the group had quit by May.

Fedra-Seneca. From left: Dagmara Chojnacka and Jolanta Cynkutis. Phot. Marek GrotowskiIn February Miroslaw Kocur, a final-year directing student at the State Theatre Academy in Krakow, joined the WSS, together with four other people. He directed the performance that formed the second stage of work on the same tragedy – Fedra [Phaedra], which premiered on 2nd May, 1986. This version, which was Kocur’s graduation performance at the academy, met with more favourable reviews than the its predecessor. Today, Kocur speaks about the director of the WSS as follows: 'I have never met anybody whose thinking about theatre was so close to my own. Cynkutis and Grotowski are figures with whom I personally find affinity in the field of theatre… Cynkutis had one feature that I have never met in any other person: a remarkable intuition and sensitivity to his actors . . . he was able to extract from them things the actors had not even dreamt existed'.

Before the end of that season, on 19th June, a premiere prepared by the stagiares from the international group was presented – Opowiesc o zyciu i smierci Joaquina Muriety [Splendor And Death Of Joaquin Murieta] by Pablo Neruda. The production, performed in English, was directed by Elisabeth Craven. 

Cynkutis, who had so far served both as general and artistic director, passed the function of general director on to Tadeusz Nesterowicz on 1st July.

The following season (1986–1987) brought with it certain expectations: 'We are going to witness the second season of the WSS with great curiosity. Regardless of all the reservationsthat have been raised, especially by the first version of Phaedra . . . this theatre is characterised by an impressive diligence and discipline. This must bring remarkable results. Is the Studio to develop into an outstanding theatre? Today no one can tell. But I am almost certain of the fact that a creative substratum of such a theatre is now being built'.

The season began with variations on Carlo Gozzi’s Turandot, prepared by the international ensemble and directed by Dick van Gendt (3rd October).

The Polish ensemble premiered Aeschylus Prometheus on 25th October. The performance received a warm welcome from both the public and the critics. The reviewers focused particular attention on the successful role of Io, played by Jolanta Cynkutis, for which the actress received an extramural award from the State Theatre Academy in Warsaw.

The subsequent projects were: Song of Songs (after the translation by Rev. Wujek), arranged for two actors – Jolanta Cynkutis and Marek Cichosz – which was to be directed by Kocur; and Oedipus by Sophocles, the rehearsals for which were conducted by Zbigniew Cynkutis. Unfortunately, the relationship between the two directors increasingly worsened, which led  to the resignation of Miroslaw Kocur in November, together with four actors.

Kocur was replaced as director on Song of Songs by Jan Jakub Kolski, and the performance’s premiere took place on 20th December. The work on Oedipus, however, was never completed.

The year 1987 began with a tragedy – on 9th January, Zbigniew Cynkutis died in a car accident near Sobotka, as he was on his way to a cultural convention. Unfortunately, his prediction for the maturation of the group by 1987 failed to materialise. In addition, after the director’s death, the future of the institution became uncertain. Several possible candidates were considered for the director’s post. Among them were Janusz Wisniewski, Krystian Lupa, Jacek Weksler, as well as Ryszard Cieslak and Zygmunt Molik. Associate professor Degler, seeing that there was little chance of anybody from the former Laboratory Theatre taking an interest in the matter, suggested that the spaces of the WSS be temporarily handed over to the State Theatre Academy, and that a temporary Studio Theatre – with broader functions than a traditional theatre school – should be appointed there.

However, as Tadeusz Burzynski strongly emphasised, work at the WSS did not cease: 'The ensemble, even though incomplete, still works and performs. There are international stagiares, who are currently about to finish work on their new performance… Perhaps the group continues work of its own momentum, perhaps from the despair of those who have stayed… Still – I repeat – we cannot speak of an empty place here'.

Indeed, on 13th March, 1987, Hamlet, directed by Kim Mancuso, was premiered by the international ensemble. The performance, as the programme explained, was devoted to the late director: 'We dedicate this production to our master and friend – Zbigniew Cynkutis. It was he who sowed its seed in our hearts and imagination. He demanded from us an exploration of ourselves, and to cross our own borders, towards an intercultural understanding'.

Soon after, on 26th March, the official inauguration of the Centre for Documentation of the Laboratory Theatre took place. Its founding was, in fact, a transformation of the historical-research department, which had existed from the beginnings of the WSS, conducting internal work only. This event was coupled with the opening of the retrospective exhibition entitled 'TheLaboratory Theatre – the end of a 25-year journey',conceived by Iwona Zietkowska, and with Lech Marczak's visual design. The programme for the exhibition read: 'This exhibition is intended to constitute a historical and factual illustration of the history of the theatre of Jerzy Grotowski; commenting on or assessing this history is not its aim'. The exposition was laid out in chronological order (according to the dates of the premieres), and divided in two main sections: archival materials concerning the theatrical period (1959–1970); and the post-theatrical period (1970–1984). The exhibition was composed of 116 items – 63 posters, 47 photographs, original premiere invitations, as well as props and costumes from the performances: shoes and violins from Akropolis, the gown and the platform from The Constant Prince, the coat and walking stick of the Simpleton, two dresses of Mary Magdalene, and the jacket of Lazarus from Apocalypsis cum figuris.