In 1977, the Gardzienice Theatre Association, an experimental theatre company was founded in a tiny Polish village. By 1992 The Observer was hailing "Brilliant Gardzienice...and orgy of joy, anguish, prayer and lamentation performed in candlelight with hurtling energy and at breakneck speed...Physically reckless, thrillingly well sung...On no account to be missed. " Today the Gardzienice Theatre Association is hailed as Poland's leading theatre group, training Royal Shakespeare Company actors and touring the world. Paul Allain describes and analyses their sung performances, strenuous physical and vocal training, and anthropological fieldwork amongst marginalized European minorities. This is one of the first detailed attempts to assess developments in Polish experimental theatres since 1989. The author questions whether those artists can maintain their vision in the face of Poland's economic difficulties and increased commercialization of the arts.

Introduction to the SeriesList of PlatesAcknowledgementsIntroduction 1. Polish Theatre - Romanticism Fades 2. The Rural Context and Gardzienice Village 3. Polish Society - The Art of Gathering 4. The Formation of Gardzienice - From Grotowski and Paratheatre 5. Training 6. Performances 7. European Parallels - Future Models 8. An Intercultural Assessment 9. Searching for a New Language ConclusionPostscriptAppendix: Polishing up on our ClassicsNotesBibliographyIndex