Pułapka realizmu
The Trap of Realism

Summary/Abstract: Is there a common dimension for the creators of the new trend? Are the new plays art or reality? More and more often our multifaceted reality is being regarded as an attractive framework for transportation to the Polish theatre stage and the so-called ‘new realism’ is now developing a strong voice there. But what does this increasingly popular trend really entail, especially given the inconsistent behaviour of its creators? “The shocking images from the performances of Krzysztof Warlikowski display a poetical dimension and do not reflect the world in natural proportions, but construct a chain of symbolic associations.” The texts from the Pokolenie porno [The Porno Generation] anthology, which aim at revealing to the viewers a world that has so far been ignored by the theatre, seem to be reduced to presenting violence and approving vulgar language. And the Szybki Teatr Miejski theatre company is becoming increasingly embroiled in the theatrical paradox despite its genuinely realistic and socially involved productions. Their play, Pamiętnik z dekady bezdomności [A Diary from a Decade of Homelessness], based on a story of a homeless woman, confuses the viewer. Staged in St. Albert’s Shelter in Gdańsk in an attempt to come closer to the issue of homelessness, the play results in keeping the viewer at a distance. The shelter and its residents who ‘perform’ along with the actress “bring about a feeling of alienation and of not belonging to this place.” The fact that Szybki Teatr Miejski deals with this upsetting social issue is, obviously, of great significance. But Pamiętnik z dekady bezdomności, with its attempt to seamlessly enter reality in order to evoke genuine compassion for human tragedy, merely irritates with its twisted staging and artistic shortcomings.

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