Ile szkód może przynieść zawodowy polski teatr?
How Much Damage Can a Professional Polish Theatre Make?

Tadeusz Czacki and the Volhynian Gymnasium (Lyceum) on Things Theatrical

Summary/Abstract: The relations between one of the most important Polish schools of the 19th century, the Volhynian Gymnasium (Lyceum) at Krzemieniec, and the theatre—as a phemomenon and institution—were complex and ambiguous. On the one hand, the tradition and the idea of the Polish National Theatre, founded by King Stanislaw August, was appreciated and held in high regard. The idea, epitomised by Wojciech Bogusławski, “the father of the national stage,” stressed the significance the theatre had in maintaining the national identity after the partitions, under foreign (at Krzemieniec, Russian) domination. In literature classes, the Gymnasium students were introduced to dramas written by the Polish Enlightenment authors and were taught about the educational role of theatre. They also read the most outstanding foreign dramas, by Molière and Shakespeare. One of the students, Franciszek Kowalski, went on to become a respected translator of Molière’s. On the other hand, however, the school authorities, concerned about the morality of its students and reinforcing its educational autonomy, viewed the travelling companies of Polish actors that visited the town with great suspicion, which was in line with Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s pedagogical ideas. This was also partly due to the fact that, although the companies were “children” of the National Theatre, they usually did not measure up to the Warsaw standard of artistic merit. In 1808, Tadeusz Czacki, the co-founder of the school and its highest authority, decided to categorically forbid the students to go to theatre shows. The school authorities relaxed this strict ban a little by introducing a system whereby the best students of older years could be granted leave to go to theatre, and the repertory had to be deemed suitable by the school. A special commission, made up of professors and a representative of the student body, was established and tasked with evaluating the shows. But when in 1819 Bogusławski visited Krzemieniec, he was welcomed enthusiastically, even ostentatiously, as a great artist and patriot. And five years later—again, with morality in mind—new school authorities prohibited any travelling troupes from performing in town. So, on the one hand, Krzemieniec celebrated “the father of the national stage,” while, on the other hand, professional Polish actors were being driven out.

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