Pamięć roku 1765
The Memory of 1765

Summary/Abstract: The birth of the National Theatre in 1765 has a permanent place in the history of the Polish theatre and Poland as such. Wojciech Bogusławski, who had debuted as an actor, singer and author in 1778, but due to his great contributions was called “the father of the national stage,” reminded the date to his readers in Dzieje Teatru Narodowego (‘A History of the National Theatre’) published in 1820, when he wrote that “the first inauguration of the national stage was initiated” by King Stanislaw August. A copy of the book was set in the foundation of a new national theatre house at Marywil in Warsaw (the Teatralny Square) on 19 November 1825, on the 60th anniversary of the first Polish public comedy (Natręci by Józef Bielawski). After the collapse of the November Uprising, the memory of 1765 was kept up mostly by theatre historians, critics and dramatists (Karol Estreicher, Władysław Bogusławski, Wincenty Rapacki, among others). Actors of the Warsaw Government Theatres referred with great passion to the beginnings of the national stage when they were on strike in November 1905 demanding that the theatre be “nationalised” and its administration passed over to the municipal government and the Civil Committee. After Poland regained independence—with development of historical studies—the memorable date of 19 November 1765, along with the figure of the many-year manager of the National Theatre, gained a permanent place in the collective consciousness of the nation. In 1936 a statue of Wojciech Bogusławski, completed by Jan Szczepkowski, was unveiled on the Teatralny Square. During the Second World War, the statue, as well as the whole building, was destroyed by the Germans. The right wing of the building, which housed the Narodowy Theatre, was rebuilt in 1949, and the Wielki Theatre was reopened in 1965, on the 200th anniversary of the National Stage. The anniversary was officially celebrated by the state and brought about a substantial body of academic and artistic achievements. The manager of the Narodowy Theatre at the time, Kazimierz Dejmek, initiated a Programmatic Declaration for the stage, proposing an “iron-cast repertory” that encompassed the pieces by such authors as Jan Kochanowski and Sławomir Mrożek. A commemorative stone with a suitable inscription to that effect was put at the junction of the Marszałkowska and Królewska Streets, where the Opernhaus (Operalnia), a home to the first National Theatre, used to stand. The opening of the Wielki Theatre was celebrated with a performance of Straszny Dwór (‘The Haunted Manor’) by Stanisław Moniuszko. The Narodowy put on Kordian by Juliusz Słowacki (dir. by Dejmek). Moreover, on 19 November 1965, theatres across Poland premiered Polish plays. The academic output of the celebrations (conferences, publications) was impressive as well. The 240th anniversary of the National Theatre was not that grand, although it was commemorated by the conference “Teatr narodowy w służbie publicznej. Marzenia i rzeczywistość” (‘The National Theatre in Public Service. Dreams and Reality’), held in the Redutowe Rooms of the Wielki Theatre. The 250th anniversary, commemorated by a special resolution passed by the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, is still waiting for its chronicler.

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