<i>Gesamtkunstwerk</i> Transcriptions in the Polish Theatrical Avant-Garde

Abstract

When considering the concept of the Gesamtkunstwerk in the context of the avant-garde, it seems useful to use the term transcription, borrowed from musical terminology, which denotes the development of a composition for a different instrument, voice or ensemble than originally intended. From this perspective, we can speak of a transcription of Wagner’s concept to other areas of the arts. In Polish theater studies, the notion of the Gesamtkunstwerk appears often. Usually Wagner’s concept is cited as one of many inspirations of selected artists and their artistic practices. As far as the activities of artists among the Polish theatrical avant-garde are concerned, this inspiration seems to be obvious. In this article, I attempt to show how the idea of the Gesamtkunstwerk functions in selected works of Polish artists, such as Zbigniew Pronaszko, Jerzy Grotowski and Tadeusz Kantor. These artists consciously refer to the Wagnerian idea by perceiving the work of theater art primarily as a tool of possible social change.