Pięknie ilustrowana i bogata tematycznie książka prezentuje szeroki wachlarz działań artystycznych, pomagając nam zrozumieć późniejsze eksperymenty, jakie miały miejsce w tej dziedzinie sztuki dzięki przedstawieniu ich źródeł i podstaw. Leksykon ukazuje również niezwykłą sieć powiązań i inspiracji będących wynikiem rozprzestrzeniania się idei awangardowych i podróży artystów po tej części Europy. Publikacja ta ma ogromne znaczenie w obliczu aktualnych przemian politycznych i rozwoju postaw nacjonalistycznych, jakie obserwujemy dzisiaj w tym regionie (nie pomijając wojny w Ukrainie), ponieważ przypomina nam o wspólnych wartościach, zainteresowaniach i dziedzictwie artystycznym. Autorom i redaktorowi Leksykonu należą się gratulacje za ogrom wykonanej pracy i wiele ciekawych spostrzeżeń. Leksykon jest niezbędną lekturą pozwalającą nam w pełni zrozumieć różnorodne ścieżki rozwoju teatru europejskiego.

Paul Allain
Profesor Wydziału Teatru i Performance’u
Uniwersytet w Kent, Canterbury, Zjednoczone Królestwo

A Lexicon of the Central-Eastern European Interwar Theatre Avant-garde (Leksykon międzywojennej awangardy teatralnej Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej) pod redakcją Dariusza Kosińskiego jest wynikiem wieloletniej współpracy pomiędzy badaczami teatru i sztuk performatywnych z kilkunastu państw Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej, jak również wielu spotkań i rozmów, które miały swój początek w 2012 roku. We wstępie do książki redaktorzy wyjaśniają, że nie jest ona leksykonem w potocznym rozumieniu tego słowa, ale performansem. Ujawniają tym samym swoje głębokie przekonanie, że awangarda miała charakter performatywny. Z tego względu trudno jest w pełni uchwycić jej specyfikę w inny sposób niż poprzez performatywne akty ustanawiania sieci powiązań między zjawiskami artystycznymi a ludźmi, którzy je tworzyli, oraz miejscami, na które ludzie ci oddziaływali swoimi ideami i działaniami. Przedstawienie Leksykonu jako performansu pozwala lepiej zrozumieć cel, jaki postawili sobie autorzy tekstów. Dzięki ich wyjątkowemu podejściu, artyści i ich działania zaprezentowane w Leksykonie wchodzą w nowe i nieoczekiwane relacje, stawiając przed czytelnikiem zadanie odnalezienia się w tej sieci powiązań i wypracowanie własnego spojrzenia na narodowe sceny państw Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej, na których praktyki awangardowe rozwijały się i prezentowały niemal równocześnie. Autorzy nie chcą jednak, aby czytelnik nadmiernie przyzwyczaił się do jednej perspektywy i zachęcają go do bardziej elastycznego podejścia, które pozwoli na dostrzeżenie dynamiki performansu i mnogości elementów, które składają się na awangardę teatralną tego regionu.

dr hab. Ewa Partyga
Zakład Historii i Teorii Teatru
Instytut Sztuki, Polska Akademia Nauk

EN

This lexicon does very welcome and much needed work filling gaps for English-speaking readers by building a complex picture of previously invisible activities: charting avant-garde theatre practices between the wars across Central-Eastern Europe. Beautifully illustrated and comprehensive, it depicts a wealth of activities, helping us understand later experimentation by revealing its foundations. It also presents an extraordinary network and flow of influences and practices as people and ideas circulated across the breadth of Europe. With the current political shifts and resurgence of nationalism across the region (in addition to the war in Ukraine), this book is important for reminding us of shared values and interests and common artistic legacies. The multiple authors and the editor are to be congratulated for their hard work and many insights. The Lexicon is indispensable reading to fully understand the development of theatre throughout Europe.

Paul Allain
Professor of Theatre and Performance,
University of Kent, Canterbury, UK

A Lexicon of the Central-Eastern European Interwar Theatre Avant-garde, edited by Dariusz Kosiński, is the result of a long-term collaboration between theatre and performing arts scholars from a number of Central and Eastern European countries, the outcome of meetings and discussions undertaken on various occasions since 2012. In the introduction, the editors propose that this work is not a typical lexicon but rather a performance. In doing so, they emphasize, among other things, their deep conviction that the avant-garde was performative in nature. Hence it is difficult to capture its specificity other than through performative acts of establishing network connections between artistic phenomena and the people who created them, and the places that these people transformed with their actions. The declaration that the Lexicon is meant to be a performance also conveys the task set by the authors of the texts. This allows the artists and their practices recalled in the Lexicon to enter into new and unexpected relationships; and the task they set for the readers is to find their own place and their own perspective on the simultaneous scene of Central-Eastern European theatre avant-gardes. All this is done while taking care not to get too accustomed to this perspective, but to change it in order to see the dynamic performance from multiple positions.

Ewa Partyga
Associate Professor in the Theatre History and Theory Department,
Institute of Art, Polish Academy of Sciences

List of Contents

General Introduction: This is not a lexicon. Dariusz Kosiński - 11

 
Section One
STAGES: AVANT-GARDE THEATRE AND THE STATE BETWEEN THE WORLD WARS

 

1.0    Avant-garde Theatre and the State between the World Wars: Introduction. Zoltán Imre and Dariusz Kosiński - 25

1.1    The Theatre Avant-garde and the Czechoslovak Republic. Martin Bernátek - 29

1.2    In the Shadow of a Monument: The Second Polish Republic and the first Polish theatre avant-garde. Dariusz Kosiński - 43

1.3    The Avant-garde and Independence: The case of Romania. Anca Hațiegan - 53

1.4    Avant-garde Theatre in Bulgaria: Transforming collective identifications in the 1920s and 1930s. Kamelia Nikolova - 63

1.5    The Latvian Theatre Avant-garde: From the celebration of the 1st of May to The Song of Rebirth. Edīte Tišheizere. Translated by Kristina Guste - 69

1.6    Two Attempts to Establish the Avant-garde in Lithuanian Theatre. Martynas Petrikas and Asta Petrikienė - 81

1.7    The Peacock's Tail. Georgian avant-garde performance 1912–36. Ketevan S. Kintsurashvili - 91

1.8    Avant-garde Theatre and the Independent State: The case of Ukraine. Hanna Veselovska - 97

1.9    In Marginality. Hungarian avant-garde experiments and the nation-state (1920–40). Zoltán Imre - 107

1.10   A New Story with Old Elements: The social and cultural context of the emerging avant-garde in Serbia/Kingdom of Yugoslavia between

          the World   Wars. Marina Milivojević Mađarev and Milan Mađarev - 117

1.11   Croatia: The new theatre for a new human being. Boris Senker - 123

1.12   Avant-garde on the Border. The case of Trieste/Trst/Triest. Tomaž Toporišič - 131

1.13   Lviv: Erasure of tradition in a city of tradition. Małgorzata Dziewulska. Translated by Mikołaj Kosiński - 143

1.14   Vitebsk as a ‘Third Space’ of the Avant-garde in Belarus. Tania Arcimovich - 153

 

Section Two
NETWORKS: THE CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPEAN INTERWAR AVANT-GARDE IN INTERNATIONAL AND TRANSNATIONAL CONTEXTS
 

2.0       Beyond Borders: Mobility and sites of exchange among interwar avant-garde theatres in Central-Eastern Europe. Introduction.

            Martin Bernátek,  Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 165

 

MOBILITY AND MIGRATIONS IN INTERWAR AVANT-GARDE THEATRES IN CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPE

2.1.0      Introductory Remarks. Martin Bernátek, Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 177

2.1.1      Mobility of Belarusian Artists in the Soviet Union: Lev Litvinov ‘on the edges’ of the revolutionary theatre. Tania Arcimovich - 179

2.1.2.     Migrations to and from Latvia. Edīte Tišheizere. Translated by Kristina Guste - 185

2.1.3      Migrations to and from Georgia. Ketevan S. Kintsurashvili - 189

2.1.4      Migrations to and from Ukraine. Hanna Veselovska - 193

2.1.5      Russian Emigrants in Serbia, 1918–41. Milan Mađarev and Marina Milivojević Mađarev - 197

2.1.6      Migrant Artists and Political Activists of the Slovene Avant-garde. Tomaž Toporišič - 205

2.1.7      Migrations to and from Romania. Alexandra Chiriac - 209

2.1.8      Migrations to and from Poland. Przemysław Strożek with Dariusz Kosiński and Justyna Michalik-Tomala - 215

2.1.9      Avant-garde Theatre in Motion around, in and out of Czechoslovakia. Martin Bernátek - 221

2.1.10    Mobility of Artists to and from Bulgaria. Kamelia Nikolova - 229

2.1.11    Migrations to and from Hungary. Zoltán Imre - 237

 

TRANSNATIONAL CIRCULATION OF IDEAS ON AVANT-GARDE THEATRE IN THE NETWORKED MAGAZINES OF CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPE

2.2.0      Introductory Remarks. Martin Bernátek, Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 243

2.2.1      Czechoslovak Magazines: Host, Pásmo, Fronta, ReD, Index, Rozpravy Aventina, Program D. Martin Bernátek - 245

2.2.2      Polish Magazines: Zdrój, Zwrotnica, Blok, Dźwignia, Praesens, Linia. Przemysław Strożek - 253

2.2.3      Ukrainian Magazines: Semafor u maibutnie, Nova Generatsia, Mystetski materialy avangardu. Hanna Veselovska - 259

2.2.4      Georgian Magazines: H2SO4. Ketevan S. Kintsurashvili - 267

2.2.5      Romanian Magazines: Contimporanul, Integral, 75 HP, Punct, unu, Periszkóp. Alexandra Chiriac - 271

2.2.6      Hungarian Magazines: A TETT, MA, Új Föld, Színház és Film, Független Színpad. Zoltan Imre - 279

2.2.7      Bulgarian Magazines: Vezni, Crescendo, Plamuk. Kamelia Nikolova - 287

2.2.8      Croatian Magazines: Scena, Teater, Comoedia, Kritika, Književnik, Plamen, Zenit. Višnja Kačić Rogošić - 291

2.2.9      Serbian Magazines: Svetokret, Zenit, Večnost, Út, Comoedia, Pozorište. Milan Mađarev and Marina Milivojević Mađarev - 301

2.2.10    Slovenian Magazines: Novi oder, Tank. Tomaž Toporišič - 307

2.2.11    Lithuanian Magazines: Keturi vėjai, MUBA. Martynas Petrikas and Asta Petrikienė - 313

2.2.12    Latvian Magazines: Laikmets. Edīte Tišheizere. Translated by Kristina Guste - 317

 

THE PRESENCE OF THE CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPEAN INTERWAR AVANT-GARDE AT INTERNATIONAL THEATRE EVENTS

2.3.0      Introductory Remarks. Martin Bernátek, Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 323

2.3.1      1922. Amsterdam. The International Theatre Exhibition. Written collectively - 325

2.3.2      1924. Vienna. International Exhibition of New Theatre Technology. Written collectively - 331

2.3.3      1925. Paris. International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts. Written collectively - 333

2.3.4      1926. New York. International Theatre Exhibition. Written collectively - 337

2.3.5      1927. Magdeburg. The German Theatre Exhibition. Written collectively - 341

2.3.6      1929. Barcelona International Exhibition. Written collectively - 343

2.3.7      1930. Moscow. Theatre Olympiad. Written collectively - 345

2.3.8      1933. Moscow. International Olympiad of Revolutionary Theatres. Written collectively - 347

2.3.9      1934. New York. International Exhibition of Theatre Art. Written collectively - 349

2.3.10    1936. Milan. Sixth Triennale ‘Continuity–Modernity’. Written collectively - 351

2.3.11    1936. Vienna. The International Exposition of Theatre Art. Written collectively - 353

2.3.12    1937. Prague. The International Conference of Avant-garde Theatremakers. Written collectively - 355

2.3.13    1937. Paris. The International Exposition of Arts and Technology in Modern Life. Written collectively - 365

2.3.14    1930s. International Dance Competitions. Written collectively - 367

2.3.15    References - 370

 

CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPEAN INTERWAR WORKERS’ THEATRE: WORKERS’ CULTURE, THE TRANSNATIONAL PROLETARIAN MOVEMENT AND THE AVANT-GARDE

2.4.0   Introductory Remarks. Martin Bernátek, Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 379

2.4.1      United Workers of Leftist Theatre in Czechoslovakia. Martin Bernátek - 381

2.4.2      Hungarian Workers’ Theatre, the Avant-garde and the Transnational Proletarian Movement. Zoltán Imre - 389

2.4.3   Workers’ Theatres in Ukraine. Hanna Veselovska - 401

2.4.4   The Workers’ Stage in Poland in the Context of Avant-garde Theatre. Przemysław Strożek - 407

2.4.5      Workers' Theatre in Romania. Anca Hațiegan - 413

2.4.6      The Ljubljana Workers’ Stage and the Transnational Proletarian Movement. Tomaž Toporišič - 417

2.4.7      Anna Lācis: A Latvian transit from Russia to Western Europe. Edīte Tišheizere. Translated by Kristina Guste - 421

2.4.8      The Workers’ Theatres in Georgia. Ketevan S. Kintsurashvili - 431

 

JEWISH THEATRES AND THE AVANT-GARDE IN CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPE

2.5.0      Introductory Remarks. Martin Bernátek, Zoltán Imre and Przemysław Strożek - 437

2.5.1      Avant-garde Jewish Theatres in Ukraine: Kyiv, Kharkiv. Hanna Veselovska - 439

2.5.2      Avant-garde Jewish Theatres in Belarus: Minsk. Tania Arcimovich - 443

2.5.3      Avant-garde Jewish Theatres in Poland: Vilnius, Łódź, Warsaw. Małgorzata Leyko. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz - 447

2.5.4      Avant-garde Jewish Theatres in Lithuania: Kaunas. Martynas Petrikas and Asta Petrikienė - 451

2.5.5      Avant-garde Jewish Theatres in Romania: Bucharest. Alexandra Chiriac - 459

2.5.6      The Tours of the Vilna Troupe. Alexandra Chiriac - 463

 

Section Three
PERFORMANCES: CRUCIAL AESTHETIC ASPECTS OF THE CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPEAN INTERWAR THEATRE AVANT-GARDE

3.0    In Between: The aesthetics of the Central-Eastern European interwar theatre avant-garde. Justyna Michalik-Tomala and Marina Milivojević Mađarev - 469


FORM
3.1.1   ‘A carnival of eclecticism’: Form as synthesis in avant-garde performance. Alexandra Chiriac - 475

3.1.2   Croatian Thinkers in the 1920s and the 1930s on Formal Aspects of Theatre. Višnja Kačić Rogošić - 481

3.1.3   Form in Latvian Avant-garde Theatre. Edīte Tišheizere. Translated by Kristina Guste - 493

3.1.4   The Founders of New Forms in Georgian Theatre. Ketevan S. Kintsurashvili - 501

3.1.5   New Forms of Theatre Space. Justyna Michalik-Tomala. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz - 507

3.1.6   Beyond the Power of the Known. Form as a vehicle in the theories of the Polish theatre avant-garde. Dariusz Kosiński - 513

3.1.7 Thinking Practice, Shaping Art. Aesthetics of the interwar theatre avant-garde in Czechoslovakia. Martin Bernátek - 523

 

DRAMA

3.2.1      Doing Things with Words, or What the Avant-garde Needs Drama For. Ewa Guderian-Czaplińska. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz - 531

3.2.2      Reflections on sintesi: From drama and theatre to visual poetry, film and radio. Przemysław Strożek - 539

3.2.3      Serbian Avant-garde Drama. Marina Milivojević Mađarev - 545

3.2.4      Expressionist Features of Croatian Drama of the 1920s. Boris Senker - 555

3.2.5      The Model of Slavko Grum’s New Drama and the Influence of Tairov. Tomaž Toporišič - 561

3.2.6      The Theatrical Avant-garde and Drama: The case of Romania. Anca Hațiegan - 567

3.2.7      Drama and its Staging in the Czechoslovakian Avant-garde. Martin Bernátek - 573

 

DANCE

3.3.1      The Choreography of Innovation: Avant-garde ballet on Ukraine’s stage in the 1920s. Hanna Veselovska - 579

3.3.2      Stage Movement in Avant-garde Theatre in Serbia 1918–41. Milan Mađarev - 591

3.3.3      Avant-garde Dance in Poland. Małgorzata Leyko. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz - 595

3.3.4      The Hungarian Avant-garde, Women, and Dance/movement. Zoltán Imre - 603

 

EVENT

3.4.1      Performance on the Page. Martynas Petrikas and Asta Petrikienė - 613

3.4.2      The Theatrical Avant-garde and Events. The case of Romania. Anca Hațiegan - 623

3.4.3      Never Again. The Polish interwar theatre avant-garde and the art of performative events. Dariusz Kosiński - 629

3.4.4      The Spectator in Polish Interwar Avant-garde Theatre. Justyna Michalik-Tomala. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz - 635

3.4.5      Cricot: The magic box of subversion. Małgorzata Dziewulska. Translated by Magdalena Solak-Michałkiewicz 641

 

Section Four

4.0 LEXICON INDEX - 651