Affects: The Heart of the Polish Avant-garde Theater

Paweł STANGRET

Abstract

The article focuses on the theatrical output of Tadeusz Kantor and Jerzy Grotowski. addressing the issue of how they conceived of triggering affects by means of stage performances. The problem in question was particularly relevant in the case of Kantor, who created the concept of the “constructivism of emotions.” While neither of the artists explicitly referred to that category, it was nevertheless relevant to the performances they staged. The other problem analyzed in the paper is the presence of the issue of affectivity in the theoretical concepts the artists developed in their respective theories of the creative process and in their perceptions of the function of the theater as an art. While the outputs of Kantor and Grotowski show many differences, one can also point to the aspects of the concept of the theater they shared. Significantly, however, the paper shows the indebtedness of both artists (in particular Tadeusz Kantor) to the ideas and concepts worked out by Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz, whose theory of the Pure Form, formulated in the 1920’s, shows a surprising closeness to Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s philosophical considerations on the affect in art. To Polish avant-garde artists, the categories of preservation, materiality, necessity, and composition were at the heart of an understanding of affectivity and the outputs of Kantor and Grotowski demonstrate how significant the issue of affectivity was to them in their appeal to the audience. Another characteristic their plays shared was a dialectic of Polishness and universality, which came to light in the international reception of their works. A philosophical analysis of the concept of the affect the artists used shows how close it was to that considered on the grounds of phenomenology.