A Theatre of Magic and Sacrilege

Extract

The actors of the Theatre Laboratory in Opole, all of them under thirty, meet every morning at ten. The day begins with three hours of “basic” exercises: gymnastics, acrobatics, breathing exercises, rhythmic dance, plastic motion, concentration, mask composition, and pantomime. When this is finished, they start rehearsing the play which is currently in preparation and keep at it until show time in the evening. The acting technique they have perfected in five years is resolutely “theatrical,” meaning that it is anti-naturalist. We shall start with an analysis of this technique, which is supposed to increase substantially the actor's means of expression.