Spór o polsko-żydowski teatr Marka Arensteina na łamach prasy polskiej w dwudziestoleciu międzywojennym
The dispute over the Polish-Jewish theatre of Mark Arenstein in the Polish press in the interwar period

Summary/Abstract: The subject of this article is the reception of Mark Arenstein’s stage activity in thePolish-language press published in the interwar period. The content analysis of announce-ments, reviews, interviews and press polemics aimed to verify how Polish journalists perceivedArenstein’s conception of Polish-Jewish theatre, implemented by the director, among others,by staging in the Polish language plays belonging to the canon of Yiddish literature. The studyshowed that the supporters of the director’s initiatives emphasized that they contributed tothe deepening of contacts between Polish and Jewish artists and increased the knowledge ofthe Polish audience about Jewish tradition. Some journalists, however, questioned Arenstein’sidea of using theatre as an instrument of Polish-Jewish cultural dialogue. They pointed outthat, despite the director’s efforts, Polish viewers were generally unable to correctly understandhis plays because they were deprived of any knowledge of Jewish theatre. Fierce opposition toArenstein’s theatrical activity was formulated by journalists associated with national democ-racy, who treated his theatre productions in Polish as a threat to national culture and unfair competition for Polish directors and playwrights.

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