AUTONOMY AND PARTICIPATION: TADEUSZ KANTOR AND THEODOR ADORNO, A JOINING OF THEORY AND PRACTICE
AUTONOMY AND PARTICIPATION: TADEUSZ KANTOR AND THEODOR ADORNO, A JOINING OF THEORY AND PRACTICE

Summary/Abstract: Autonomy can appear problematic for performance criticism, if understood from a disinterested point of view, in which “good art” is judged through its capability of transcending senses and appealing primarily to the mind. Furthermore, “good” autonomous art should seek to rid itself from all heterogeneous elements, any trace of the exterior world, in order to concern itself solely with its internal construction. Considering autonomy on these terms means that it cannot be achieved in art forms that use bodies as their material and come into being with the intrusion of the spectator’s physical presence. In order to seek a possible way of reclaiming the validity of artistic autonomy for performance, both the theories of Theodor Adorno and the writings and participative works of Tadeusz Kantor might offer an interesting paradigm for thinking how performance might encompass an autonomous form. Adorno’s aesthetic theories offer a way of considering autonomy as art’s necessary escape from the empirical world as well as its necessary relationship to the world. Adorno argues that neither society, nor the body can entirely be escaped both in the creation and reception of art. In the light of Adorno’s postulations, to analyze Tadeusz Kantor’s work can be useful in order to identify what an autonomous participatory theatre might be, as the director both insisted on a quest for an autonomous theatre and the prevalence of the spectator’s role within theatre. In turn, this creates a useful framework to analyze how autonomy might function in contemporary participatory performances shown in London in 2010, during the ONE-on-ONE Festival.

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