W gabinecie i na Wyprawie
In the Study and on Expedition

My Reminiscences of Zbigniew Osiński (1939–2018)

Summary/Abstract: Zbigniew Osiński studied Polish philology first as an undergraduate and then graduate student at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań (1957–1966). Then he worked at the University as an assistant professor, and later as associate professor (since 1970). It was in Poznań that he first encountered the theatre of Jerzy Grotowski, who became one of the most important subjects of his research. His first book, Teatr Dionizosa (‘The Theatre of Dionysius,’ 1972), explored the Romantic contexts in contemporary Polish theatre. Since 1970 Osiński worked at the University of Warsaw. His habilitation thesis, published as Grotowski i jego Laboratorium (‘Grotowski and his Laboratory,’ 1980), has become a major scholarly contribution and trove of information about Jerzy Grotowski’s theatrical activity. In 1991 Zbigniew Osiński was appointed University of Warsaw Professor, and he received his full professorship in 2000. In 1989 Zbigniew Osiński devised and founded the Ośrodek Badań Twórczości Jerzego Grotowskiego i Poszukiwań Teatralno-Kulturowych (the Centre for the Study of Jerzy Grotowski’s Work and Theatrical and Cultural Explorations) in Wrocław, which he ran until 2004. It later transformed into the Jerzy Grotowski Institute. My recollections of Zbigniew Osiński include his research fascinations: his participation in actions of the Laboratory Theatre and Expeditions of the Gardzienice Centre for Theatre Research. He was the author of more than a dozen books that have become substantial contributions to Polish theatre studies on Jerzy Grotowski, the Reduta Theatre, Oriental motifs in Polish culture, and Irena and Tadeusz Byrskis. He also edited the texts and writings of Jerzy Grotowski, Mieczysław Limanowski, Juliusz Osterwa, and Wacław Radulski.

• Details
• Contents