APPROACHING AUTHENTICITY IN GROTOWSKI'S THEATRE OF PRODUCTIONS

Abstract

In Jerzy Grotowski’s Theatre of Productions, the actor worked towards authenticity and wholeness by crafting and uncovering her specific place in society, so that she could become a part of a greater whole. The actor gradually physicalised her personal truth and Grotowski created the optimal conditions for the actor’s process. In the director-actor relationship in Grotowski’s theatre, the duo gave wholeheartedly to each other. Hence, a complete picture of the actor’s work towards authenticity had to include Grotowski. Even as the actor’s work belonged to the individual, she was also a part of a greater collective invested in the larger work of unveiling. Hence, a complete depiction of the actor’s journey towards authenticity was an image of the greater collective that kept on growing, with the director and actor’s wholehearted relation to and clumsy acceptance of each other at its core, unveiling what it meant to be a human being.