Towards a Poor Theatre
Jerzy Grotowski's radical manifesto for a theatre stripped to its essence
Overview
Towards a Poor Theatre by Jerzy Grotowski is one of the most revolutionary and influential texts in the history of modern theatre, documenting the radical experiments conducted at the Polish Laboratory Theatre in Opole and later Wroclaw during the 1960s. Published in 1968, the book collects Grotowski's essays, lectures, and interviews alongside detailed descriptions of his training methods and production techniques. Grotowski, who is widely regarded as one of the three or four most important theatre practitioners of the twentieth century alongside Stanislavski, Brecht, and Artaud, used the Laboratory Theatre as a research institution dedicated to investigating the fundamental nature of the actor-audience relationship.
The central concept of 'poor theatre' involves stripping away everything that is not essential to the theatrical event — elaborate sets, costumes, lighting, sound, and technology — to reveal the irreducible core of theatre: the living encounter between actor and spectator. Grotowski argued that theatre cannot compete with film and television in spectacle and should not try; instead, it should embrace what makes it unique, which is the presence of a living human being performing an act of total self-revelation before witnesses. This philosophical position, articulated with extraordinary clarity and conviction, challenged the entire apparatus of commercial theatre production and continues to inspire practitioners who seek theatre's essential power.
How It Works
The book documents Grotowski's via negativa approach to actor training — the idea that the actor's task is not to accumulate skills and techniques but to remove the obstacles, blocks, and defenses that prevent total creative expression. This concept represents a fundamental reversal of conventional training philosophy, which typically focuses on adding capabilities. Grotowski's actors underwent rigorous physical and vocal training not to develop impressive technical facility but to achieve a state of complete openness and vulnerability that he called the 'total act.' The training descriptions in the book, while challenging to implement without direct guidance, convey the extraordinary physical and psychological demands Grotowski placed on his actors.
The book includes detailed documentation of several landmark productions, including Akropolis, The Constant Prince, and Apocalypsis cum Figuris, with photographs, ground plans, and descriptions of the spatial relationships between actors and audience. These production documents are invaluable for understanding how Grotowski's theoretical principles manifested in actual performance work. Each production reinvented the actor-audience spatial relationship, rejecting the conventional stage-auditorium divide in favor of configurations that placed spectators inside the performance environment. The descriptions reveal a level of artistic rigor and intentionality that sets a standard few productions have matched.
Who Uses It
Grotowski's influence on subsequent theatre practice has been immeasurable, extending through his direct students and collaborators to virtually every branch of experimental and physical theatre worldwide. Peter Brook, Eugenio Barba, Richard Schechner, and countless other major figures have acknowledged their debt to Grotowski's work. The Laboratory Theatre's training methods, while adapted and modified, continue to inform physical theatre training programs globally. The concept of poor theatre has provided a philosophical foundation for generations of independent theatre makers who create powerful work with minimal resources, demonstrating that theatrical impact depends on the quality of human presence rather than production values.
Pricing & Plans
Towards a Poor Theatre is available in paperback from Methuen Drama, typically priced between $15 and $25 for a new copy. Used copies are available at varying prices, and the book occasionally goes in and out of print, which can affect availability and price. Digital editions may be available depending on the publisher's current arrangements. The book includes photographs, diagrams, and production documentation that are essential to understanding the work and are best appreciated in physical format. Given its status as one of the foundational texts of modern theatre, the investment is modest relative to its importance.
Pros & Cons
What's Great
Grotowski's most enduring contribution, as articulated in this book, is the reframing of theatre from a product to be consumed to an act to be witnessed — a shift that elevates both the actor's commitment and the audience's responsibility. The via negativa concept, while originating in a specific theatrical context, has profound implications for any creative practice, suggesting that the path to authentic expression lies through the removal of learned habits and protective mechanisms rather than the accumulation of more technique. The book's documentation of the Laboratory Theatre's productions provides concrete evidence that Grotowski's ideas were not merely theoretical but produced work of extraordinary power and beauty. The intellectual rigor and moral seriousness of Grotowski's writing sets a standard for how practitioners think and write about their art.
What Could Be Better
The book is not an easy read — Grotowski's writing is dense, philosophical, and sometimes mystical in ways that resist casual comprehension. The training exercises described in the book are presented in a form that assumes direct instruction and cannot be safely or effectively replicated from text alone, particularly the more extreme physical and psychological exercises. Grotowski's approach demands a level of commitment, sacrifice, and communal living that is incompatible with the realities of most professional theatre careers and training programs. Some readers may find Grotowski's vision of theatre as quasi-religious self-sacrifice to be alienating or unrealistic in a contemporary context where actors need to sustain themselves economically and psychologically over long careers.
Our Recommendation
Towards a Poor Theatre is essential reading for any serious theatre practitioner, though it should be approached as a philosophical and historical document rather than a practical manual. It is particularly valuable for actors and directors interested in physical theatre, experimental performance, and the question of what makes live theatre irreplaceable in an age of digital media. The book is best read in conjunction with other accounts of Grotowski's work, including Thomas Richards's At Work with Grotowski on Physical Actions and Jennifer Kumiega's The Theatre of Grotowski, which provide additional context and perspective. If Grotowski's ideas resonate with you, explore the work of practitioners who have carried his legacy forward, including the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards in Pontedera, Italy.
Pro Tips
Read the book slowly and meditatively, allowing Grotowski's challenging ideas to provoke genuine reflection rather than rushing to extract practical techniques. Pay particular attention to the photographs and production documentation, which convey the physical reality of the work in ways that the theoretical essays alone cannot. After reading, attend performances by companies working in the Grotowski tradition — such as the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski, Gardzienice, or Song of the Goat Theatre — to experience the living legacy of these ideas in performance. Consider what 'poor theatre' means in your own practice: what could you strip away from your work to reveal its essential core? Discuss the book with your colleagues and teachers, as Grotowski's ideas are controversial and generative, producing productive disagreements that clarify one's own artistic values and priorities.