Grzegorz Jarzyna’s Theatre of Post-Dramatic Joy and Recognition

This chapter presents the artistic career (with key performances as milestones) and theatre aesthetics of Grzegorz Jarzyna, one of the most influential theatre directors in contemporary Poland, co-creator of the significant metropolitan theatre called Teatr Rozmaitości. Since his debut in 1997, Jarzyna has belonged to the generation of theatre artists having enormous impact on the post-dramatic theatre in Poland. A special accent is placed on this author’s aesthetics of the theatre of joy (inspired by pop culture, especially music and cinema) and on the reasons for his recognition (his striving for understanding the complex questions of the human condition and social challenges in the post-capitalist, globalising world).