Source Work for Actors

An actor delves into the electrifying world of Jerzy Grotowski’s Polish Laboratory Theatre.

The legacy of Polish theatre director Jerzy Grotowski comes to life in this personal account of a workshop and intensive with Laboratory Theatre master actor Zbigniew Cynkutis. This volume provides a rare window into the actor training and performance practices of one of the most influential and revolutionary theaters of the twentieth century.

Drawing from extensive notes and recordings made during Cynkutis’s last workshop in the United States, Diane Edgecomb’s Source Work for Actors takes us to the heart of the workshop experience from the perspective of a young actor determined to make this process her own. Cynkutis’s voice and presence are palpable throughout the book as he guides a group of actors to a deep understanding of his artistic philosophy and craft. Stimulated by a developing series of tasks, Laboratory Theatre training exercises, and Cynkutis’s startling demonstrations, the group is challenged to bring their whole selves to the work and to reimagine what is possible in theatre.

This compelling volume bears witness to the power of a deeply visceral form of theater and illustrates why the works of Grotowski and his actors have had such a profound impact on generations of theater artists. It is sure to stimulate students, challenge directors, and inspire innovative work.

Diane Edgecomb is an award-winning theater artist and storyteller of mythic, original, and personal tales, whose writings also include the first English volume of Kurdish folktales gathered in Kurdistan’s mountains. She has performed with ensembles such as Stage One Theatre Lab and Double Edge Theatre and continued her development of Zbigniew Cynkutis’s teachings with her solo performance Restraints. Jenna Kumiega studied drama at Manchester University. She taught herself Polish and worked with the Laboratory Theatre in Poland intermittently between 1975 and 1981. She is the author of the influential study The Theatre of Grotowski.