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Dziady and the fight for the national traditions

RELATED STORIES

How Dziady sparked off the March events
Jacek Kuroń Social activist
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No ale odsiedzieliśmy, wyszliśmy i wyszliśmy prościuśko w młyn tej całej akcji komandoskiej. Nasz list otwarty ukazał się w 1965, na początku 1965 roku, a jesienią 1964 roku ukazał się List Trzydziestu Czterech ważący, znaczący, bo to list-głos najwybitniejszych polskich intelektualistów przeciw centrum, że... zresztą w związku z tą sprawą zwołano wiec na Uniwerku, pierwszy też po długiej przerwie. Tam nasi się w tej sprawie bardzo aktywizowali. Otóż tacy właśnie tak właśnie rozparzeni żeśmy wylądowali na Dziadach. Wylądowali na Dziadach to znaczy weszli w sprawę Dziadów. Weszliśmy w nią w sposób i tak się zaczyna Marzec, weszliśmy w sposób jakby nie całkiem zamierzony, to bardzo śmieszne. Mianowicie w Warszawie w tym czasie w Teatrze Narodowym wystawiano Dziady w inscenizacji Dejmka, które robiły niesłychaną furorę i rozeszła się wiadomość, że zostaną one zdjęte ze sceny w ten sposób, że tam któreś z rzędu przedstawienie ma być ostatnie, to dość ciekawy sposób zapowiadania zdjęcia przedstawienia. I dlatego i nie tylko dlatego, ale także dlatego, że przygotowania Moczara do przejęcia władzy i tej grupy do wzięcia władzy były takie zupełnie oczywiste, rzucały się w oczy. Dlatego rozeszły się po Warszawie pogłoski, cały czas trwały pogłoski, być może nawet jak ktoś lansował z tamtego koła, że będzie lada moment zamach stanu, co ranośmy się budzili z wiadomością zamach stanu, niesłychanie baliśmy się prowokacji i dlatego też, ponieważ, no, Moczar się szykował do skoku. Dziady zapoczątkowały... zdjęcie Dziadów zapoczątkowały wydarzenia marcowe, więc wielu ludzi uważa wydarzenia marcowe za prowokację. Być może, być może to zdjęcie Dziadów było jakoś wmontowane w jakiś scenariusz, który oni sobie zrobili, ale ten scenariusz im całkiem nie wyszedł.

I did my time, we did our time and we came out straight into the maelstrom of those commando operations. Our open letter was published in '65, at the beginning of '65, while in the autumn of '64 the Letter of the 34 appeared. It was very significant, it was a letter - the voice of the most eminent Polish intellectuals opposing the centre, on account of which a rally was arranged at the uni, the first one after a long break. Our people were very active there on this issue. And it was in this state, all worked up, that we ended up at Dziady. By ended up at Dziady I mean we got involved in that whole affair. We got involved in a way, this was how March began, we got involved in a way we hadn't intended, it was really quite funny. At that time there was a production by Dejmek of Dziady being staged at the National Theatre in Warsaw which was creating a sensation. The news went around that performances were going to be stopped and that one of the many performances would be the last. This was quite an interesting way of announcing the end of a performance. The reason was, it wasn't the only reason, but the reason was that Moczar's preparations to assume power, and of that group preparing to assume power, were completely obvious, you couldn't miss them. Word went around Warsaw, it was going around all the time, perhaps someone from that circle was spreading it, that there was going to be a coup. We were very afraid of provocation because Moczar was getting ready to pounce. Dziady sparked off, the end of the performance of Dziady sparked off the March events, so many people believe those events were a provocation. It's possible, it's possible that ending this production of Dziady was somehow a part of the show that they had prepared for themselves but if that was the case, then it was totally unsuccessful.

The late Polish activist, Jacek Kuroń (1934-2004), had an influential but turbulent political career, helping transform the political landscape of Poland. He was expelled from the communist party, arrested and incarcerated. He was also instrumental in setting up the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR) and later became a Minister of Labour and Social Policy.

Listeners: Marcel Łoziński Jacek Petrycki

Film director Marcel Łoziński was born in Paris in 1940. He graduated from the Film Directing Department of the National School of Film, Television and Theatre in Łódź in 1971. In 1994, he was nominated for an American Academy Award and a European Film Academy Award for the documentary, 89 mm from Europe. Since 1995, he has been a member of the American Academy of Motion Picture Art and Science awarding Oscars. He lectured at the FEMIS film school and the School of Polish Culture of Warsaw University. He ran documentary film workshops in Marseilles. Marcel Łoziński currently lectures at Andrzej Wajda’s Master School for Film Directors. He also runs the Dragon Forum, a European documentary film workshop.

Cinematographer Jacek Petrycki was born in Poznań, Poland in 1948. He has worked extensively in Poland and throughout the world. His credits include, for Agniezka Holland, Provincial Actors (1979), Europe, Europe (1990), Shot in the Heart (2001) and Julie Walking Home (2002), for Krysztof Kieslowski numerous short films including Camera Buff (1980) and No End (1985). Other credits include Journey to the Sun (1998), directed by Jesim Ustaoglu, which won the Golden Camera 300 award at the International Film Camera Festival, Shooters (2000) and The Valley (1999), both directed by Dan Reed, Unforgiving (1993) and Betrayed (1995) by Clive Gordon both of which won the BAFTA for best factual photography. Jacek Petrycki is also a teacher and a filmmaker.

Tags: Dziady, Letter of the 34, National Theatre in Warsaw, Kazimierz Dejmek, Mieczysław Moczar

Duration: 2 minutes, 15 seconds

Date story recorded: 1987

Date story went live: 12 June 2008