ABSTRACT
Polish alternative theatre came into being during the period directly preceding the historical event known as “the Polish October” in 1956. The “October” was a result of a complex sequence of circumstances starting with the Communist takeover at the end of World War II and ending with the installation of an anti-Stalinist, Władyslaw Gomułka, as head of state. It marked not only a change in government, but also a transition point in the relationship of creative intellectuals to the party-state apparatus. This changing relationship in its turn affected the intelligentsia’s attitudes toward the regime. A new skepticism brought about the beginning of Polish alternative theatre.
