Przejdź do treści

Who is the critic? Diarist, of course.

It was the idea of the professor Don Rubin, York University from Canada: to organize an international meeting of the theatrical critics devoted to their professional experience.

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Autor felietonu przy pomniku Szekspira w kanadyjskim Statfordzie.

The intention was very clear – the originator has been very interested in the accumulation of the rich material from many regions and countries about the professional path leading to the contemporary shape and profile of the critics. Don Rubin would like to do the first step and, maybe, lay down the new practice in our international community: creating a specific database of the critics. I think it was a very good and important step, very precisely planned and very thoroughly prepared. We could acquaint much information about the theatrical commentary, about our tradition. I'd like only notice one of the speech by Micheal Handelzaltz from Israel. Whoever knows him should not be surprised: Michael likes the connection with Bible very much. This time, we found that the God was the first critic… But for me, another topic in his speech was more important. He recalled Samuel Papys, a good known diarist of the Elizabethan age, who wrote down his impression about Shakespearean “Midnight Summer Dream”. Michael Handelzaltz told a tasty anecdote about his conversation with the artistic director one of the theaters in Tel Aviv. Michael would like to publish his review about a first night in the next issue of the newspaper and asked the director how long the spectacle lasts. Director was very surprised and asked why he wants to publish his review so fast, what is the reason – the performance should be not only one day event. Maybe – answered Michael – but a first night is not the event, the  event is that it is me who was in the theatre this night – it is the news. Yes, it is only a joke, because, in fact, the reviewer today, and it links him with Mr Pepys, is the diarist, is somebody who notices his impressions. That's all. And that's a lot. If the critic is nobody, his remarks are of little importance, but if he's Somebody…
So, when Michel was talking about diarist mission of the critic I realized that I've been writing the diary too for many years in various magazines under the title „My theatrical diary”. What a coincidence! It must be significant, it isn't only an accident.
Tomasz Miłkowski

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