Polish premiere of the wise fairy tale “The Adventures of Peddy Bottom”

The Polish premiere of “The Adventures of Peddy Bottom” on the stage of the drama theater took place in Zielona Góra on December 19, 1974 at the Lubuskie Teatr im. Leon Kruczkowski. On this occasion, Stefan Themerson added a new, ninth chapter to his book, which was later included in the 2002 edition. This chapter is something like a letter “written especially to Marek Waruszynski and sent to him on November 5, 1974”. In it, we learn that Peddy Bottom was going to Zielona Góra “through fields and forests, along roads that were solid and not beaten, through fortified and non-fortified towns, over drawbridges and without drawbridges, until he finally saw […] a great house, on which was written: THEATER, and in front of the house, on the street, two gentlemen were standing and drinking wine. – Let me introduce myself, my name is Marek Waruszynski – said the first gentleman. my name is Bogusław Kiers – said the other gentleman. ” (page 95)

The first man mentioned in the text by Themerson, whom we meet in front of the theater building, is the literary director of this stage, while the second man is the director of “The Adventures of Peddy Bottom”. The name of this director, which should sound correctly Bogusław Kierc, and not Kiers, may suggest that the performance was full of sophisticated literary riddles, games of meanings and a search for the meaning of words. Kierc is known for his “sensitivity to the sensual values of words, to sonic harmony […] and is a virtuoso of both strict and free form (according to Culture.pl). It is therefore probable that the director himself coded the title of Themerson’s philosophical fairy tale in in the form of an apparent equation “6 or 3×6”, as the performance was supposed to be for adults and children, ie for viewers aged 6 or 18 (3×6).

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Author: Stefan Themerson
Screenplay and direction: Bogusław Kirec
Scenography: Janina Ścieszko
Music: Mirosław Jastrzębski
Cast: Danuta Ambroż, Hilary Kurpanik, Cyryl Przybył, Jacek Piątkowski, Andrzej Brzeski.
Photographs: Czesław Łuniewicz
Premiere: December 19, 1974