Basic Party Organization (POP) in the National Theater 1967–1968

Magdalena Raszewska (ed.)

Abstract

The archival material contaning a selection of minutes from meetings of the Basic Party Organization (POP) of members of the Polish United Workers' Party who were employed at the National Theater. In the introduction, the editor delineates the circumstances of the POP’s activity. During Kazimierz Dejmek's tenure as director, the POP comprised 28 individuals out of over two hundred theater employees. During this period, the agenda of the POP meetings began to encompass issues related to the theater's repertoire, artistic standards, and ethical considerations. A particularly active period occurred in the first half of 1968, during which attendance at the meetings reached an unprecedented high. District, city, and national party representatives also attended these meetings, issuing directives and conducting supervision. The editor emphasizes that the minutes of these meetings reveal the methods of erosion of solidarity and team spirit, culminating in the ascendance of cynicism and opportunism over commitment.