The image of Polishness and Poles on the Polish diaspora scene in Chicago at the beginning of the 20 th century (around Antoni Jax’s dramaturgical works) – an overview of the issues

Abstract

Poles arriving in the United States successively reorganized the existing space, building temples, creating educational institutions, establishing various types of institutions, as well as theatres – in order to have a didactic impact through them. As Emil Orzechowski emphasizes in his monograph dedicated to The Polish community theater in the United States (Wroclaw 1989, p. 34), “the patriotic theme was exploited very intensively, which should also be considered not as a procedure aimed at luring the audience, but rather as a consciously introduced element of education in the spirit of remembrance of Polish history”. From this perspective, the works of Antoni Jax (1850–1926), a somewhat forgotten playwright of the Chicago amateur scene, for the needs of which he wrote several dozen plays, seem unique. Thanks to his work, we can look at the cultural heritage recorded on the bars of the Polish amateur theatre not only from the perspective of the emotional records of Polonia’s efforts to identify with the culture of their home country, or a reflective view of their own past. Jax in his comedies, approaching the form of a farce, willingly referred to current topics, matters close to everyday life and the experiences of Polish immigrants.