The Responsibility of the Creator

The conversation entitled ‘The Truth and Nothing but the Truth’, for me, is most of all a chance for a very personal talk on the issues that are the most important ones in this profession. It is also the possibility to ask myself why I continue to work in theatre for 48 years already, and why is it still a very important, perhaps fundamental, part of my life?

If one is not afraid to sound somewhat solemn, one could say that theatre is among the most important instruments for building the inner life of a human. This is why I believe that this path should not be the arena of utilizing exclusively the entertainment and commercial genres, but rather those which allow to speak seriously and fully about the human condition. Of course, I acquired this belief only in the course of my own professional development, while I was developing as a human being as well. For this profession is like alphabet. The more you are able to use it, the better it allows you to express yourself. When I first came to theatre academy 50 years ago, I was simply enchanted by theatre, which lured and intrigued. But the more I learned about the director’s profession and about myself in it, the more questions started to arise. Can theatre change a person? Can it enable them to know themselves better and facilitate their spiritual development? What, then, are the responsibilities of a creator of theatre? How to combine the responsibilities arising from the social functioning of theatre, as well as from the financial dependence on the tastes of the audience or state support (i.e. politically entangled), with the imperative for artistic independence?
Valery Fokin