The Conspiracy of Feelings and The Little Theatre of the Green Goose

Two outstanding examples of socialist-themed plays are combined in this remarkable volume.The Conspiracy of Feelingsby Yurii Olesha (1899-1960) is based on his highly respected short novelEnvyabout the struggle between the old and new in Soviet society. The play, calledThe Conspiracy of Feelings, is not a simple adaptation, but an original work that reconceived the novel. The play explores the precarious position of the intelligentsia in the new collective state. Since it did not conform to the tenets of socialist realism, the work was denounced as decadent. Not until the late 1960s was the play published and rehabilitated. The Little Theatre of The Green Goosewas written by Konstanty Ildefons Galczynski (1905-53) who was one of Poland's most beloved poets. After World War II, he began work as a playwright, inventing a colorful theatre troupe of performers (animal and human) and contributing a new instalment ofThe Little Theatre of the Green Gooseeach week toPrzekroj, the Cracow literary magazine. Intended for reading only,The Green Goosewent unperformed in Galczynski's life and was finally staged in 1955 and gained a permanent place in the theatre and became a force for the creation of the new Polish drama that flourished in the 1960s.