The II Corps was disbanded in 1947 with the end of the war – but the Dramatyczny Theatre played on, even in the face of organisational challenges. In 1947, premieres were presented in Carlton Park, Edinburgh and London. That summer, the theatre celebrated its four-year anniversary, adding splendour to the four-performance series Radulski directed to mark the occasion. At the beginning of 1948, the theatre managed to present another canonical comedy – Molière’s Imaginary Invalid. But as Domańska recalled with regret, ‘the theatre’s better days came to a close with the closure of the II Corps’.
In May 1948, after five years of operation, the Dramatyczny Theatre bid its farewell with a performance of Stanisław Wyspiański’s classic play The Wedding. The remarkable adventures of this group brought 20 professional theatrical premieres to soldiers and locals alike, which were performed altogether more than 650 times and for more than 300,000 spectators.
Originally written in Polish, Nov 2019, translated by Lauren Dubowski, May 2021
Sources: "Artyści Andersa. Scena i estrada", pod red. J. Koźmińskiego, Warszawa-Londyn 2018; "Teatr czasu wojny: polskie życie teatralne w latach II wojny światowej (1939 – 1945)", S. Marczak-Oborski, Warszawa 1967; "Sztuka na froncie. Teatr Dramatyczny 2. Korpusu Polskiego oraz Teatr Wojska Polskiego – analiza porównawcza", P. Mrowiński, [w:] "Studia z historii najnowszej Polski", Warszawa 2018; "W służbie idei – >>Tu jest Polska<< Herminii Naglerowej", A. Wal, [w:] Zeszyty Naukowe Uniwersytetu Rzeszowskiego, 70/2011, Rzeszów 2011; "Teatr w służbie narodu. Jadwiga Domańska (1907 – 1996)", K. Braun, tekst zamieszczony na portalu Culture Avenue; encyklopediateatru.pl; aict.art.pl – portal Sekcji polskiej Międzynarodowego Stowarzyszenia Krytyków Teatralnych.