In 1989, theatrical directors were happy enough to toss aside political matters and allow the newly democratically ellected government and the media to deal with them. Political theater seemed to have died. Now, it's making a come back in a new form.

Political theater, these days, is above all, socially engaged theater. It is sensitive to the problem of alienation and unemployment. It asks questions about the meaning of patriotism in an era of globalization, and about the strength of national mythologies and our view of history. "It speaks to what is grey and poor rather than the talk of the town," says Jacek Głomb, the director of the Legnica Theater, who was one of the first to introduce social themes to the stage. "I reached for issues that were out there, unconcerned that I would somehow dirty myself with reality as others feared. The now famous 'Ballad Zakaczawiu' gave voice to the citizens of the city. Their own stories were turned into a tale of roots, identity and hope," he says. Other theaters, notably from Wałbrzych and Nowa Huta are also taking similar routes. Political Theater, with a leftist bent, has also been the occupation of Maciej Nowak, director general of the Wybrzeże Theater in Gdańsk for the past fiv