Embodied musicality: Nietzsche, Grotowski and musicalized processes in theatre making

Since the 1960s research in theatre laboratories on the nature of acting and structures of performance has dilated the possibilities of the theatrical event. One of the direct outcomes of these developments is the musicalization of theatrical performance. Although relatively recent, the focus on musicality in theatre echoes interests of visionaries and thinkers since at least the turn of the twentieth century. This article discusses Jerzy Grotowski’s musicalized processes in his theatre making. I will argue that Grotowski’s praxis resonates earlier claims made by Friedrich Nietzsche that tragedy, representing as it were a genesis of western theatre practice, was born out of the spirit of music. I will propose that rather than bridging the boundaries of music and theatre, Grotowski promotes music as an intrinsic element in theatre through the embodied musicality of the performer.