‘Laboratory Theatre’ is a term usually seen as originating in the work of Jerzy Grotowski in Poland in the latter half of the twentieth century. The term refers to a scientific location for experiment and, applied to theatre practice, is used to denote concentrated and consistent experiment as being at the root of the theatre-making process. The laboratory allows for the development of training techniques, performance style and theatrical invention outside of a production schedule and the need to create a theatrical product. It is also a location for experimentation with performance materials, where the experiment may create ideas that can be used in performance or, alternately, may produce material which has to eventually be discarded. Laboratory theatres usually operate through an ensemble formation of performers and theatre-makers.
Image: Odin Teatret and CTLS Archives. Work Demonstration: Text, Action, Relations. With Julia Varley and Tage Larsen. Photo © Tony D’Urso