Anna Kruk, scribe with Neville Tranter
The Pôle is once again welcoming scribes in order to keep a record of the most remarkable courses and to fuel research into transmission.
Anna Kruk (Poland), journalist and Master’s student in theatre studies in Warsaw, will be in residence from 12 to 30 January 2026 to document Neville Tranter’s work with ESNAM students (14th graduating class). A key figure in the history of puppetry, Neville Tranter has been teaching at ESNAM since the first graduating class.
Anna Kruk holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and social communication from Jagiellonian University in Krakow. As part of her bachelor’s thesis, she explored theatre during the pandemic, focusing on its transformations, challenges and opportunities.
She is currently a master’s student in the theatre studies programme at the Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Arts in Warsaw, where she specialises in theatre criticism and performance studies. She conducts her research under the supervision of Dr Marek Waszkiel, a renowned expert in the field of puppet theatre.
His thesis, entitled “Neville Tranter and Puppet Theatre: The Boundaries Between Subject and Object in Contemporary Drama,” explores how the art of puppetry redefines presence, identity, and storytelling in contemporary performances. The central question of his research is to understand how Tranter blurs the boundary between actor and puppet to produce theatre imbued with emotion and political engagement.
She also works as a theatre critic for Teatr Lalek – Pismo, a professional magazine dedicated to puppetry and theatre for young audiences.