This article presents the findings of a study on the presence of alcohol in the Polish theatre community. The analysis draws on selected data from the online survey Alcohol and Drugs in Polish Theatre, completed by 304 theatre employees. The study explores how often, under what circumstances, and for what reasons alcohol appears in professional and para-professional theatre contexts. The findings, first published in the report Alcohol in Polish Theatre. Research Report, are here elaborated and set within a theoretical framework. The interpretive perspective is informed by Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of habitus and Andrzej Siciński’s concept of lifestyle, which frame alcohol consumption as a social practice embedded in the norms and relationships of the theatre milieu. On the one hand, this practice is part of the artistic ethos and the rituals accompanying creative work; on the other, it serves as an instrument of informal pressure, where refusal to participate may lead to marginalization and loss of social capital. The analysis shows that alcohol functions both as a means of integration and celebration in theatre life and as a factor the fosters exclusion.
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