Ch 14 (8th Ed) Ch 15 in 7th Ed

Chapter 14

Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen was a pioneer in developing modern realistic drama. Along with playwrights like August Strindberg, he revolutionized the theatre of the late 19th century by dealing with taboo subject matter in a manner that mirrored everyday life. Much of their work was controversial and could not be produced in state or commercial theatres. Shown here, Cate Blanchet in “Hedda Gabler” in a Sydney Theatre Company Production. © 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Background: The Modern Era (1875-present) Pioneers

▪ Henrik Ibsen (Norwegian)▪ August Strindberg (Swede)▪ Anton Chekhov (Russian)

Began in the late 19th century and continues to this day

© 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 3

Theatrical Realism Everything onstage is made to resemble

observable, everyday life Power lies in its credibility and sense of

identification Departure from realism


Realistic Playwrights Henrik Ibsen

▪ Considered founder of modern realistic drama. ▪ Best known for “A Doll’s House” and “Hedda Gabler”▪ Felt drama should tackle taboo subjects for stage ▪ Refused to make clear moral judgements in his

plays


Realistic Playwrights August Strindberg

▪ 20 years younger than Ibsen; took realism another step in plays like “Miss Julie” and “The Father.”▪ Personalized and intensified Ibsen’s realism▪ Instead of focusing on people in a social context, focused on

people at war with themselves and with each other▪ Took realism closer to “naturalism” in early part of his career

No intermission Characters multidimensional, complex and contradictory Scenery needs to be real pots and pans, etc Dialogue is interrupted and fragmented to imitate real life


Realistic Playwrights Anton Chekhov

▪ “The Seagull” was at first a failure, then a huge success at the Moscow Art Theatre

▪ Major plays include “Uncle Vanya,” “Cherry Orchard,” and “The Three Sisters.”

▪ Introduced important element to realism – ▪ moved away from melodramatic elements like suicide▪ Dealt with a full gallery of characters (12-14) not just 5 or 6▪ Orchestrated characters so their stories overlapped ▪ Developed tragicomedy


Naturalism -- special form of realism developed in Europe in 19th century; not carefully plotted or constructed but meant to be a “slice of life” Developed alongside realism A subdivision of realism,

or an extreme form of realism Began in France and

spread to other countries Most famous naturalistic theoristand playwright was Emile Zola (French)


Naturalism continued

Everything onstage should seem to have been lifted directly from everyday life

Dramatic action should never seem contrived but rather look like a “slice of life”

Many naturalists believed subject should be lower class

Often focused on the sordid aspects of society More strict than realism

▪ Insists on showing stark side of life▪ Can’t structure events in a way that is aesthetically satisfying


Producers of Realism: Independent Theatres Exempted from government censorship Not striving for commercial success Presented plays to small audiences interested in

new dramatic forms Best known: Theatre Libre (Free Theater) in

Paris in 1887 by Andre Antoine Most influential 19th century theater dedicated to

realism was the Moscow Art Theatre▪ Founded by Konstantin Stanislavski


Producers of Realism: Independent Theatres After initial objection and censorship stopped,

realistic plays staged in Europe and America Most important producing group between WWI

and WWII was the Group Theatre▪ Founding members were Lee Strasberg, Cheryl

Crawford and Harold Clurman▪ Resident playwright was Clifford Odets

▪ “Waiting for Lefty”


During Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration (WPA)▪ Included The Federal Theatre Project

▪ Helped revitalize theater outside of New York city▪ Assisted African-American Theatres and artists▪ Eventually ended because some members of Congress said

linked to Communism. Playwrights around the world continued to write realism

between the two World Wars▪ Irish playwrights, John Millington Synge (“Riders to the Sea”) and

Sean O’Casey (“The Plough and the Stars”)▪ US, Eugene O’Neill (“Desire Under Elms,” “Long Day’s Journey

into Night”) and Lillian Hellman (“The Children’s Hour”)


Theatrical realism is often seen as having serious limitations

Realistic drama excludes a number of effective, long-standing theatrical devices▪ Music, dance, symbolism, poetry, fantasy, and the

supernatural Led to “departures from realism” or “antirealism”

▪ Often uses symbolism, non-linear narratives and dream imagery to avoid realistic representation


Antirealist Playwrights: Ibsen – “Master Builder” and “When We Dead

Awaken” – used symbolism Strindberg – “A Dream Play,” “The Ghost Sonata” –

evoked a world of dreams Frank Benjamin Wedekind (German) – “Spring

Awakening” – combined symbolist and grotesque elements with realistic and controversial subject matter


Symbolism – movement of the late 19th century and early 20th century that sought to express inner truth rather than represent life realistically Leading antirealistic movement between 1880 and

1910 Drama should present not mundane day-to-day

activities but rather the mystery of being and the infinite qualities of the human spirit

Goal to evoke atmosphere and mood, not to tell a story

Argued against realistic detail in set design


Symbolism continued

Called for poetic theatre in which symbolic images rather than concrete actions would be the basic means of communicating with the audience


Symbolism continued

Relied on independent theaters Two theaters in France:

▪ The Theatre d’Art organized by Paul Fort▪ The Theatre de l’Oevre

▪ Most notorious production was NOT symbolist but a play by Alfred Jarry called “Ubu the King” (Ubu Roi, or Ubu Turd (but really a nonsense word) Farcical plot that used profanity and scandalous references William Butler Yeats part of the audience that rioted Ubu Roi banned from stage and Jarry moved it to a puppet

theater


King Ubu by Alfred Jarry, Marionetteatern 1964 Direction: Michael Meschke


Antirealist Designers: Appia and Craig Adolphe Appia Edward Gordon Craig Both presented symbolist’s theories visually Their designs were atmospheric, using levels

and light, and revolted against realistic reproductions

Influenced many of the leading 20th-century American designers


Unit set – single setting that can represent a variety of locales with the addition of props or scenic elements


Russian Theatricalism: Meyerhold Vsevolod Meyerhold

▪ Leading Russian antirealist between 1905 and 1939▪ Frequently experimented with theatricalism

▪ Exposing the elements of theatre—the way stage machinery works—to make the audience aware that they are watching theater

▪ Devised an acting system known as biomechanics▪ Emphasized external, physical training▪ The performer’s body could be trained to operate like a

machine


Russian Theatricalism: Meyerhold Meyerhold

▪ An early “auteur” director▪ Argued for the use of “found space”▪ Experimented with multimedia▪ His sets were known as constructivist – Post WWII

scenic design movement in which sets – frequently composed of ramps, platform and levels – were nonrealistic and intended to provide opportunities for physical action


Eclectics Theatre artists who tried to bridge the gap

between realism and antirealism Argued each play should define its own form Eclectic directors

▪ Max Reinhardt▪ Yevgeny Vakhtangov▪ Peter Brook

23© 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Expressionism – movement in Germany at about the time of WWI, characterized by an attempt to dramatize subjective states through distortion; striking, often grotesque images.

Flourished in Germany during World War I Representation of reality was distorted in

order to communicate inner feelings Highly subjective Dramatic action is seen through the eyes of

the protagonist and therefore frequently seems distorted or dreamlike


Expressionism continued

Plays have common themes – dehumanization of the individual by society and deterioration of family

Protagonist is a Christlike figure Characters are

representative types Language is telegraphic (brief)

Eugene O’neill’s “The Emperor Jones” like many of his plays from the early 1920s, uses expressionistic techniques. The audience sees the drama through the eyes of the protagonist, a Black dictatorial ruler of a Caribbean Island who is fleeing from his people in the jungle. Here we see John Douglas Thompson in the title role in a production at the Irish Repertory Theatre in NYC.© 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 25

Futurism, Dada and Surrealism Futurism – Art movement, begun in Italy, which

idealized mechanization and machinery▪ Originated in Italy around 1909▪ Idealized war and the machine age▪ The audience should be confronted and antagonized▪ Dada – movement in art between the world wars,

based on presenting the irrational and attacking traditional artistic values. Not interested in glorifying war.


Futurism, Dada and Surrealism continued

Surrealism – departure from realism that attempted to present dramatically the workings of the subconscious

▪ Outgrowth of Dada, began in 1924▪ Subconscious is the highest plane of reality▪ Attempted to recreate the subconscious dramatically


The Theatre of Cruelty and Epic Theatre Antonin Artaud (French)

▪ Proposed a theatre of cruelty in the 1930s – Artaud’s visionary concept of a theater based on magic and ritual which would liberate deep, violent and erotic impulses▪ Emphasis on the sensory—viewers’ senses should be

bombarded

▪ Western theatre was antithetical to its ritualistic origins

▪ There were no more masterpieces▪ Theatre artists should study stylized Asian theatres


The Theatre of Cruelty and Epic Theatre continued

Bertolt Brecht (German)▪ Developed epic theatre – form of episodic drama associated

with Brecht and aimed at the intellect rather than emotions▪ Epic in scope, episodic in structure▪ Cover a great deal of time▪ Shift locale frequently▪ Have intricate plots and many characters▪ Goal: to instruct

▪ Believed that theatre could create an intellectual climate for social change


The Theatre of Cruelty and Epic Theatre continued

Bertolt Brecht cont’d▪ Believed in alienation -- Brecht’s theory that, in his

epic theater, audiences emotional involvement should be minimized to increase their intellectual involvement▪ His work was highly theatrical and audience always made

aware they were watching theater▪ Narrator frequently used▪ Used “historification” – plays set in past but really concerned

with paralleling contemporary events


Some Background on Asian Theatre Cross-fertilization between Western and Asian

theater was exciting and continues today 3 ancient forms in Japan that still continue:

▪ No – rigidly traditional form of Japanese drama combining music, dance and lyrics; performers trained from a young age

▪ Kabuki – form of popular Japanese theater combining music, dance and dramatic scenes; involves mie (mee yay) – slow motion

▪ Bunraku – Japanese puppet theater


Some Background on Asian Theatre India

▪ Kathakali – traditional dance drama of India ▪ Staged at night by torchlight▪ Presents violence and death in dance and pantomime▪ Good vs. evil and good always wins


KATHAKALI: INDIAN DANCE DRAMA Much Asian theater includes a large element of dance. A prime example is kathakali, a dramatic form found in southwestern India. In kathakali, stories of strong passions, the furies of gods, and the loves and hates of extraordinary human beings are told in dance and mime. Notice the makeup and stylized costumes and headdresses on these dancers in Kerala, India. © 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 33

Some Background on Asian Theatre continued

China▪ Beijing opera – Popular theatre in China developed in 19th

century. ▪ Elements of folk drama and other genres ▪ Colorful and striking theatrical form▪ Preserves traditions of singing, acrobatics, acting, elaborate

and colorful makeup, movement and dance▪ Offers symbolism


BEIJING (PEKING) OPERAA highly formalized theatre, Beijing Opera was developed in China in the 19th century. It is not like Western grand opera; rather, it is a popular entertainment filled with song, dance, and acrobatics. It makes wide use of symbols – with, for instance, a table standing for a mountain, or a blue fabric for the sea, as shown here – and is performed in highly colorful and stylized costumes like the ones we see in this performance. This production is “The Legend of the White Snake.”© 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 35

Global Exchanges Chinese and Japanese playwrights influenced

by ground-breaking work of Ibsen, Strindberg and Chekhov

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Global Exchanges Western playwrights influenced by Mei

Lanfang (world famous actor of Beijing Opera in the 1930s) and the storytelling techniques of Chinese theatre

Exchanges not confined to East and West

Julie Taymor rehearsing “The Lion King” using techniques adapted from Indonesia© 2013 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Unique Voices Impact of Totalitarianism on Theatre

The development of European theatre and drama was curtailed

Government-supported theatres became instruments of propaganda

Experimentation and freedom of expression were suppressed

Theatrical artists did resist totalitarianism


Education

Ch 14 (8th Ed) Ch 15 in 7th Ed