Transcript File - DP Theatre Year 1 & 2

Theatre: A Way To
Teach Rather Than
Delight
Introduction to the key ideas of
Bertolt Brecht and Epic Theatre
Introducing Bertolt Brecht
Born in 1898 in Germany
 Held strong political views:
Pacifist and a Communist
 Playwright and Director
 Believed that theatre could
present society and its faults
and suggest that it is within the
audience's power to alter it:
Epic Theatre
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What is Epic Theatre?
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A style of theatre which provided a social and political
commentary not for mere entertainment.
“I’m not writing for the scum who want the cockles of their
heart warmed.”
Brecht was concerned with examining a situation in
dramatic action; looking at what happened in a story in
terms of causes, effects and the nature of the action.
 Audience were encouraged to NOT empathise with
characters; theatrical devices were used to ‘distance’
the audience so they would focus on the social/political
issue being presented.
 Was a reaction against the popular realistic style of
theatre, pioneered by Stanislavski.
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Brecht on Acting:
Characters in Bertolt Brecht plays are ‘types of
people,’ rather than complex individuals, which
society has conditioned to behave in particular
way.
 In a director role, Brecht asked actors to
demonstrate their character rather than
become their character to emphasise their social
status.
 The Stanislavskian actor is to work at identifying
with the character he or she portrays. The
Brechtian actor is to work at expressing social
attitudes in clear and stylised ways.
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Gestus
Gestus is Brecht's term for an expresses
ion or representation of basic human
attitudes.
 Not merely “gesture” but all signs of
social relations, e.g. intonation of the
voice and facial expression.
 Attitude expressed through words or
actions
 Contrasts with naturalism and realism
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Gestus
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Example: An actor’s physical presentation
of the body language of a character from
a particular social class – such as the
genteel manners of a group of upper class
women as they stir their tea or the
posture of a farmer just back from a day’s
work in the fields.
PRACTICAL EXERCISES
Gestic Tableau
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiQG9
ONjmx4
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Read the Summary of the Caucasian Chalk
Circle
War – the taker of lives
War – the maker of
heroes
Verfremdung Effect (V-Effect)
Also referred to as the ‘distancing,’
‘defamiliarisation, ’or ‘alienation’ effect.
 Brecht wanted his audience to remember that
they are watching a story (a presentation of a
sequence of events) NOT reality.
 As both a playwright and a director he used a
variety of theatrical devices to constantly remind
the audience of this fact – these devices are
often referred to as V-Effects or Epic Theatre
techniques.
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V-effect: Demands on the actor
An actor in a Brechtian play is often
required to:
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Play more than one character
Directly address the audience
Speak using the third person
Sing
Narrate
Play a musical instrument
V-effect: Staging
The audience must not be hypnotised into accepting the theatre as ‘real’
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Breaking Down the Fourth Wall
Often left the house lights on or used harsh lights
instead of simple naturalistic lighting.
The set design was mainly simple, with only items that
matter to the structure of the play or the service of the
actors that appear on the stage
The designs often used placards, sub-titles, projections
of sketches, films, sound effects and photographs.
Exaggerated/obvious use of props
Naturalism vs Epic theatre
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Plot
Implicates the spectator in a
stage situation
Wears down the spectator’s
capacity for action
Provides the audience with
sensations
The spectator is involved in
something
Suggestion
Instinctive feelings are preserved
The spectator is in the thick of it,
shares the experience
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Narrative
Turns the spectator into an
observer
Arouses the spectator’s capacity
for action
Forces the audience to take
decisions
The spectator is made to face
something
Argument
Brought to the point of
recognition
The spectator stands outside,
studies
Naturalism vs Epic theatre
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The human being is taken for
granted
The human being is unalterable
One scene makes another
Growth
Linear development
A human being is a fixed point
Thought determines being
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Feeling
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The human being is the object of
the enquiry
The human being is alterable and
able to alter
Each scene for itself
Montage
Broken up
A human being is a process
Social being determines thought
Reason
Montage
Verfremdungseffekt
Epic Theatre
Music and Song
Gestus
Placards
Narration
Design
Montage
Similar images juxtaposed together
 Intended to ‘shock’ the audience
 Kept audience alert and awake
 Drew attention to the content
 Opposed progressive growth of plot
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Music and Song
Essential in Brechtian theatre
 Interrupted the text
 Music and Song used separately
 Commented upon character’s feelings
 Used non-naturalistically
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Design
Use of ‘half-curtain’ allowing backstage
to be seen
 Costume changes made on stage
 Projections separate from action
 Sharp, clear lighting
 Restricted colour schemes
 Placards
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