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The Elements of Theatrical Expression puts forward 14 essential elements that make up the basic building blocks of theatre. Is theatre a language? Does it have its own unique grammar? And if so, just what would the elements of such a grammar be? Brian Kulick asks readers to think of these elements as the rungs of a ladder, scaling one after the other to arrive at an aerial view of the theatrical landscape. From such a vantage point, one can begin to discern a line of development from the ancient Greeks, through Shakespeare and Chekhov, to a host of our own contemporary authors. He demonstrates how these elements may be transhistorical but are far from static, marking out a rich and dynamic theatrical language for a new generation of theatre makers to draw upon. Suitable for directors, actors, writers, dramaturges, and all audiences who yearn for a deeper understanding of theatre, The Elements of Theatrical Expression equips its readers with the knowledge that they need to see and hear theatre in new and more daring ways.
This book begins with a phone call. You answer it and learn that you got the job. Several months from now you're going to stage a Shakespeare play. Now ... what do you do? I mean, what do you do after that initial burst of adrenalin has passed through your body and you realize you haven't a clue as to what the play is really about, or what you might want to do with it? How exactly do you prepare for such an equally wonderful and daunting task? This is the central question of this book. It grows out of decades of preparing for Shakespeare productions and watching others do the same. It will save you some of the panic, wasted time, and fruitless paths experienced. It guides you through the crucial period of preparation and helps focus on such issues as: · What Shakespeare's life, work, and world can tell us · What patterns to look for in the text · What techniques might help unpack Shakespeare's verse · What approaches might unlock certain hidden meanings · What literary lenses might bring things into sharper focus · What secondary sources might lead to a broader contextual understanding · What thought experiments might aid in visualizing the play Ultimately, this book draws back the curtain and shows how the antique machinery of Shakespeare's theatre works. The imaginative time span begins from the moment you learn that on such and such date you will begin rehearsing such and such Shakespeare play. Our narrative clock starts ticking the moment you put down the phone and stops when you arrive at the rehearsal hall and begin your first table read. So much of what will be the success or failure of a director's project rests on this work that is done before rehearsals even begin.
In his article, "Black Lives Matter Onstage", theatre and cultural critic, Hilton Als, makes a poignant observation about the black women playwrights currently being produced both regionally and in New York. He writes, "...they invariably wrote in one of two ways: either their work was highly stylized and poetic...or it was naturalistic and conventionally structured." Yes, from Ntozake to Nottage, from Hansberry to Hall, oftentimes, the scope of black expression onstage seems to exist at opposite ends of a fixed spectrum: there is the utterly fantastic magic of black life, and, then, there is the naturalistic drudgery of black life. Als remarks on this phenomenon specifically in regards to dramatic literature, but it is one that must consequently affect all elements of theatrical expression, and, for the black actor, the means to actuation across these two separate and inseparable worlds is process; the definition, performance. What to make, then, in and of that In-Between space, which is most certainly absurd in that it must interrogate the elusive nature of the black experience that is so vehemently denied and feverishly obscured both onstage and otherwise? At UCSD, I've had opportunity to straddle both poles. My onstage training more or less began with the role of the indomitable Mother Showman, matriarch of the freaks in Suzan Lori Parks' mythic historofiction, Venus. Last quarter, I played the woebegone Bessie Smith in Nambi Kelly's adaptation of Native Son, whose rape and subsequent murder is nearly folded into the inner-machinations of the play's larger scheme. Pressed between thee portrayals of these black women, the worlds of which were either limitless or extremely limited, it was my voice training that grounded me in truth. It is what Zora Neale Hurston describes in her 1934 essay "Characteristics of Negro Expression" as, "the impromptu ceremony always ready for every hour of life": extempore and, yet, intentional. Through voice, I was able to find the linking piece; the In-Between space, where when Bessie moaned and the Mother Showman wailed it was both carnal and supernatural at once. It is the pursuit of the In-Between that has been my charge throughout this graduate experience and will continue to be my charge as I move forward. It is an imaginary space; one that does not yet fully exist and perhaps never will, where the black body moves freely and the black voice reverberates beyond and beyond.
The Invisible Actor presents the captivating and unique methods of the distinguished Japanese actor and director, Yoshi Oida. While a member of Peter Brook's theatre company in Paris, Yoshi Oida developed a masterful approach to acting that combined the oriental tradition of supreme and studied control with the Western performer's need to characterise and expose depths of emotion. Written with Lorna Marshall, Yoshi Oida explains that once the audience becomes openly aware of the actor's method and becomes too conscious of the actor's artistry, the wonder of performance dies. The audience must never see the actor but only his or her performance. Throughout Lorna Marshall provides contextual commentary on Yoshi Oida's work and methods. In a new foreword to accompany the Bloomsbury Revelations edition, Yoshi Oida revisits the questions that have informed his career as an actor and explores how his skilful approach to acting has shaped the wider contours of his life.
From before history was recorded to the present day, theatre has been a major artistic form around the world. From puppetry to mimes and street theatre, this complex art has utilized all other art forms such as dance, literature, music, painting, sculpture, and architecture. Every aspect of human activity and human culture can be, and has been, incorporated into the creation of theatre. In this Very Short Introduction Marvin Carlson takes us through Ancient Greece and Rome, to Medieval Japan and Europe, to America and beyond, and looks at how the various forms of theatre have been interpreted and enjoyed. Exploring the role that theatre artists play — from the actor and director to the designer and puppet-master, as well as the audience — this is an engaging exploration of what theatre has meant, and still means, to people of all ages at all times. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
"Elements of Theatre" is a book based on Theatre, made for the beginners or anyone who wants to learn and understand acting as well as the backstage management. This book will give some clear understanding and sound knowledge to the reader on different elements of Theatre.
A study that examines the relationship between tragic drama of the late 19th and 20th centuries and present-day society. The author's theories are presented with excerpts from relevant plays, such as "Look Back in Anger", "The Glass Menagerie", "The Iceman Cometh" and "Hedda Gabler".
How Greek Tragedy Works is a journey through the hidden meanings and dual nature of Greek tragedy, drawing on its foremost dramatists to bring about a deeper understanding of how and why to engage with these enduring plays. Brian Kulick dispels the trepidation that many readers feel with regard to classical texts by equipping them with ways in which they can unpack the hidden meanings of these plays. He focuses on three of the key texts of Greek theatre: Aeschylus' Agamemnon, Euripides' The Bacchae, and Sophocles' Electra, and uses them to tease out the core principles of the theatre-making and storytelling impulses. By encouraging us to read between the lines like this, he also enables us to read these and other Greek tragedies as artists' manifestos, equipping us not only to understand tragedy itself, but also to interpret what the great playwrights had to say about the nature of plays and drama. This is an indispensable guide for anyone who finds themselves confronted with tackling the Greek classics, whether as a reader, scholar, student, or director.
This comprehensive study formulates an original theory that dramatic song must be perceived as a separate genre situated between poetry, music, and theater. It focuses on John Arden, Margaretta D'Arcy, Edward Bond, Peter Barnes, John Osborne, Peter Nichols, Harold Pinter, Tom Stoppard, Peter Shaffer, and John McGrath.