THEATER 2040 1nd Edition Lecture 14 Outline of Last Lecture I A Doll s House a Author b Setting II Characters a Nora b Torvald Helmer c Doctor Rank d Mrs Kristine Linde e Nils Krogstad f Anne Marie g Helene III Important Scenes a Opening Scene b Krogstad s Threat c Why is the Tarantella dance significant d End Scene IV Themes Outline of Current Lecture I Avant Garde Theatre a Antirealism b Verisimilitude II Avant garde elements III Symbolism IV Ism period of stylized theater a Symbols and metaphors represented by V Avant garde is truly born a Ubu Roi VI Surrealism a Salvador Dali VII Expressionism VIII Theatre of Alienation a Alienation Effect i Bertolt Brecht IX Theatre of the Absurd a Absurdity These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute b Samuel Beckett Current Lecture I Avant Garde Theatre a Antirealism against people being ordinary people in ordinary places b Verisimilitude i The appearance of being true or real ii Artists felt constrained by this realism c Some artists turned to avant garde theater i Any work of art that is experimental innovative or unconventional II Avant Garde elements a Historically i Invention of electricity ii Sigmund Freud s theories of dream images b Unrealistic stage effects through spotlighting shadowing and shading c Magical scenery and costumes III Symbolism 1880s a A theatre style in which a certain piece of scenery a costume or light represent the essence of the entire environment b Images and metaphors used to explore inner realities that can t be directly seen c Used fantasy abstraction enlargement and poetry IV Isms period of stylized theater a A time of experimentation and expansion in theatre to incorporate a mixture of dramatic styles b Enhanced with symbols and metaphors represented by i Allegories ii Bold scenery iii Supernatural sounds iv Wild expressive lighting c Characters represent more than the individual d Stylization reminds audience that they are watching a performance V Avant garde is truly born a Any work of art is experimental innovative or unconventional b Ubu Roi by Alfred Jarry 1896 Paris i Avant garde theatre truly born with this play ii Written at age 15 school boyish tone to play iii Unconscious processes of mind rather than literal observations of life iv Precursor to surrealism VI Surrealism a Theatre that emphasizes the subconscious realities of the character usually through design and often includes random sets with dream like qualities b Through fantastic imagery the unconscious mind could be revealed i If it could escape the power of the conscious the subconscious could rise up and be used to find truth VII VIII IX c Salvador Dali surrealist painter Expressionism 1920s Germany a A style that shows the audience the action of the play through the mind of one character i Internal state imposed on outside world b Deliberate distortion of set c Shocking dialogue d Piercing sounds e Bright lights and shadows f Short scenes build to powerful climax Theatre of Alienation a Use of techniques designed to distance the audience from the emotional involvement in the play through jolting reminders of the artificiality of the theatrical performance b Alienation Effect i Result of techniques to keep the audience aware that what they are witnessing is only a play ii Innovation by Bertolt Brecht 1 German dramatist poet and director iii Reawaken audience s sense of social responsibility Theatre of the Absurd a Paris was center the philosophical and literary doctrine that human beings live in essential isolation in a meaningless and irrational world b Absurdity i Searching for meaning purpose or order in life c Looking for moments of truth rather than observations of detail d Samuel Beckett i Absurdist playwright 1 Wrote Waiting for Godot