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Chapter 13 class notes
Introduction to the Theatre (THEA 1331 )
Houston Community College
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CHAPTER 13: GLOBAL THEATRE TODAY
Countries and cultures around the world have a longer theatre history than America. Theatre has gone back sometimes 2000 years in Europe and Asia.
APPROACHING GLOBAL THEATRE
•Non -European theatres were influenced by developments of modern theatre in the west.
REALISM through the plays of HENRIK IBSEN, ANTON CHEKHOV and AUGUST STRINDBERG affected Asian, African and other theatre around the world.
Theatrical influences are CROSS -POLINATING all over the globe. Artists mix and match all sorts of styles, historical antecedents materials and techniques. Because of internet and travel all theatre from all different countries influence each other.
2NE1 I Am The Best youtube/watch?v=j7_lSP8Vc3o
SAMGO MU KOREAN DRUM DANCE (Traditional) Start 2:29 youtube/watch?v=hmiCI_cW- 60
There are still TRADITIONAL THEATRES in many countries. What is TRADITIONAL THEATRE?
PROF. BECKHAM’S PAPER EARLY EXPLORING TRADITIONAL THEATRICAL
FORMS
Indian and Balinese Theater: Driven by Spiritual Desires
Human fragility and the perception that cosmic forces can visit disaster or blessing upon mankind drove some cultures to bring gods and demons “to earth” through ritual. These invisible but powerful forces could not be reasoned with or battled from a distance. However, through song, dance and drama the cosmic forces were symbolically brought to primitive man and reckoned with (Wickham 16).
Traditional Theatre is different because it’s not purely for entertainment value.
INDIA CHINA JAPAN
•The end of the 1800’s and the beginning of the 1900’s saw:
–Increasing interchange between Asian and western theatres
–Western Theatre had a growing influence on modern theatres around the world
ASH RAI BOLLYWOOD:
youtube/watch?v=AA- ITo7pKxI&list=PLzuzwCUSxGGXt8laIxknt0hidwskucTSz
INDIA TRADITIONAL INDIAN THEATRE
•KATHAKALI
THEYYAM
FIRE DANCE
youtube/watch?v=DG6Mh04FUCM
–Traditional forms are becoming popular again Bejing (also called Peking) Opera began to flourish again.
China has opened up to some Western Influence.
JAPAN
Traditional Japanese Theatre: KABUKI in Japan: elaborate use of make up
KABUKI LION DANCE:
youtube/watch?v=mYZtz0v8dtQ
•Since the end of World War II:
–Theatre has been healthy in Japan.
SHINGEKI (“new theatre”) or Mo dern Japanese Theatre. It is more realistic than traditional theatre. These realistic playwrights influenced Shingeki: Chekhov, Ibsen and Strindberg.
EXPLORE TADASHI SUZUKI JAPANESE ACTING TEACHER OF NOTE
THE MIDDLE EAST
•Theatre is affected by politics of the region
•Islam has strong prohibitions against theatre but theatre still exists in the Middle East.
•Influence of western dramatic techniques were brought into the Middle East sparingly.
AL KASABA THEATRE is a Palestinian theatre company that is gaining international recognition from its visits to the Royal Court Theatre in London. Located in Ramallah. In 2001 they staged “Alive from Palestine: Stories Behind the Headlines.” It is a series of monologues dealing with the Intifada or the : Palestinian uprising against Israel.
AFRICAN THEATRE AND DRAMA
•Derived from traditional performances that were connected to ceremonies and rituals
- Involved colorful, exotic, symbolic costumes
FIRST PHOTO Tribal Ethnic Costumes, Yaka Congo, Traditional African Art, African Masks, Congo Wowpeopleandfac, African Tribal Mask, Congo Costumes, African Costumes.
African Theatre had anti -colonial and anti-totalitarianism themes.
PRODUCTION STILLS FROM “BLOOD KNOT”
FRENCH SPEAKING AFRICAN THEATRE
Theatre here influenced by traditional forms of storytelling and music as well as by French theatre traditions. Many of their plays have been produced in theatre festivals in Paris.
PORTUGUESE SPEAKING AFRICA
Before independence from Portugal plays were VAUDEVILLIAN in nature. After independence, theatre in these regions became political or an AGITPROP model which focused on political and social issues.
RUSSIA AND EASTERN EUROPE
Fall of SOVIET UNION affected theatre in this region.
Before the fall of the Soviet Union theatre was subsidized by the Government and therefore cheap to attend but it was heavily censored and had to stick to the party line or information that the COMMUNIST SOVIET UNION PROPAGANDA wanted to put out.
EXAMPLE OF SOVIET PROPAGANDA youtube/watch?v=_dFG99vi8OY
An important TRADITIONAL THEATRE there was the MOSCOW ART THEATRE founded by CONSTANTIN STANISLAVSKI.
EASTERN EUROPE
In the Czech Republic, JOSEF SVOBODA revolutionized scene design in the
mid twentieth century.
He also developed different uses for screens onstage. That is giant screens that he would project images on. His use of screens onstage culminated in something he called:
LATERNA MAGIKA where the actors were part of the film and the film was part of the action on stage. The projection and the action on stage functioned together creating a new manner of performance.
WESTERN EUROPE, BRITAIN AND IRELAND
•European and British NATIONAL THEATRES
–Receive SUBSIDIES from government this is different from American Theatre which does not receive subsidies from the government.
Modern Theatre: this began in the late nineteenth century with three playwrights
we’ve mentioned: August Strindberg, Henrik Ibsen and Anton Chekov.
This includes the realistic dramas of the playwright’s listed.
Non – realistic plays that came after their work and departures from realism such as EXPRESSIONISM, SURREALISM and ABSURDISM.
EXPRESSIONISM This style gives outward expression to inner feelings. Like if a character is fired from a job his or her inner feelings are illustrated by having the character spin around in circles while a loud shrill sound goes off. Lights, sound, scenery etc. can be used to express the characters inner life.
LATIN AMERICAN THEATER
•Beginning of twentieth century: Comedies that dealt with unique local customs of each nation were popular.
While there have been economic, political, and social problems including periods of censorship and governmental repression (Chile under Pinochet is an example of repression) all Latin American countries have significant theatres and playwrights.
Between the World Wars Dramatists in Latin America were also i nfluenced by European styles of SURREALISM and EXPRESSIONISM
•Following World War II: There was a f ocus on unique national issues and concerns while the theatre artists of Latin America combined modern Western influences with the popular styles of their people.
An example of this combination is the Argentinean Theatre Company: DE LA
GUARDA has brought several productions to New York and elsewhere, including
the productions, Villa Villa and Fuerze Bruta.
They create modern work that is part theatre, part rock concert, and part circus act. It typifies the mixing of styles and the eclecticism of much of contemporary theatre.
DEFINE SURREALISM: 1. a 20th-century avant-garde movement in art and literature that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind, for example by the irrational juxtaposition of images.
De La Guarda Performance youtube/watch?v=taBAtxasWto
CANADA AND AUSTRALIA SINCE WWII
Before World War II, Canadian and Australian theatres developed commercially presenting popular forms of entertainment that also reflected national identity.
An Australian example of this presentation of national identity is “The Land of the Wattle” which focused on an Australian outlaw known as the bushranger.
Both Australia and Canada developed “little theatres” which presented:
noncommercial, often politically charged works.
A little theatre of CANADA was the HART HOUSE THEATRE.
harthousetheatre/
There are also Canadian and Australian artists who present PERFORMANCE ART, discussed earlier in this chapter, and multimedia works.
Chapter 13 class notes
Course: Introduction to the Theatre (THEA 1331 )
University: Houston Community College
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