Bertolt Brechts Dramatic Theory

Author : John J. White
Publisher : Boydell & Brewer
ISBN 13 : 1571130764
Total Pages : 359 pages
Book Rating : 4.61/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Bertolt Brecht's Dramatic Theory written by John J. White and published by Boydell & Brewer. This book was released on 2004 with total page 359 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In concert with his work as a politically-charged playwright and dramaturge, Bertolt Brecht concerned himself extensively with the theory of drama. He was convinced that the Aristotelian ideal of audience catharsis through identification with a hero and the resultant experience of terror and pity worked against his goal of bettering society. He did not want his audiences to feel, but to think, and his main theoretical thrusts -- Verfremdungseffekte (de-familiarization effects) and epic theater, among others -- were conceived in pursuit of this goal. This is the first detailed study in English of Brecht's writings on the theater to take account of works first made available in the recent German edition of his collected works. It offers in-depth analyses of Brecht's canonical essays on the theater from 1930 to the late 1940s and early GDR years. Close readings of the individual essays are supplemented by surveys of the changing connotations within Brecht's dramaturgical oeuvre of key theoretical terms, including epic and anti-Aristotelian theater, de-familiarization, historicization, and dialectical theater. Brecht's distinct contribution to the theorizing of acting and audience response is examined in detail, and each theoretical essay and concept is placed in the context of the aesthetic debates of the time, subjected to a critical assessment, and considered in light of subsequent scholarly thinking. In many cases, the playwright's theoretical discourse is shown to employ methods of "epic" presentation and techniques of de-familiarization that are corollaries of the dramatic techniques for which his plays are justly famous. John J. White is Professor of German and Comparative Literature at King's College London.

Author : Stephen Unwin
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 140815031X
Total Pages : 328 pages
Book Rating : 4.13/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book A Guide To The Plays Of Bertolt Brecht written by Stephen Unwin and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-01-30 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stephen Unwin's A Guide to the Plays of Bertolt Brecht is an indispensable, comprehensive and highly readable companion to the dramatic work of this challenging and rewarding writer. Besides providing detailed accounts of nineteen key plays, it explores their context and Brecht's dramatic theory to equip readers with a rich understanding of how Brecht's work was shaped by his times and by his evolving thinking about the function of theatre. Bertolt Brecht's work as a director, his critical and theoretical writing, and above all the remarkable plays that emerged from one of the most turbulent periods in history have had a profound and lasting influence on theatre. Central to theatre studies courses and whose plays are frequently revived on stage, Brecht is nevertheless perceived as a difficult writer. This companion is divided into two sections: the first seven chapters outline the tumultuous historical, cultural and theatrical context of Brecht's work. They explore his theatrical theory and provide an account of his approach to staging his plays which informs an understanding of how they work in practice. The second section provides an analysis of nineteen plays in six chronological groupings, each prefaced by a brief sketch of Brecht's life and theatrical development in that period. For each play, Stephen Unwin offers a synopsis, a critical commentary and an account of the work in performance. The book concludes with an examination of Brecht's legacy and a chronicle of his life and times. Written by experienced theatre director Stephen Unwin, this is the perfect companion to Brecht's plays and life for student and theatre practitioner alike.

Author : Mary Luckhurst
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1139448188
Total Pages : 19 pages
Book Rating : 4.85/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Dramaturgy written by Mary Luckhurst and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-01-19 with total page 19 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dramaturgy: A Revolution in Theatre is a substantial history of the origins of dramaturgs and literary managers. It frames the explosion of professional appointments in England within a wider continental map reaching back to the Enlightenment and eighteenth-century Germany, examining the work of the major theorists and practitioners of dramaturgy, from Granville Barker and Gotthold Lessing to Brecht and Tynan. This study positions Brecht's model of dramaturgy as central to the worldwide revolution in theatre-making practices, and it also makes a substantial argument for Granville Barker's and Tynan's contributions to the development of literary management. With the territories of play and performance-making being increasingly hotly contested, and the public's appetite for new plays showing no sign of diminishing, Mary Luckhurst investigates the dramaturg as a cultural and political phenomenon.

Author : David Barnett
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1408186020
Total Pages : 256 pages
Book Rating : 4.22/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Brecht in Practice written by David Barnett and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-11-20 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: David Barnett invites readers, students and theatre-makers to discover new ways of apprehending and making use of Brecht in this clear and accessible study of Brecht's theories and practices. The book analyses how Brecht's ideas can come alive in rehearsal and performance, and reveals just how carefully Brecht realized his vision of a politicized, interventionist theatre. What emerges is a nuanced understanding of Brecht's concepts, his work with actors and his approaches to directing. The reader is encouraged to engage with his method which sought to 'make theatre politically', in order to appreciate the innovations he introduced into his stagecraft. Barnett provides many examples of how Brecht's ideas can be staged, and the final chapter takes a closer look at two very different plays: one written by Brecht and one by a playwright with no acknowledged connection to Brecht. Through an interrogation of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui and Patrick Marber's Closer, Barnett asks how a Brechtian approach can enliven and illuminate production.

Author : John Fuegi
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780521282451
Total Pages : 244 pages
Book Rating : 4.54/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Bertolt Brecht written by John Fuegi and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1987 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Covers Brecht's day-to-day work as a theatre director telling how he worked with actors and how his productions were actually put together in rehearsal.

Author : Katherine Eaton
Publisher : Praeger
ISBN 13 : 0313245908
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.09/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Theatre of Meyerhold and Brecht written by Katherine Eaton and published by Praeger. This book was released on 1985-12-17 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book focuses on the relationship of Bertolt Brecht to the theater of Russian director Vsevold E. Meyerhold. Eaton's analysis places Brecht's dramatic theory and practice in proper historical perspective, thereby increasing our understanding of the role of the Russian avant-garde in shaping modern theater. She clearly demonstrates the extent to which Meyerhold's influence on Brecht has been underestimated and she argues that the preservation of Meyerholdian theater should be numbered among Brecht's significant contributions to modern drama.

Author : Bertolt Brecht
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 140816101X
Total Pages : 210 pages
Book Rating : 4.12/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Caucasian Chalk Circle written by Bertolt Brecht and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-03-16 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Student Edition of Brecht's classic dramatisation of the conflict over possession of a child features an extensive introduction and commentary that includes a plot summary, discussion of the context, themes, characters, style and language as well as questions for further study and notes on words and phrases in the text. It is the perfect edition for students of theatre and literature. Brecht projects an ancient Chinese story onto a realistic setting in Soviet Georgia. In a theme that echoes the Judgment of Solomon, two women argue over the possession of a child; thanks to the unruly judge, Azdak (one of Brecht's most vivid creations) natural justice is done and the peasant Grusha keeps the child she loves, even though she is not its mother. Written in exile in the United States during the Second World War, The Caucasian Chalk Circle is a politically-charged, much-revived and complex example of Brecht's epic theatre. This volume contains expert notes on the author's life and work, historical and political background to the play, photographs from stage productions and a glossary of difficult words and phrases. It features the acclaimed translation by James and Tania Stern with W. H. Auden.

Author : Janelle G. Reinelt
Publisher : University of Michigan Press
ISBN 13 : 9780472084081
Total Pages : 250 pages
Book Rating : 4.89/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book After Brecht written by Janelle G. Reinelt and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 1994 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How contemporary British political theater has evolved and expanded from the legacy of Bertolt Brecht

Author : Bertolt Brecht
Publisher : Macmillan
ISBN 13 : 0809005425
Total Pages : 346 pages
Book Rating : 4.20/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Brecht on Theatre written by Bertolt Brecht and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 1964 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essays of Brecht translated and edited to explain his theories and discussion of his dramatic works.

Author : Stephen Parker
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 140815563X
Total Pages : 716 pages
Book Rating : 4.39/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Bertolt Brecht: A Literary Life written by Stephen Parker and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2014-02-13 with total page 716 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This first English language biography of Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956) in two decades paints a strikingly new picture of one of the twentieth century's most controversial cultural icons. Drawing on letters, diaries and unpublished material, including Brecht's medical records, Parker offers a rich and enthralling account of Brecht's life and work, viewed through the prism of the artist. Tracing his extraordinary life, from his formative years in Augsburg, through the First World War, his politicisation during the Weimar Republic and his years of exile, up to the Berliner Ensemble's dazzling productions in Paris and London, Parker shows how Brecht achieved his transformative effect upon world theatre and poetry. Bertolt Brecht: A Literary Life is a powerful portrait of a great, compulsively contradictory personality, whose artistry left its lasting imprint on modern culture.