How we Frame Theatrical Experience
Theatre is shaped by society, but a society is shaped
by theatre.
Brecht teater - Image Source: pinterest.com
In Brecht’s
poem “On Everyday Theatre” he impresses upon his actors the performativity of
mundane life, but also the prosaic nature of their supposed art:
The mysterious transformation / That allegedly goes on in
your theatres […] that magic / Which I have often seen reduce the stagehands,
beerbottles in hand / To laughter…[1]
Art may
reflect life, but life, just as often, reflects art. Performance can be seen in
the everyday, in ritual, in politics, and in our own interactions. Even the
clothes we wear take the form of costume – uniforms that we wear in order to
work, define ourselves, or carry out a task; deciding on the perfect outfit for
an occasion in order to convey an impression, etc.
Image Source: theodysseyonline.com
Within all
of performance, and performative life, there is a rejection of what Peter Brook
termed “The Empty Space.” No space is ‘empty’ – it is imbued with meaning and
symbolism, and with our own bias and experiences.
What happens,
politically, when we name a thing in order to define it? A spectator expects a
radically different experience when attending The Royal Opera House, than when
attending The Yard. Our past experience, and knowledge of language, inform our
expectations. However, The Royal Court is known for presenting radical and challenging
work, which appears to sit in opposition to its traditional nomenclature. What
happens when we subvert an expectation?
Immersive
theatre which takes place in non-theatrical spaces, nonetheless creates
theatricality with its choice of location (a murder mystery event has different
connotations when performed in a disused warehouse as opposed to a mansion).
Immersive Theatre - Image Source: lolwot.com
Our own
prejudice also inform our interpretations and experiences: when Chekov
originally wrote “The Cherry Orchard” he defined it as ‘A Comedy.’ Chekov wrote
the play as a farce, depicting the childishness and sentimentalism of the
Russian upper classes. However, the original director was Stanislavski, who
read the work as an ode to a vanishing way of life. Images are formed in our
own perceptions: we collect images from life and our experiential narratives
inform our interpretation.
We also
expect certain things within a frame of reference. For example, we don’t
anticipate spoken word during a ballet, the modern accepted form of the
convention renders it mute. Or within an Opera we don’t assume the performers
will take part in an elaborate dance routine, as we would within Musicals,
despite the fact that both genres rely on song to convey story.
Image Source: playbill.com
Physical subject
positioning is just as important as phenomenology when influencing an audience –
where a collective is sat, or stood, to witness an event informs the experience
along with the individual or cumulative bias of those attending. When an
audience is positioned in a traditional theatre layout, with rows and tiers of
seats inside a darkened auditorium facing a proscenium arch stage, they are
rendered mute and passive. An audience that is sat in the round generates a
stronger sense of community and theatricality, being aware of another spectator
directly facing them. And immersive performance almost surrenders the control
of an event into the hands of those who cross physical and theatrical
boundaries.
Generally,
though, we know when a thing is ‘theatre’ as it is separate from our everyday
experience. A theatre is only defined
and understood in relation to its surroundings (this building is a theatre; the adjacent structure is an office
block), and theatre is understood
when it stands apart from mundane experience (i.e. a dancing flashmob taking
place in a commercial district).
A
theatre is defined in and of itself, whereas theatre covers a much wider range of practices.
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