Practioners

Brecht

Name: Bertolt Brecht

Age: 58 (1898-1956)

Nationality: German

Drama Methods:  Brecht proposed that a play should not cause the spectator to identify emotionally with the characters or action before him or her, but should instead provoke rational self-reflection and a critical view of the action on the stage. He also believed that he should tell the audience what to think instead of showing E.G. if there would be a treasure chest on stage there would instead be a plain box with “treasure chest” written on it.

Artaud

Name: Antonin Artaud

Age:   51(1896-1948)

Nationality: French

Drama methods:  Artaud believed that theatre should represent reality and affect the audience as much as possible; therefore he used a mixture of strange and disturbing forms of lighting, sound, and other performance elements. So Artaud believes you should have a connection with a performance and feel what the characters feel.

Edward Gordon Craig

Name: Edward Gordon Craig

Age: 94(1872-1966)

Nationality: English

Drama methods:  Craig asserted that the director was "the true artist of the theatre" and, controversially, suggested viewing actors as no more important than marionettes. He designed and built elaborately symbolic sets; for instance, a set composed of his patented movable screens for the Moscow Art Theatre production of Hamlet. He was also the editor and chief writer for the first international theatre magazine, The Mask.