Examining the theatre boom of extremely violent plays of the 1990s, this seminar provides an introduction to the analysis of drama as well as offer insight into the cultural climate that catered to the so-called “In-Yer-Face” theatre of British playwrights, such as Sarah Kane and Mark Ravenhill. This seminar will also provide a look back at plays that can be considered forerunners to this “new brutalism” such as Edward Bond’s “Saved”. We will ask which gendered assumptions about the body and violence are presented in these texts.
In addition, the medium-specific capacity to portray violence on stage and Antonin Artaud’s surrealist manifesto “Theatre of Cruelty” will be discussed as well. Depending on the schedule of Berlin’s theatres, a visit of a suited production is planned to examine the difference between the analysis of the play text and the actual production.
Recommended reading:
Sarah Kane: Blasted
Mark Ravenhill: Shopping and F***ing
Edward Bond: Saved
Further reading and a digital reader on Moodle will be introduced at the beginning of the seminar. |
