c hapter 8. decentralization and subsidization new directions the essential theater

chapter 8. Decentralization and Subsidization

New Directions

the essential theater

—World war II disrupted theatrical activity in many countries around the world,and almost everywhere it motivated reass

essment of values and theatrical practices.

—Both in American and in Europe this decentralization gave rise to new voice being heard and new artistic directions bei

ng explored.

Decentralization and Subsidization


Interest in decentralizing theatre = having companies scattered geographically rather than concentrated in one large city

Decentralization required money, much of which came from subsidies

Subsidization is as old as the theatre

Decentralization and Subsidization France

At the end of WWII, all of France’s state theaters were in Paris

France reinvested in the nation’s creativity by establishing dramatic centers throughout the country

40 national drama centers

250 theatre state contracted theatre companies

600 subsidized theaters


Germany and Scandinavia

Consider funding for the arts a cultural responsibility

Some theatres are state owned

Subsidize up to 80% of operating costs = low ticket prices

Theatre workers are state employees with benefits


England

Never before had awarded government subsidies

Theatre is a business and should be self-supporting

After WWII created an Arts Council to decide who should receive funds

Local authorities devote a percentage of tax revenues


England

The Stratford Festival became the most influential of the subsidized theatres

Origins traced to 1879

Renamed the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

Peter Brook staged some of their most influential productions

Decentralization and SubsidizationEngland

National Theater formed in 1949

Inaugurated in 1963 under Sir Laurence Olivier

Has the most elaborate performance facilities in England

—3 performance spaces with modern technology

English Stage Company

Made its mark by assisting new playwrights

John Osborne, Edward Bond

Decentralization and SubsidizationAmerican Regional Theatres

The conviction that theatre must be entirely self-supporting persisted longer in the U.S. than elsewhere

After the end of the Federal Theatre Project, no assistance was given until the mid-1960s

Theatre 47 in Dallas became the prototype for American regional theatres

Championed the work of new playwrights

Devoted to creating theatre independent of Broadway

Arena theatre configuration

Decentralization and SubsidizationAmerican Regional Theatres

Ford Foundation made large grants starting in 1959

Private rather than government support

Guthrie Theatre opened in Minneapolis in 1963

Local funds used for new building

Publicity from this project aroused interest in other cities

Led to a boom in construction of new arts centers


Today, in the U.S. government at all levels supports the arts

Few theatres could exist without it

Every government attracts in private and corporate donors

There is no guarantee or continuing grant support

Theatres devote a lot of time to grant writing


American Regional Theatres

Most offer a season of plays that intermingle revivals of classics with new or recent works

—Take greater chances than Broadway does

Playwright Steven Dietz is an example of success beyond Broadway

Written over 30 full-length plays over the last 25 years

—A common feature is use of suspense to engage and

maintain interest

Becky’s New carby Steven Dietz

Becky’s New Car

Commissioned by a realtor as a birthday gift for his wife

Dietz uses theatrical conventions that make the audience part of the story and heighten the sense of crisis

Becky addresses and interacts with the audience

4 locations are on stage at the same time

Urgency is created through transitions between them

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xKYsY7vH5Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xKYsY7vH5Q

Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway

Off-BroadwayDeveloped in NYC in 1950s

Response to belief that financial conditions forced Broadway producers to cater almost exclusively to mass audiences

Theatrical groups found alternative performance spaces to produce non-Broadway fare

Working in spaces not intended for theatrical performance, groups were forced to experiment with spatial arrangements and with the relationship between performers and audience

Size of spaces and safety provisions meant that theatres served small audiences

Off-Off-Broadway

Popularity of Off-Broadway: 50 groups performed Off-Broadway during the 1950s

Increased popularity resulted in intervention by theatrical unions;production costs climbed

Off-Off-Broadway

Since most of the advantages of Off-Broadway disappeared with the intervention of theatrical unions, Off-Off-Broadway developed

Like Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway used out-of-the-way spaces and tried to keep production costs down

Continues as the most flexible and diverse venue for productions in NYC

Off-Off-Broadway

Other influential organizations:

Manhattan Theatre Club

Playwrights Horizon

New York Shakespeare Festival

The Public Theatre

Alternative Theater Groups

The Living Theatre (1960s)

Epitomized rebellion against established authority

Included nudity, obscene language, provocation of audience

Blurred the boundaries between fiction and reality

Tested limits of permissibility

The Bread and Puppet Theatre (1961)

Used both actors and giant puppets to enact parables denouncing war and materialism

The Bread and Puppet Theatre (1961)

The San Francisco Mime Theatre (1966)

Performed satirical pieces promoting civil rights and other causes

Open Theatre (1963)

Founded by Joseph Chaikin

Concerned with the performer’s “transformation”

Poor and Enviromental Theaters

“Poor” TheatresJerzy Grotowski, director of the Polish Lab Theatre

—Eliminated all theatrical elements considered unessential

—Hoped such elimination would lead to the rediscovery of theatre

—Concluded that only 2 elements are essential: actor and audience

—Known for methods of actor training

—Experimented with spatial relationships between actors and audience

—Theatre = Modern Tribal Ceremony

Environmental TheatreRichard Schechner

Defined Environmental Theatre:

—Should take place in a transformed or found space

—The use of space is flexible

—Performance takes precedence over text

—Focus is flexible and variable

—Blends categories long treated as distinct:

Acting space and non-acting space

Performer and spectator

Text and performance

Sequence and simultaneity of focus and actionMultimedia, Happening

Multimedia,Happenings,and Performance Art

Multimedia,Happenings,and Performance Art

Some theatre chose to emphasize the very things poor theatres were trying to eliminate - technology

Multimedia—Joseph Svoboda

Czech designer

Best-known multimedia experimenter

Polyekran = “multiple screen”

Laterna Magika = use of motion pictures in combination with actors

Multimedia—Joseph SvobodaMultimedia experimentation popularized:

Projected still images on multiple screens as scenic background

Interjecting filmed sequences into dramatic action

Manipulating volume, direction, quality of stereophonic sound

Use of closed-circuit television

Happenings—Allan Kaprow

Painter who pioneered happenings

Argued that in addition to the art objects on display, the space and those who attend must be considered essential parts of the total artistic experience

Characteristics of Happenings:1. Multimedia events that broke down the barriers between the arts and mingled elements

2. Shifted emphasis away from creating a product and onto participating in a process

3. Sought to provide an experience rather than present a message or a single meaning

4. Shifted emphasis from artist s intention to participant’s aw‟areness

5. Often made each participant a partial creator of the event

Performance ArtMay intermingle borrowings from any or all of the visual arts, dance, music, video, and theatre

May be scripted or improvised

May or may not use costumes and props

Frequently solo performance

May be highly personal or confrontational

Often explores issues of sexuality, violence, power

Performance Art

Performance Artists originally came from the visual arts, dance, and music

Appeal of Performance Art: disregards boundaries among the arts, thereby expanding means of expression

The essence of performance art is that there are no rules about what is allowed.

Broadway and Musicals after Subsidization

Prior to decentralization and subsidization, Broadway was the primary producer of new plays in America

Shift from new works to works that had been successful in regional, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway, and British venues

Musicals remained Broadway s favorite fare, both r‟evivals and new musicals

Broadway and Musicals after Subsidization

In 1968, musicals underwent a significant changes:

—Rock Music

Hair (1968)

Godspell (1970)

—Presentational Style

A Chorus Line (1976)

—Experimentation with various approaches

Stephen Sondheim

A New Generation of American Playwrights

A New Generation of American Playwrights

Key writers

Edward Albee—Uses biting dialogue and experimental forms

Lanford Wilson—Masterful treatment of character relationships

David Mamet—Themes: materialism, distrust, political corruption

Sam Shepard—Characters caught between dreams and an insubstantial reality

Christopher Durang— Writes about serious subjects in a ridiculous manner

Making ConnectionsBetween WWII and the 1970s, theatre underwent many changes:

Decentralization

Subsidization

As a means of social and political change

Expanding the artistic landscape of what it can be

Questioning values and social convention

Zuo Zhenzhen0240192

Thank You

c hapter 8. decentralization and subsidization new directions the essential theater

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