This thesis is based on the author?s experience of directing J. Ford, Th. Dekker, and W. Rowley?s play The Witch of Edmonton (1621) in Divadlo DISK in February 2012 as a final performance in his Directing Master Studies at the Theatre Faculty. What is at stake in reviving such a little-known play of the Jacobean era, and performing it in Czech Republic? Can a text written as a reaction to a precise event (a real witch trial) and built as a quasi-documentary depiction of the society of the time, within the aesthetic codes of the time, be relevant material for a lively performance today? This thesis argues that yes, and that The Witch of Edmonton can actually be the starting point of what can be ?political theatre? in a form not only belonging to a long tradition of committed entertainment (the play?s prologue promising us ?mirth and matter?), but especially relevant to today?s audiences and artistic stakes. The first part of the thesis is a detailed contextual analysis of the play, the historical period in which it was written, the conditions of performance of the time, the material it is based on and the way it was dramaturgically built as ?political?. The second part focuses on the author?s analytical attempts to extract the text from its historical context, in particular through comparative history and history of ideas and using the concepts of Brecht?s epic theatre, depicting also how this research served as a preparation for the concept of his performance, a concept that is then explicated in detail. The third and last part is a short account and reflection about the rehearsal process and its outcome from the director?s point of view, making a final statement on the achieved practical work.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:nusl.cz/oai:invenio.nusl.cz:155928 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Barriere, Alexandre |
| Contributors | KORČÁK, Jakub, NEUMANN, Julius |
| Publisher | Akademie múzických umění v Praze.Divadelní fakulta. Knihovna |
| Source Sets | Czech ETDs |
| Language | Czech |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/masterThesis |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess |
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