This unit dealt with a whole lot of “Ism’s” that sprang up in the history of theatre. The style of theatre began with Realism and subsequently swung through a plethora of explorative new ideas and options for people to express themselves and their time periods through.
From a design standpoint, the departure from Realism really gave birth to a whole new spectrum of opportunities to explore in the realm of theatre. No longer would thespians be forced to depict life realistically (sometimes to a fault)- they could use motifs or symbolism to add new and deeper layers of meaning. In a way, Realism began to constrict the imaginations of designers, and still to this day is capable of doing this. Realism is well and good in some instances; in others, we should always strive to find whatever design concept would bring new life into the theatre (be it expressionism, surrealism, dadaism, etc.).
I, personally, find the concept of Expressionism to be of particular interest. I think its uses are near limitless- in fact I think I could easily say that Expressionism seems to me like it could almost be used in nearly any play to some extent. Within reason, there doesn’t seem to be any genre hat Expressionism could assist and strengthen. By comparison, Dadaism seems to be limited to me- with very few points that it can make (regardless of the limitless ways it can achieve them). Meanwhile Expressionism cannot help but unburden the design team. Realism dictates that every brick and blade of grass must abide to how life truly is. Set, in particular, can therefore prove taxing and time-consuming. This is especially true when compared to the conceptual freedom found in Expressionism; a set of a family’s house does not necessarily need walls or a roof. The audience can buy into such creative choices, and in fact relishes them. The human brain recognizes the unusualness of the situation and inherently appreciates this derivation from normalcy. I have not personally designed many sets but I feel like this route gives so many more options to staging a production.
I enjoyed the involvement of so many famous painters in each movement. It was a great reminder that these various movements did not simply involve the theatre world as it affected society- it affected painters and musicians, poets and dancers. Even the great Pablo Picasso collaborated with thespians and dabbled in designing shows.
Without the exploration of new possibilities, theatre would simply grow stagnant and stale. We would be performing shows virtually the same as when they were mounted in William Shakespeare’s days. Even today, shows are constantly exposing people to new and more experimental forms of theatre. With every passing decade, theatre evolves even more. It may feel like not much is changing, but change is always being sought after. We cannot feel the Earth moving as it rotates and revolves around the Sun, and yet we know that it is constantly moving- always shifting. Theatre can not stand still either or else it will wither and die. Without continual experimentation or exposure to new ideas, any category or subject would become fossilized. I’m proud to live in a time when we can look to any of these movements for inspiration, as well as many contemporary techniques for execution. Combining any number of these practices will always lead to a new and unrealized form of theatre. I suppose all of these creative movements help theatre to always remain pertinent to wherever society is at the time. In some cultures it may not always be accepted, but as we have seen in history it is also embraced and celebrated! Such is the impact of man’s imagination- the theatre, and what he can make with it, are limited only to what he can dream up.
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