Beyond Naturalism

Yes but the stage demands a degree of artifice... You have

no fourth wall. Besides, the stage is art, the stage reflects
the quintessence of life and there is no need to introduce
anything superfluous onto it. - Chekhov

There is no denying that our theatre was at fault in failing

to grasp the full meaning of Chekhov... Chekhov refined his
realism to the point where it became symbolic. Nemirovich-Danchenko

Alfred Jarry 1873 - 1907

Ubu Roi (1896)

Production directed by Michael Meschke

1964

Lafayette College Theatre Production 2011

Alfred Jarry
Ubu Roi (1896)
And the action, which is about to
start, takes place in Poland, that is
to say Nowhere. - Jarrys address
on the first night of Ubu Roi.

From Jarrys Letters to Lugn-Poe

(1) Mask for the principal character, Ubu
(2) A cardboard horses head which he would hang around his
neck, as the did on the medieval English stage, for the only
two equestrian scenes.
(3) One single stage-set, or better still, a plain backdrop A
formally dressed individual would walk on stage, just as he
does in puppet shows, and hang up a placard indicating where
the next scene takes place.
(4) The abolition of crowds
(5) Choice of a special accent, or better still, a special voice
for the principal character.
(6) Costumes divorced as far as possible from local colour or
chronology...

I intended that when the curtain went up

the scene should confront the public like
the exaggerating mirror... in which the
depraved saw themselves with dragons
bodies, or bulls horns, or whatever
corresponded to their particular vice. It is
not surprising that the public should have
been aghast at the sight of its ignoble
other self, which it has never been before
shown completely. - Jarry after the
premiere of Ubu Roi.

"Whatever Jarry might have written about

Ubu as a satire on bourgeois manners,
he stood little chance of directly offending
the moral sensibility of his highly
sophisticated public. The only way to
assail them was through their sense of
theatrical propriety and in that Jarry
unquestionably succeeded." - Edward
Braun.

Vsevolod Meyerhold (1874 - 1940)

Yes, the theatre can play an enormous
part in the transformation of the whole of
existence.

The Dawn (1920)

Opened on the third anniversary of the revolution
Performed for free in a derelict public hall
Placards and banners on the walls
Leaflets thrown to the audience
Rewritten to reflect current events
Performance interrupted with news of the war
Cubist stage design

Biomechanics / Constructivism

The Magnanimous Cuckold (1922)

The Magnanimous Cuckold (1922)

The naturalistic theatre has conducted a never-ending

search for the fourth wall which has led it into a whole series
of absurdities. The theatre fell into the hands of fabricants
who tried to make everything just like real life, and turned
the stage into some sort of antique shop. - Vsevolod
Meyerhold