Authoring Performance: The Director In Contemporary Theatre (what Is Theatre?)

A historical, theoretical, and comparative study of the emergence of the director-as-author phenomenon, posing questions of authorship and redefining the relationship between 'playwright' and the director-playwright. "Provides a comparative approach to the internationally wide-spread phenomenon of the contemporary director-auteur in the theatre, urging a historical and theoretical exploration of the visions, methods, and stage idioms in the work of established artists. Sidiropoulou examines prominent examples of both older and more recent director-auteur work, aiming at re-asserting - to its artistic and academic audience - the value of balancing the established emphasis on the diegetic aspects of theatre with the ever-spreading varieties of dramatic de-"centering" and "dis-semination." This exciting work also poses questions of authorship, which necessarily imply the redefinition of the relationship between "playwright" and the director-playwright"--Provided by publisher Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction Auteurism: New Theatre for Brave New Worlds....Pages 1-10 The Rise of the Modern Auteur....Pages 11-32 Enter Artaud....Pages 33-50 Beckett’s Turbulence....Pages 51-73 Auteur on the Road....Pages 75-105 The Means as an End....Pages 107-133 Conquering Texts....Pages 135-157 Afterword....Pages 159-159 Back Matter....Pages 161-217