Weaving New Designs - Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was born in Bavaria in 1898. He started writing plays after Germany's defeat in World War One, as he felt the government was disloyal. His playwrights introduced a new style of theatre that sought to redefine the relationships between the audience and performance. The techniques he used to accomplish this theatre are still used in a wide variety of plays and films today. His dramatic statements are studied all around the world and illustrates that the issues he raised prove his theatrical genius. This confirms that the statement Peter Brook raised of "Brecht is the key figure of our time and all work today at some point starts or returns to his statements and achievements" and emphasises the importance of Brecht's Epic theatre. There are countless theories and practices that Brecht is well known for, but the one at the centre of them all is alienation. Using this technique, Brecht was challenging the audience to think on an intellectual basis instead of an emotional one. In his play "The Caucasian Chalk Circle" there are many scenes that demonstrate Brecht's alienation techniques. One of these is on page 161 where Grusha and the guests at her wedding are standing around her fiance's deathbed. The monk opens the
This is cleverly directed as a serious event is portrayed in such a comical scene, where it is impossible to attach to any of the characters because of the lack of feeling they show towards the dying man. Amen"Meanwhile there are people standing around eating and eagerly waiting for the man to die. There were bus stop signs, a plane and the four x sign that were all hanging on a hills hoist which symbolised Brisbane life (the town where the play was set). Many of his plays are still being studied and preformed today with audiences astounded by his statements and achievements. This proves that Brecht's alienation techniques were exceptionally effective in changing the audience's involvement from a personal level to an intellectual level. This shows that the effectiveness of his style of performance on audiences in the 21st century is that of a positive one. service with this speech, "Dear wedding . Brecht used this technique to disengage the audience from the sense of illusion portrayed in plays and allow them think about the reality of the message received. This makes the audience think and question the verse as to what it is telling them. Brecht's technique to alienate his audience from this scene allows him to show the greed of a mother over the love of her own son. On page 162 of "The Caucasian Chalk Circle" a drunken peasant breaks into song singing the following passage;"Miss Roundass took the old old manAnd said that marriage was the thingTo everyone who met' erShe later withdrew from the contract becauseCandles are better"This is an excellent example of song as it breaks the action and mood of the scene. This was used by Brecht to alienate his audience from the action by unfamiliarising them with specific settings, whilst enabling them to familiarise with the message being portrayed.
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Acceptance Essays
