Постгуманистические тенденции в современной театральной сценографии: от визуализации образов к материальным становлениям объектов

Abstract

Posthumanistic tendencies in the modern stage design are viewed as a result of the transition from traditional theater to the postdramatic theater paradigm. Posthumanism entails rethinking of traditional principles of performing arts; it deconstructs humanistic values and challenges rational, self-sufficient subject and linear narration. Based on Karen Barad’s concept of intra-actions and the philosophical theory of New Materialism, the article analyzes such strategies in contemporary theatrical practice as the creation of stage assemblage bodies, the return of the “thing-power,” and the procedurality of actions and relationships. The directors stage non-linear, continuously unfolding and evolving events occurring between the various materials within the stage space, objects, actors, dancers, musicians, light, sound, text, etc., all masterfully equalized. The examples of the performances of Heiner Goebbels, Tadeusz Kantor, Kris Verdonck, and Kristina Zvykova help to study the spaces of distributed forces making the emphasis on the exploration of the potential, in which the human will is dispersed, relevant; however, the human presence and their ability to interact remain quite essential factors for the development and renewal of the artwork’s forms. Postdramatic theater and expanded scenography open up new possibilities for expressing the non-linearity, the dynamism of the world around, for comprehending and experiencing the involvement of human beings and non-human objects in the processes of co-construction of environments, spaces, and events.