Abstract
It is one of the intriguing coincidences of twentieth-century European theatre history that in 1970 when Ariane Mnouchkine and her company, the Theatre du Soleil, were looking for a permanent home during rehearsals for their production 1789, the place they found quite by accident was in the Bois de Vincennes on the outskirts of Paris — where Antonin Artaud had seen his first performance of Balinese theatre 40 years before. This otherwise insignificant coincidence has symbolic significance because Artaud's frrst exposure to non-Western theatre forms was highly influential on his developing vision of a revitalised Western theatre. That vision in its turn has generated a new tradition of Western theatre practice which looks towards the stylised forms of Asian theatre as a way of breaking out of television-style naturalism. The most prominent exponent of this theatre tradition in France has been Ariane Mnouchkine, who freely acknowledges her debt to Artaud and quotes his maxim, "The theatre IS oriental."
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call