THE THEATRICAL AND CRITICAL JOURNALISM OF “YOUNG MUSE” THROUGH THE PRISM OF MODERNIST VISIONS IN THE FIRST DECADE OF THE 20TH CENTURY

Abstract

The early 20th century in world art was a vibrant period as it inspired enthusiasm for everything from eStablished traditions, and relinquished widely accepted norms of artiStic interpretation. Modernism and the avant-garde gradually transformed all artiStic fields, shaping a new rhetoric for Stage art and, consequently, theatrical criticism. It was during this period that Ukrainian theatrical criticism emerged, one of the branches of theater Studies. As an active participant in the process, it formulated the terminological dictionary and phraseology of theatrical criticism. The key theater Studies processes of the firSt decade of the 20th century took place within the “Young Muse” group, which included well-known Ukrainian theater theoriSts such as S. Charnetsky, M. Rudnytsky, V. Birchak, P. Karmansky, B. Lepy, O. Lutsky, and S. Tverdokhlib. They advanced theatrical criticism in Galicia, developed concepts for representing Stage art in Ukraine, and viewed it through the prism of the pan-European theater Studies paradigm from the late 19th to the early 20th century. The text suggeSts that through the textual analysis of reviews by the “young generation” literary movement, the focus was typically on the play’s title and its author. The discussions revolved around the dramaturgy, mentioning directors, actors, Stage decorations, and occasionally the audience’s reactions. The themes of these reviews were aimed at describing the theatrical consciousness of the era, and the StyliStic expression captured new theatrical terminology and phraseology. The semantic interpretation of these elements always requires a broader context of Study. The publications by the “young generation” are intereSting not only in terms of the Structure of theatrical-critical texts but also in the information that shapes the model of theater in Galicia in the firSt half of the 20th century. This model can be further explored in accordance with its evolution. The “Young Muse” generation of theater critics has taken a significant place in the formation and development of theater Studies as a science. They hold a prominent position in the sourcebased content of the hiStory of Ukrainian theater in Galicia.