Towards a 20th Century History of Relationships between Theatre and Neuroscience

Gabriele Sofia

doi:10.1590/2237-266043942

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article considers some preliminary reflections in view of a 20th century theatre-and-neuroscience history. Up to now, the history of the 20th century theatre has been too fragmentary and irregular, missing out on the subterranean links which, either directly or indirectly, bound different experiences. The article aims to put in evidence the recurrent problems of these encounters. The hypothesis of the essay concerns the possibility of gathering and grouping a great part of the relationships between theatre and neuroscience around four trajectories: the physiology of action, the physiology of emotions, ethology, and studies on the spectator's perception.

Highlights

Siècle – L’objectif de l’article est de poser des hypothèses de départ et des réflexions en vue d’une histoire du théâtre et des neurosciences au XXe siècle
We lack a proper history of the relationships between theatre and neuroscience in the past century
The point of origin of the trajectory concerning the physiology of emotions could be identified in an 1898 article published by the famous French psychologist Alfred Binet entitled Réflexions sur Gabriele Sofia - Towards a 20th Century History of Relationships between Theatre and Neuroscience Brazilian Journal on Presence Studies, Porto Alegre, v. 4, n. 2, p. 313-332, May/Aug. 2014

Summary

Hypothesis and Methodology

The first hypothesis concerns the identification of the historical ruptures which would outline the beginning and the end of the historical corpus under study. The founding moment of the 20th century phase of such interdisciplinary relationships would coincide with what Fabrizio Cruciani and Ferdinando Taviani have defined as the first scientific enquiry of the actor: In an essay on the art of the actor and of the director, written for the Encyclopedia Britannica at the end of the 1920s, Stanislavski asks, ‘Is it possible to identify the means which would enable that creative state which geniuses obtain by nature and without effort to be induced voluntarily and consciously?’ This is the first – and perhaps the only – scientific inquiry of the actor, the revolution takes place via a methodical, analytical investigation, fragment by fragment Only three out of these four trajectories will presently be discussed, since I have already presented a historical study focusing on the spectator’s perception in another recent publication (Sofia, 2013a)

Theatre and the Physiology of Action

Theatre and the Physiology of Emotions

Theatre and Ethology

Conclusions