Visuality in Peter Scherhaufer’s European Events

Abstract

The present study deals with the main features of visuality in European para-theatrical and theatrical events (1978-1993) authored by the theater director of Slovak origin Petr Scherhaufer (1942-1999), the co-founder of the legendary Goose on a String Theater in Brno in the then Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. These events were almost always hosted and prepared by theater groups and artists from Eastern and Western Europe. They were unrepeatable because of their atmosphere, humanist message, but also form. They often connected old theater and other forms with known visual (and not only) codes of today and with the socio-political signs of the time, creating interactive and highly authentic-looking and experiential forms. The study is also based on P. Scherhaufer’s and P. Oslzlý’s opinions on the function and meaning of the work of GOST, which is connected to the analyzed forms. It also relies on a wide range of available archival materials and the author's own experience with the creations of GOST. The core of the study is focused on a pragmatic analysis of the European events, their main features, the essence of visuality and the symbolic elements of the language used. Mainly in the conclusion, the findings are embedded in broader philosophical, aesthetic, anthropological and theatrical contexts (M. Eliade, E. Fischer-Lichte, J.TH. Lehman, R. Scherchner).