Theatre Institute Research Articles

Renegotiating the notion of artistic genius - within the frame of an institutional theatre

This exposition explores how the Betty Nansen Theatre in Copenhagen, with the artistic research project, BETTY DEVELOPS, works with spreading a collaborative practice to the infrastructure of an entire institutional theatre and how this renegotiates the notion of artistic genius and the star. The exposition offers a meta-reflection on the author’s artistic research activities at the theatre. These reflections shed light on what happens when collaborative methods of working and producing are implemented in an institutional theatre and discuss the extent to which artistic research can develop methods for collaborative co-creation as well as resistance to the neoliberal individualised performance culture. Could such methods prevent you from falling back on a modernist understanding of the artist as the original creator of an individual expression and instead support a collaborative art and knowledge practice? As opposed to defining artistic creation as something that springs from and comes from an individual (the artistic genius or star), the author argues that artistic creation is a relational act, and that art is something that comes to be between people. This exposition is a collage of empirical material, text, images, and video gathered and produced over the last five years while facilitating, documenting, researching, and sharing the development of fourteen BETTY DEVELOPS productions.

Inclusivity in Physical and Digital Theater Environments

Today, there is a problem with the organization of inclusivity in theatrical institutions, which becomes very significant for groups of people with increased needs, when the lack of certain solutions and the inability, for one reason or another, directly affects the attendance of people with limited mobility.Purpose: The aim of this work is to explore the possibility and methods of organizing inclusivity in theatrical space using up-to-date technologies such as VR, AR, metauniverse, etc. Methodology: The analysis of modern research projects related to reorientation of design and construction to the inclusivity and well-being of the architectural environment of buildings and identification of the main criteria, tools and alternative solutions. The use of high technologies in theaters are considered using real-life projects.Research findings: The main criteria are identified for reorientation of design to architecture that consider increased needs of citizens. Focusing on existing theater projects, the possibility of using virtual and augmented reality technologies and metaverses, is determined for the theater space.

“Puščic prš proži nezaslišana usoda”: anglofonsko gledališče in dramatika po koncu pandemije

Since the days of their conception and for most of their history, theatre institutions and the dramatic genre have indelibly reflected their immediate socio-historic contexts, including epidemics. Although forced to close for a full year during the 1918 outbreak of Spanish flu, however, modern Anglophone theatres and authors deliberately avoided exploiting the pandemic in their works. Conversely, the COVID-19 pandemic directly affected the birthing of new genres and individual plays that included it in their settings and contents, and also motivated discussions on the future of dramatic literature and theatre establishments, particularly with regard to hybrid drama. Building on its author’s previous research, this paper examines British and American dramatic literature and theatre establishments one year after the end of the pandemic, to detect whether Anglophone drama has embraced the new genres, and whether its authors have continued to reflect the pandemic in their works.

Heart In The Bag, Love In The Sack And Hope Still Alive? The Magical Realism Of Playwright John Cariani. Study On The Metaphor In The Text Almost Maine

In the magical universe of the American playwright John Cariani, the explosion of symbols and metaphors completes the creative process of both the actor and the spectator. The ease with which deep themes of human nature are approached is due to the mastery with which references of the soul are used in the identity of real and mundane objects. The characters carry their love in bags, their heart in sacks and their hope in inches. The magical world where the city of Maine exists but does not exist at the same time, is the world where any human dream or thought or need can become reality. The contemporary language of the text brings the soul closer to its organic understanding. One will focus their attention on the inner and outer structures of the characters, on the human themes approached, on the acting tools necessary for the organic assumption of the performance. Almost Maine, a universe of dreams and hopes, was staged in Romania in six theatrical institutions relevant to the contemporary artistic landscape. The space between real and imaginary, concrete and magical outlines the inner world of John Cariani characters.

Techniques for designing inclusive buildings using the example of theater architecture

In the article, the author examines the use of the concept of "healing architecture" in order to organize inclusive spaces in such facilities, such as cultural and entertainment institutions, as well as methods used in the design of inclusive theaters designed for people with physical or psychological disabilities, the main techniques used to create a comfortable environment in such projects. The main object of this research is inclusive theater spaces. The main purpose of the study is to explore the possibility of organizing inclusive theaters using the methods of the "Healing Architecture" concept used in the organization of medical and rehabilitation institutions. In the course of the work, the method of analyzing research on the topic and existing projects was used, as well as theoretical analysis, identification and consideration of the main techniques for designing inclusive spaces and the possibility of their use in the design process of inclusive theaters. The novelty of this study lies in the consideration of the concept of healing architecture, from the side of using its techniques in the design of cultural and entertainment institutions, such as inclusive theaters. As a result of the research, the main methods of organizing space used to create a "healthy" environment in medical buildings were considered, as well as their benefits in organizing inclusive theatrical institutions designed for multi-group visitors, projects designed for people with physical and psychological health characteristics were selected and studied, and the basic techniques of organizing space in the buildings selected for analysis. The result of the study was a number of proposals for the organization of the theater space, taking into account the concepts of inclusive and rehabilitation architecture, for groups of people with increased needs.

SITI Training: Viewpoints and the Suzuki Method for Cross-Cultural Collaboration

The training that the Saratoga International Theater Institute (SITI) perfected during its thirty years of existence is its most relevant heritage. SITI believed that training was a crucial part of a performer’s education and ethos. Its constitutive elements – Viewpoints and the Suzuki Method for actor training – are here put in a dialectical opposition that nurtures hybridization. This article investigates how, in fact, these two trainings intersect and also form new ‘languages’ (that is, systems of representation) whenever they are performed. A contextual analysis of SITI’s training as a foundation for making work and as a means for educating actors provides a clearer understanding of why and how SITI training is an instrument that facilitates and fosters cross-cultural collaboration.

International, cultural, and educational framework of the Theatre Institute

This article aims to describe the professional public in the field of educational sciences familiar with a cutting-edge scholarship that addresses the history, present, and perspectives of the performing arts about experiential education. Based on empirical experience and authentic materials, the article introduces the reader to the organizational structure and the work of the Theatre Institute in Bratislava at the national and international levels.

Building an Ideal Theatre

Throughout the course of theatre history, many actors and directors have dreamt about an ideal theatre. Many young European theatre makers in the twenty-first century have preferred working in their own groups with like-minded colleagues instead of joining big institutional theatres or have tried to revolutionize the institutions.Dwelling on theoretical arguments about the terms “ideal”, “idealism”, and “utopia” in theatre, the article investigates what are the ideals of contemporary theatre makers, which ideals/utopias are realizable in theatre practice and how. To answer these questions, the case study of Estonian theatre NO99 is used. In 2004, Tiit Ojasoo and Ene-Liis Semper became the leaders of the state funded theatre Vanalinnastuudio and tried to reorganize it into an ideal theatre. The article investigates what were the ideals of the theatre makers of the NO99, how their ideals were realized, which ideals endured, and which ones failed during the fourteen years. Finally, a discussion on the developments of theatre institutions in the twenty-first century will be presented.

Alienating Hamlet

Abstract The protagonist of Jenny Andreasson's autobiographical novel Teatern (2022) is a young female director whose feminist production of Hamlet at the Swedish national stage fails to have its planned premiere. While the novel makes a point of describing the misogynist structures behind this failure, the present article suggests that class structures and precarity are the main reasons behind it. The financial difficulties of the theatre generate a clear discrepancy between cultural capital – embodied by Shakespeare's canonical play – and economic. The resulting precarious work situation is reflected in the protagonist's yearning for stability, in her recurring assertions of class privileges vis-à-vis her co-workers and in her increasing sense of alienation from both them and her own work. While not strictly paraphrasing Shakespeare's play, the protagonist invokes parallels to both Hamlet and Ophelia, and Teatern, instead of locating these parallels in an ‘existential’ reading of Shakespeare's play, anchors the theme of alienation in the economic and social strictures of the theatre institution.

Reinstalling the Fourth Wall: Digital Performance and Spectatorship in (Post-)Pandemic Era

Summary Theatre can be interpreted as a place where various modes of participation in the community or patterns of citizen behaviour can be rehearsed. In pre-pandemic Lithuanian theatre (as well as theatres of other Baltic countries) various forms of audience engagement were conspicuously emerging, ranging from physical co-creation practices to interactive forms of entertainment. After the global lockdown of theatre institutions the emerging forms of “virtual theatre”, ranging from performance recordings to zoom theatre, redefined the role of theatre spectatorship, in particular the notions of “active”, “passive”, “collective”, “individual”, fundamental for the understanding of the role of publics. Analysing the abundant examples of “pandemic theatre” one starts to think about the return of the digital “fourth wall”, where audiences are becoming distant spectators. This poses important questions to theatre research: whether these forms of theatre are strengthening the feeling of passivity and isolation, serve as platforms for much-needed psychological escapism or offer a critical revaluation of the essential principles of theatre art. With the help of two case studies, this paper will define and analyse the prevailing practices of pandemic Lithuanian theatre and will outline whether and how the fundamental categories associated with the spectator’s experience of theatre have changed in the post-pandemic era.

Cultural Institution and Institutional Culture from the Transcultural Perspective: What Is the Culture behind the Stage, and What Is the Culture inside a Cage?

This article presents the profile of the East Asian theatre artist Danny Yung, director of the acclaimed Zuni Icosachedron theatre in Hong Kong. In the first part, Maciej Szatkowski offers a synthesis of his artistic biography, from his early years as a theatre maker in Hong Kong in the 1980s to the creation of a transnational Chinese theatre, which provides a space for artistic encounters of established and emerging artists from the Sinosphere and beyond. The article focuses on highlighting the main areas of Yung’s work and contextualizing them in terms of the realities of Chinese cultural life. The author describes the central distinguishing features of Yung’s activity and its consecutive stages over the years, as well as the impact of his work on theatres in China and Taiwan. The appendix provides a transcript of Yung’s talk at the conference Contemporary Acting Techniques in Eurasian Theatre, Performance and Audiovisual Art: Intercultural and Intermedia Perspective (2021). The guiding idea of the lecture is the role of institutions in shaping theatre policy and connecting artists and ideas. Yung draws on examples from his own experience, describing the process of creating his most recent productions. He emphasizes the importance of collaboration and dialogue between artists, as well as the role of theatre institutions as major actors influencing the development of theatre art in contemporary Eurasia.

Система партийно-государственного управления театром в СССР в 1932–1939 годах

The article is devoted to the system of state management and control over theatre institutions. In the early thirties in the USSR there was a complex and cumbersome system of theatre management. Formally, there wasn’t any unified part responsible for art, and the main department of theatre management was actually the People’s Commissariat for Education of the RSFSR. Nevertheless, its powers especially in regards to the USSR republics’ theatres were not fully defined. In addition there were also other institutions that controlled theatre policy. In 1936 there was established the All-Union Committee on Arts, and it had significant resources and powers. This was an institution officially responsible for all Soviet art, including theatre. Although many controversial issues of theatre management still remained unsolved, and the leading role in theatre management, as happened in all spheres of Soviet life, belonged to the party, the creation of the All-Union Committee on Arts Affairs was one of the key steps in the process of creating a centralized theatre management system.

Rădăcinile Institutului de Teatru „Szentgyörgyi István”

"It is said that every generation plays the theater it needs" (Ecaterina Oproiu). We might think that the same happens when it comes to the acting methods by which dramatic artists study and create their characters. But can the energy and motivation of today's students be likened to the enthusiasm of the first generation of the Romanian section of the Szentgyörgyi István Theatre Institute? Were the first guides teachers or pedagogues? Starting from the theme of this year's conference and being in my first years at the department within the university, I stopped for a moment and reflected on the roots, the beginnings and, especially, on that triggering core. How do we relate today to that original and native motivation, faith, and generating energy? What was the impact of the Institute's Studio Theatre's appearance in the community and what role does it play today for the general public? What can we consider to be specific to the Institute and preserved today as a tradition within the University?

Cotidianul „Steaua roșie”, observator al activității Teatrului Studio în perioada comunistă

The informative publication “Steaua roșie” (“The Red Star”) appeared between 1952 and 1989 in Târgu-Mureș, generating, through its articles, a detailed inventory of the activity within the “Szentgyörgyi István” Theatre Institute, an aspect which transforms the publication into a vital documentary source. The history of the “Studio” Theatre, recorded by the newspaper during its almost four decades of daily appearance, presents a high relevance because, generally speaking, during the communist period, the cultural articles were the only ones managing to limit the ideological invasion in the journalistic pieces, unlike the informative, political or sports articles. Thus, “Red Star” monitored and described in detail all the events, the personalities, the artistic productions and the institutional changes that marked the existence of the “Studio” Theatre, using a different perspective from the strictly professional one offered by the theatrical publications of the period. This day-to-day perspective outlines the ”Studio” Theatre’s profile as an institution that influenced the development of Romanian theatre and theatrical pedagogy, but also as a space of communication and expression for the entire local community.

PR and Education of the Theatre Institute for Schools, Marginalized Groups and Management Staff

The aim of the paper is to introduce the reader to the activities and diversity of the Theatre Institute in Bratislava in the field of non-formal education for children, youth, professionals, as well as the wider public in the field of performing arts on specific educational projects. The study also attempts to define non-formal education as an activity that develops young people's traditional knowledge and experience of theatre, connecting and enriching their knowledge of contemporary theatre production. It also intends to name informal education as a possible source of information, a tool used to link theoretical knowledge of theatre with lived experience and personal experience. The study assumes that the use of a non-formal education method can provide a space for the active leisure of youth developing creativity, communication, and a diversity of thought, and at the same time serve as an enrichment of the educational process in the field of performing arts in schools.

Marketing and PR communications in the context of promoting theatre institution

The purpose of the work is to create a marketing and PR development strategy for the Coryphaei Theatre. Research methodology. To solve the research task, general scientific methods have been used: analysis, generalisation, description, and comparative-comparative (study of the theoretical foundations of the research). Besides, the authors have applied specifically scientific methods: structural, systemic, method of included observation, survey (questionnaire), and situational analysis (writing the practical part of the study). The scientific novelty consists in the presentation of practical recommendations for the construction and implementation of a marketing and PR communications strategy for the «Coryphaei Theatre» to attract new viewers and popularise the theatre's activities in society. Cultural and leisure activities are perceived as the process of creating conditions for the individual's motivational choice of subject activity, which is determined by his / her needs and interests. With the development of market relations, cultural and leisure activities closely approached marketing technologies, which are based on the problem of finding and meeting the needs of individual citizens or public groups. The issue of improving the system of promoting theatrical services in the form of marketing and PR communications, which allows focusing the available limited resources of organisations on the main strategic directions of conquering target market segments under conditions of increased competition, is gaining special relevance. At the same time, the task of promoting a theatrical product comes to the fore, which is currently one of the most promising types of business activity for theatre institutions that want to stay on the socio-cultural market. Conclusions. We have analysed the market of theatrical services provided by the «Coryphaei Theatre» and the conditions of the competitive environment in the Kropyvnytskyi city, considered pricing in the theatre sector, developed a system for implementing marketing and PR in the work of the theatre, and developed recommendations for the theatre’s advertising and PR policy. Key words:theatre, marketing, communication, PR, socio-cultural sphere, leisure, performances.

On the optimal level of theatre subsidies

This article examines public subsidies and ticket pricing in Finnish theatre institutions by using the principal-agent model. The model follows the ideas presented by Prieto-Rodríguez and Fernández-Blanko (2006) in their article on the British museum sector. The idea of this article is to test how well their theoretical model is in line with the data on Finnish theatres. The aim of this paper to justify the high share of public subsidies to theatre sector and to show that ticket pricing should be in the inelastic segment on the demand schedule. The data on Finnish theatres covers years 2007 – 2011 with 58 theatres subsidised by the law, including the Finnish National Opera. The results of the empirical examination show that the demand of theatre services is price inelastic. According to the results, an increase in the number of visitors increases also optimal subsidies but less than proportionally indicating that the share of public subsidies should be lower in larger towns where the potential for theatre visits is higher due to a larger population. The article argues that even though using economic approaches in examining arts and culture is not unproblematic, they should be used and further developed.

The Emergence of a Theatrical Science of Man in France, 1660–1740

The Emergence of a Theatrical Science of Man in France, 1660–1740

The Theatrical System’s Reform as the Aim of the Theatre Director’s Education in Romania

"This article emphasizes the profound interdependence between the theatre directing educational system and the cultural system, taking into account the specifics of the situation in Romania. Identifying the theatre director as a pillar who defines the status quo in the cultural system and that oversees the implementation of a given global vision in theatres, the article argues that the director’s educational process naturally results in defining tomorrow’s theatre practices. In this context, the article identifies the key skills that the young director should have when entering the cultural system and argues in favour of their importance starting from practical situations in the institutional theatre system in Romania. These basic skills are: a deep understanding of all the compartments of a theatre and how each compartment functions, being able to further educate actors about the basic concepts of theatrical art, the ability to conduct a profound text analysis and, lastly, a commitment to use a directing notebook as starting point for their shows. The article concludes that the main reasons why the education system currently fails to develop these skills are the lack of time allocated to theatrical practice, but also the prevalence of the desire to train a small number of exceptional directors to the detriment of training al student directors to become capable of operating in the cultural market. Keywords: director, theatre, pedagogy, practice as research."

LATVIAN THEATRE IN TRANSITION . THE ROOTS IN THE 1990s

This paper focuses on the emergence and evolution of the so-called independent theatre scene in Latvia in the radically changing socio-political and institutional context of the 1990s. The analysis concerns the question why in Latvia the independent theatres did not become a significant alternative from the inherited institutional repertory theatre system until the second decade of the new century. Examples of the independent theatres Kabata, Skatuve and Mūris help to illustrate the general tendencies showing that a lack of a strong artistic vision and managerial strategy in difficult economic circumstances lead to the underdevelopment of a diversity of production models in performing arts in Latvia. In addition, after a short loss of direction, institutional theatres in the mid-90s started to attract nearly all artistically interesting new initiatives, especially if it already had proved itself within the independent scene. The New Riga Theatre and The Atelier of Unbearable Theatre characterize these processes, moreover indicating that the avant-garde directors of the time – Alvis Hermanis, Dž. Dž. Džilindžers, Viesturs Kairišs, Gatis Šmits and Regnārs Vaivars – were interested in a radical break with the past in terms of aesthetics of theatre, but they were not interested in politics. The comparison with the independent theatre scene in Estonia and Lithuania shows that the similar initial circumstances may lead to different outcomes.