Theatrical Interpretation Research Articles

VASYL STUS IN THE THEATER: FROM THE HISTORY OF THE ISSUE (1980s — 1990s)

The theatrical interpretation of the life and work of Vasyl Stus began in the late 1980s. Dozens of productions across various genres appeared during the period of accumulating and systematizing biographical and artistic material, as well as reinterpreting the figure of Stus. Interest in his personality is evidenced by the performances of both experienced directors and beginners. One of the key tasks of Stus studies is to trace the history of the theatrical experiences that bring Vasyl Stus’s creative life into focus. To model the perception and artistic interpretation of Stus’s personality, it is important to identify various forms of professional performances centered on Vasyl Stus’s life or based on his works, while considering the chronological order of their appearance. These forms include poetic compositions, dramatic compositions, plays, etc. The paper starts a project focusing on the outlined issues and highlights the theatrical productions from the late 1980s and the 1990s. Decades of theatrical exploration of Vasyl Stus’s creative personality represent not only a time of popularizing his works and integrating the poet’s name into the cultural sphere but also a period of directors’ and actors’ search for the potential — both poetic and existential — within Stus’s texts. The strength and significance of the poet’s legacy were proved by the following performances: the poetic composition “Vasyl Stus” (1988) by Volodymyr Kuchynskyi, the dramatic composition “The Bird of Soul” (1989) by Vitalii Sementsov, the musical and dramatic composition “Return” (1989) by Myroslav Hrynyshyn, the monologue “Go through a Hundred Scaffolds, a Man, Having Sight in a Heart” (1992) by Marharyta and Kyrylo Bulkins, the monologue “Damned Years” (1992—1993) by Volodymyr Smotrytel, the play on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of V. Stus’s birth (1998) by Dmytro Stus and Serhii Proskurnia.

The Beginnings of Stage Directing in the Romanian Theatre. A Historical View

Lacking a consolidated tradition in the art of stage acting and directing, the Romanian national theatres, which had only existed for a few decades, faced a series of legislative, administrative and aesthetic reforms at the beginning of the 20th century. These reforms aimed to acclimatize the most important novelties of modern performance, just emerging on Western stages. Such changes strongly impacted the conservative world of declamation and rhetoric, still indebted to the Romanticist school of theatrical interpretation. This paper aims to provide a cultural-historical perspective on the generational and artistic conflict that led to the modernization of the Romanian mise-en-scène and to the consolidation of the director’s status, in the “century of directing”, focusing on Alexandru Davila’s contribution to the process. Keywords: Romanian theatre, directing, scenography, performing, realism, modernism.

Chinghiz Aitmatov’s Mythopoetic Picture of the World through the Context of Modern Stage Interpretations (In Russian)

The theatrical process in Central Asia is characterized by a common history of formation and development, basic principles and at the same time the originality and artistic heterogeneity of national theaters. A theater festival that is currently acquiring important significance as a space for dialogue between cultures serves as an indicator of its transformation in the region. Using the example of the winning performances of the VI International Theater Festival “Aitmatov and Theater” (2023), the mythopoetic picture of the world of Chinghiz Aitmatov is studied in the context of modern stage interpretations.The festival featured productions of prose rather than drama. This determined the features of the aesthetic structure of performances created within logocentric oriental cultures. The article analyzes the performances of Ulanmyrzha Karypbayev, one of the leading young directors in Central Asia. His productions such as “Borandy becket” (Station under Storm) and “Ak keme” (White Steamship) were among the best. They reveal the most characteristic features of U. Karypbayev as a director: a rich metaphorical system, theatrical polyphony, ritualization, grotesque, complex mise-en-scène. A large-scale play “Zhan pida” (Scaffold) directed by Nurkanat Zhakypbai current open the topics of historical memory, national identity and essential issues of existence. His stage interpretation is characterized by multi-layered visuals, exquisite plastic solutions, picturesque crowd scenes, a complex musical score, and a monologue principle in the acting performance. The directors Bair Badmayev and Gafur Mardanov created the story of Mother’s life path in the context of the national picture of the world in the stage versions of Mother Earth.The festival demonstrated a modern theatrical interpretation of Aitmatov’s works in Central Asia, characterized by leaving a usual path of words on stage and turning to more deeper interpretations. It is obvious that compositionally complex stage works are created with all components existing on an equal basis: words, stage action, scenography, rich plastic score, authentic musical sequence with performers on stage. Directors raise current issues, artistically comprehend reality and embody it in ideas, images, stage solutions that reflect the richness and diversity of the theatrical art in Central Asia.

THE DIACHRONIC APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF RHYTHM IN SHAKESPEARE’S PERFORMANCES

The article explores the overall influence and creativity of W. Shakespeare, as well as changes in approaches to theatrical interpretations and performances of Shakespeare’s works from a diachronic perspective. The themes of Shakespeare’s works delve into the complexities of human relationships, ensuring their relevance to this day. The significance of Shakespeare’s dramas and comedies on contemporary literature cannot be overstated. Performances of Shakespeare’s works evolve over time, rendering them entirely modern. The article discusses a shift in approach to speech rhythm, adding different characteristics and melodiousness, eliciting positive reactions from the audience. The diachronic approach involves comparing various performances across different time periods. To investigate real changes in the prosody of Shakespearean performances, the authors examined chronologically different renditions of the same excerpts and compared their key indicators using modern computer programs. The conclusions indicate significant changes in pause lengths, speech rates, and the direction of the main tone. The role of rhythm in Shakespeare’s performances serves as an emotional foundation and an even stronger link connecting the actor and the audience.

Mystery and artistic veil – Widma [Phantoms] by Stanisław Moniuszko and Paweł Passini

The purpose of this paper is to analyse Moniuszko’s Phantoms with a particular focus on the relationships between music and libretto in order to compare them later with modern strategies of performances staged recently in Polish operas and concert halls. The source-historical context referring to cultural and perceptive aspects of Phantoms serves as a starting point. The question is also raised concerning the relationship and fusion of arts constituting that intriguing work. A search for dramaturgic-theatrical aspects of Moniuszko’s work assumes an attempt to capture a so-called ‘intentio operis’, created at the intersection of Mickiewicz’s text and musical intentions of the composer. The analysis was centered on selected aspects of dramaturgy of a few performances of ‘Phantoms’ staged at the Wratislavia Cantans Festival (2017, dir. P. Passini), the Wrocław Opera, (prem. 2018, dir. J. Fret), and the Polish Royal Opera (prem. 2017, dir. R. Peryt). All stagings were an interesting attempt to reinterpret a starting form of cantata bringing it closer to theatrical work. This paper intends to answer the following questions: what dramaturgic and theatrical strategies are generated by Moniuszko’s cantata? To what extent does the cantata nature of this music-textual work contributes to new theatrical interpretations? To what extent are modern stage productions the answer to an artistic potential present in its music-textual layer? Do the new projects of its visualization and dramatisation result, even indirectly, from the structural and staging potential of the work, or whether they attempt to add new artistic ideas in order to make Phantoms more attractive as a starting, incomplete, music-textual structure?

Features of translation: A. Grin’s féerie “Scarlet Sails” in the Tatar language (based on the theatrical interpretation of the work)

Based on the theatrical interpretation of the work (the play of the same name by the G. Kariev Tatar Youth Theater), this article discusses the features of translation into the Tatar language of the story-féerie by A. Grin “Scarlet Sails”. The study reveals the specifics of the modern interpretation of the main storylines and the images – the characters from Grin’s work, presents the quotes with the original authorial translation (M. Khabutdinova), describes various techniques and means of theatrical art that make it possible to succinctly and expressively present the modern insights into the work that has celebrated its centennial anniversary. The article analyzes in detail the individual episodes of the play that have conceptual significance and the iconic mise en scene that receive a multi-aspect literary interpretation (in part due to the original translation of the text and its stage embodiment). The article characterizes all the components of the theatrical performance (its composition, choreography, musical accompaniment and the set design (scenery, stage costumes, props and furniture). Much attention is paid to the evaluation of the performers of both the main and supporting roles in the play, the nuances of the image interpretations by the actors of both casts (in particular, the images of Assol performed by Laysan Bolshova and Albina Nogmanova). The article focuses on the symbolic imagery in the production, thanks to which the traditional universal values, characteristic of A. Grin’s fairy tale, are organically embodied through the metaphor of the modern performance. The article rates the performance highly due to the efforts of the whole team of authors and actors who created a bright original play that is relevant for the modern youth audience.

Specificity of Plastic Imagery of Competitive Dance Pasodoble

The purpose of the article is to reveal the specificity of the plastic imagery of the Pasodoble competition dance. Research methodology. The historical method was applied, which contributed to the study of the origin and development of Pasodoble; the typological method thanks to which the peculiarities of its formation as a competitive ballroom dance were revealed; the method of artistic-stylistic and art-historical analysis, with the aim of identifying characteristic stylistic features, features of performance technique and specifics of Pasodoble's plastic imagery; method of theoretical analysis and generalisation. Scientific novelty. The plastic imagery of the Pasodoble competitive ballroom dance is studied; the technique of its implementation is characterised; the history of the origin of the dance is considered; The peculiarities of the theatricalisation of Pasodoble's choreography as one of the ten dances of the international competition programme have been revealed. Conclusions. The dramatic Latin American dance, which originated in Spain, has become one of the most popular ballroom dances in the world over the last hundred years. The specific combination of dance elements and figures in the composition by French dance teachers in the 1920s create a unique Pasodoble choreography. In the 1940s, it was codified as one of the dances in the Latin American International Style programme. Pasodoble is characterised by strong, bold movements, and the use of dramatic poses in the process of telling the story of the bullfight. Due to its theatricality and unique music, the Pasodoble is commonly performed at ballroom dance competitions and used in stage ballroom choreography. Pasadoble dance and music are steeped in ritual tradition, with a high sense of drama and power. The specific attire of the dancers, the feel and atmosphere of the dance refer to Flamenco – these dances have a strong connection and symbolic origin in Spanish history and culture. The aesthetic expressiveness of Pasodoble is created by plasticity, a musical-plastic image, which embodies the combination of the inner potential of the dancing couple and the mastery of their bodily expressiveness. Specific theatricalisation by means of choreographic expressiveness is manifested in the Pasodoble competition ballroom dance in many ways. The creation of choreography oriented and theatrical interpretation is connected with solving a number of artistic tasks. The complex of expressive means used by dancers helps to clearly outline the meaningful line of the dance. The imagery of the Pasodoble competition ballroom dance choreography is characterised by its own poetic reflection of the bullfight, taking into account the current codification of steps and figures of the Latin American programme of the international style. The plastic image represents socio-cultural aspects, current social symbols, and meanings in the dance.
 Keywords: Pasodoble, competitive dance, plastic, artistic imagery, theatricalisation.

Exploring Potential Relationships Between the Fabula of LXXJudith and Hellenistic Theatre

It is well known that LXXJudith displays an innate suitability for theatrical interpretation or re-enactment. Previous research findings have revealed that the Greek language of LXXJudith, by default, prompts an urgency for immediate and dramatic action and strongly suggests the influence of orality. In this regard, Wills has gone so far as to suggest that some aspect of LXXJudith might have once been performed at dinners or during Jewish festivals. It is in this speculative spirit that this paper explores the text of chapter 13 from LXXJudith to determine why it is so suitable for dramatic re-interpretation as a stage production or visually entertaining (albeit didactic) re-enactment. Here, the authors cautiously consider the possibility that important key events in LXXJudith 13 may have been informed by a Hellenistic Jewish stage play/theatrical performance or was written as a consequence of observing Greek theatre for its final structure. The authors make deliberate use of key aspects of Storey and Allan’s performance criticism theories and accordingly attempt to recreate elements of a hypothetical performance of chapter 13, based solely on the Greek text, in order to determine the most likely meaning that would have been conveyed to a Hellenistic Jewish audience. Consequently, a reconstruction of possible conditions on stage plus the effects of the accompanying dialogue are hypothesised. The authors do not claim that there is any undisputed evidence that LXXJudith was ever staged as a theatrical performance in the Hellenistic period. However, from the standpoint of performance criticism they conclude that indeed, there are various elements present in the Greek text that would have made it easy to perform in a theatrical context.

THEATRICAL THEMES IN THE CINEMATOGRAPHY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (1980-2010)

The article studies the evolution of theatrical themes and imagery in the cinema of the People's Republic of China since the beginning of the reforms in the 1980s. It is emphasized that the democratization of public life and the rejection of the reformist doctrine of the “cultural revolution” inspired the “fifth generation” filmmakers to use the symbolism of the traditional Chinese shadow theatre and musical drama. The directors of the “sixth generation” of Chinese cinema in the 1990s turned to the lives of representatives of the avant-garde theatre. The subject of the article is theatrical themes in the cinematography of the People's Republic of China (1980-2010).The research methodology is based on search, system-historical, analytical, and comparative methods, which made it possible to achieve a comprehensive artistic analysis of theatrical themes and imagery in the cinema of the People's Republic of China 1980-2010.Conclusions.Thus, in the early 2000s, in connection with the commercialization of performing arts in the PRC, the interpretation of theatre is changing: it appears as a spectacular form that extends to social life and captures it, creating a space for simulations and manipulations.Keywords: Chinese cinema of the 20th and 21st centuries, theatrical themes, directors of the fifth and sixth generations of Chinese cinema, commercial cinema in the PRC.

The Translational Body: Theatre Translation and Interpretation in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras)

This article introduces and develops the concept of the “translational body” as a construct in the process of translation and interpretation of Brazilian Sign Language (Libras), describing its relationship with the system of theatre. We show that Libras/Portuguese interpreters (TILSP) working in theatre settings are creative, political and artistic agents, with professional, didactic and activist profiles, all of which contribute to the polysystem created in Libras theatre translation. We argue that the translational body is a multiple, organic, procedural, dynamic and dialogic construct and that its presence in the theatrical polysystem organises, challenges and brings together the linguistic and cultural repertoires of theatre in new ways. Interviews conducted with TILSPs working in theatre, theatre producers and deaf audience members were analysed, drawing on Even-Zohar's Theory of Polysystems (2018) together with Embodiment Theory and existing Brazilian research by Silva Neto (2017), Fomin (2018), Resende (2019), Rigo (2019) and Albres and Santos (2020). We show that the process of Libras translation and interpretation in theatre is a process of construction of a body which is presented with the actors on stage and which incorporates translation in its relationship with the different systems that form part of the theatrical polysystem.

Выразительность в театре как технология смыслопорождения и роль жеста в ее реализации

The paper examines the concept of multimodal expressiveness contributing to the general study of the expressive and emotive functions in belles-lettres texts. The author attempts to prove that in heterogeneous discourse expressiveness manifests itself as a meaning-making resource responsible for the form-content fusion. The analysis is carried out on the basis of two different kinds of theatrical discourse: theatrical performance and public play-reading. The author turns to theatrical interpretations of the plays by Alexander Vampilov, Alexander Kazantsev, Natalya Sadur, and to two public readings of the play “A man from Podolsk” by Dmitry Danilov, with the total duration of 740 minutes. The focus is on gesture as a pivotal semiotic resource of the theatre. The results of the comparative quantitative analysis show the difference (i) in the gesture patterns and (ii) the frequency of their usage in the two kinds of theatrical discourse. The qualitative results are obtained with the help of the parametric analysis which is a relevant tool for estimating the activity and functions of gestural modality and as such helps to reveal the specificity of meaning construal.

Label Noir's Heimat, bittersüße Heimat : A Transgressive and Transformative Text

Label Noir's <i>Heimat, bittersüße Heimat</i> : A Transgressive and Transformative Text

Codes of culture in modern musical creativity

The purpose of the article is to summarize the issues of modern musical creativity with an emphasis on cultural codes. The methodology of the work is based on the use of scientific research methods, which are dominated by analytics, observation, comparative analysis in accordance and interpretation using a literary source; methods of analysis and synthesis in the selection of culture codes in literary, musical, musical and theatrical interpretation. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the fact that for the first time an analysis of culture codes was made in the musical directed by Andrey Bilous, composer Usein Bekirov "The Overcoat"; ballet Maurice Bejart, composer Hugo Le Bar "The Overcoat"; ballet Radu Poklitaru, composer Olexander Rodin "Wii". Conclusions. Based on the theory, the history of scientific research, culture codes are presented as well-known information in literary titles, their author, their style, genres, and means of musical expression. The musical and ballet genres are self-sufficient and are programmed for creative production, the transmission of information, and its preservation under different interpretations. The musical and the ballet "The Overcoat" have a common and different embodiment of the author's literary source. In the musical by A. Belous – U. Bekirov, the ballet by Maurice Bejart - Hugo Le Bar, the ballet "Viy" by R. Poklitaru – O.Rodin, the main events of the author's story are preserved, but conditionally and under the influence of genre features. The music of the works has a stylistic plurality, the composers turn to different intonation-rhythmic layers, but with all the changes, taking into account genre features, the codes of culture remained recognizable.&#x0D; Key words: culture code, interpretation, musical creativity, musical and theatrical genre, musical, ballet.&#x0D;

Literary and Theatrical Resilience: Quixote, from Classic and (Post)Modern Character, to Syndrome

A classic character brought to myth rank, Cervantes’s Quixote was tackled philosophically, by Miguel de Unamuno in his essay Vida de Don Quixote y Sancho, 1905 on the realm of Spanish literature; we have been recently amazed from a postmodern, even postcolonial perspective, by Salman Rushie (Quichotte, 2019) and dramatically on the stage of the National Theatre of Iași by Carmen Dominte who initially proposed The Quixote Syndrome (2021) as a theatrical performance meant to be read. Without dealing with the adaptations in various arts (Minkus’s ballet), we will study the resilience of a character with reference to the above texts and what was left of it on stage with insights into adaptation theory and theatrical interpretation in the context of pandemic distancing.

Foucault’s Concept of History and New Historicism: Points of Convergence

This paper attempts to explore the impact of Michael Foucault's theoretical understanding of history on New Historicism, a literary school that developed in North America in the later part of the twentieth century. While Foucault is known throughout academia for his extraordinarily wide range of interests, this paper aims only to focus on his radical perspective on history and to show how that perspective is linked in vital way to the development of new historicist strategies, highly innovative in themselves, that seriously challenge, if not redefine, the traditional humanist interpretation of literature. Attempt therefore has been made in this paper to examine how Foucault’s 'epistemic break' and 'archeological' model of history as a 'discontinuity' remain as important points of reference for the new historicist interpretation of textuality, authorship, theatre and culture at large. While discussing new historicism, this paper largely draws upon the opinions of Greenblatt and Montrose, two pioneering theorists of this school.

Проявление театрального начала в хоровой музыке

Specific theatricalization by means of musical expressiveness is manifested in modern choral music in many ways. The creation of a choral work focused on theatrical interpretation is connected with the solution by a composer of a number of artistic tasks when composing a musical score with director’s instructions. The aim of the article is to identify the means of expressing choral music in the field of theatrical art. The scientific novelty consists in presenting a general picture of the state of modern choral theatre with a reflection of its inherent communicative expressive means. As a result of the study, the author comes to the conclusion that choral performances have great communicative capabilities, since the complex of expressive means used helps to simultaneously draw several semantic lines of the work.

“Winds Are Blowing” by Hanna Havrylets in the Theatrical Interpretation of the Chamber Choir "Kyiv"

The author has characterized the demonstrative features of the choral theater genre and their embodiment in the performance of historical oratorio "Winds are blowing" by Ganna Havrylets by the Municipal Academic Chamber Choir "Kyiv". The author defines the affiliation of this play to the type of choral theater "History in the Faces", as 12 historical songs recorded by O. Koshyts during the Kuban expedition (1903-1905) were selected, processed and combined into a dramatic integrity by composer Ganna Gavrilets. They focus on pictures of the national liberation struggle of the Ukrainian people. The theatrical concept of staging in the communicative link is built: composer - conductor - arranger - director - spectator. It was found that in order to dynamize the performance the authors of concert-theatrical performance (conductor Mykola Hobdych, director Vasyl Vovkun) made structural changes (removed individual numbers, added the final instrumental number), enriched the timbre sound palette of the chamber choir with additional instruments (bandura, reed pipe or flute, percussion), which are used by choristers simultaneously with singing. Approaches to the theatrical performances with personification images and general choral scenes, alternating in the form of contrast of drama of the work were underlined. It is established that in the choral works of the cycle with personified imagery the emphasis was on more effective individual acting means (facial expressions, plastics, movements), in epic songs - on more static but symbolically filled mise-en-scène factors (graphic-spatial forms of stage arrangement of performers on stage). It is noted that the directors contributed to the better disclosure of the content of the play through the integrated use of the background (eg, costumes), mise-en-scène and acting means of theatrical choral performance. These artistic techniques also increased the spectacle, concert and stage representativeness and created a variety of acoustic effects.

Towards a non-colonial [divine] service

In this article, Schleiermacher’s idea of a divine service as mitteilende Darstellung (communicative presentation) will be brought into conversation with Gräb’s homiletics as religious speech and then, adding to the conversation, Latour’s tormented religious speech. Latour’s religious speech will, in turn, be brought into conversation with Rancière’s idea of politics in contrast to police, thereby proposing a non-colonial [divine] service, which might have certain similarities with Badiou’s interpretation of theatre. However, being vigilant of the constant threat of again becoming colonial. This temptation or danger could be prevented by a communicative presentation (theatrical performance or enactment) of the Christ Event through a Christ-poiēsis that does not colonise time or space but brings into close proximity (communicative presentation) space and time as the fulfilment of time.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article, ‘Towards a non-colonial [divine] service’ is written from the South African context, but its relevance is global as it proposes a non-colonial perspective on homiletics and liturgy. It brings together various disciplines (philosophy, political science and economics) into critical constructive conversation with Practical Theology, specifically homiletics and liturgy.

Towards a non-colonial [divine] service

In this article, Schleiermacher’s idea of a divine service as mitteilende Darstellung (communicative presentation) will be brought into conversation with Gräb’s homiletics as religious speech and then, adding to the conversation, Latour’s tormented religious speech. Latour’s religious speech will, in turn, be brought into conversation with Rancière’s idea of politics in contrast to police, thereby proposing a non-colonial [divine] service, which might have certain similarities with Badiou’s interpretation of theatre. However, being vigilant of the constant threat of again becoming colonial. This temptation or danger could be prevented by a communicative presentation (theatrical performance or enactment) of the Christ Event through a Christ-poiēsis that does not colonise time or space but brings into close proximity (communicative presentation) space and time as the fulfilment of time. Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article, ‘Towards a non-colonial [divine] service’ is written from the South African context, but its relevance is global as it proposes a non-colonial perspective on homiletics and liturgy. It brings together various disciplines (philosophy, political science and economics) into critical constructive conversation with Practical Theology, specifically homiletics and liturgy.

Adolf Loos. Theaters of Joy

Il modo in cui Adolf Loos costruisce i personaggi e la trama dei suoi racconti polemici e sarcastici, assomiglia molto alla scrittura narrativa adatta all’azione scenica. Alla luce di questa scrittura narrativa il testo presenta una lettura di due celebri racconti di Adolf Loss, il breve e famoso racconto del Mastro Sellaio, redatto nel 1903, e l’altrettanto importante testo dal titolo A proposito di un povero ricco, redatto nel 1900. A partire da una interpretazione in chiave teatrale di questi due racconti, il testo propone una estensione del concetto di teatralità intesa come sfondo capace di chiarire e comunicare meglio il fine dell’architettura. Questo fine ultimo sembra risiedere, secondo Adolf Loos, nella ricerca della gioia.