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Over the last forty years, French director Ariane Mnouchkine and her theater collective, Le Theatre du Soleil, have devised a form of research and creation that is both engaged with contemporary history and committed to reinvigorating theater by focusing on the actor. Now revised and reissued, this volume combines:


an overview of Mnouchkine's life, work and theatrical influences


an exploration of her key ideas on theater and the creative process


analysis of key productions, including her early and groundbreaking environmental political piece, 1789, and the later Asian-inspired play penned by Helene Cixous, Drums on the Dam.


practical exercises, including tips on mask work.


As a first step toward critical understanding, and as an initial exploration before going on to further, primary research, Routledge Performance Practitioners offer unbeatable value for today's student.

Ariane Mnouchkine

INTELLECTUAL AND ARTISTIC BIOGRAPHY: NOMAD OF THE IMAGINATION

Beginnings





Mnouchkine and her times





Theatrical influences and affinities



















IDEAS ON THEATER: THEATER AS COLLECTIVE HISTORY AND







THE QUEST FOR FORM





Theoretical propositions





The creative process





Paradoxes and tensions



















FOUR KEY PRODUCTIONS: MNOUCHKINE'S "FANATICALLY THEATRICAL"







1789: collective creation, audience involvement, and comedic form





Richard II: mythic storytelling, hybridizing Asia, and geometrizing power





L'Indiade ou l'inde de leurs reves: the Cixousian partnership, aesthetics of the hyper-real, and border crossers





Drums on the Dam: In the Form of an Ancient Puppet Play, Performed by Actors: theatrical self-questioning and the actor as puppet





Conclusion













PRACTICAL EXERCISES















Principles of theatrical creation





Mask work





A basic rehearsal vocabulary