Continental Theatre in the 19th Century

From The Theatre and Its Continuing Social Function – William Melnitz “The nineteenth century was a time of change in Europe. Of all centuries, it was the century of revolution – political revolution and industrial revolution. . . . The outcome of all these upheavals was low march towards political and social democracy . . . . The theatre was greatly affected by the peculiar nature of the 19th century. There was revolution in playwriting . . . . The story of the theatre throughout the full 19th century is a story of definite and important progress. Playwrights moved from classicism to romanticism to realism.”

Romanticism § An emotional escape into adventure, beauty and sentimental

idealism § Took hold in the 19th century as a key dramatic style § Started in Germany

§ Goethe & Schiller § Later took hold in France

§ Hugo & Dumas

Johann Wolfgang van Goethe § 1749 -1832 § Statesman and writer or epic and lyric poetry, prose and

verse drama, memoirs, literary and aesthetic criticism, treatises, and four novels … among others

§ Sturm und Drang § Faust, Faust Part 2,

Iphigenia in Tauris

Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller § 1759 – 1805 § German physician, poet, philosopher,

historian and playwright § Befriended the already established Goethe § Challenged each through discussions of

aesthetic, and he pushed Goethe to finish some of his sketch work

§ Their discussions and relationship led to an era known as Weimar Classicism

§ Plays included: The Robbers, Fiesco, The Maid of Orleans (about Joan of Arc) and William Tell

Alexandre Dumas

§ 1802-1870 § One of the most widely read French authors § Famous novelist: The Count of Monte Cristo,

The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte de Bragelonne: Ten Years Later

§ His success was as a dramtist, Henri III est sa cour (1929) was the first Romantic historical drama produced in Paris

§ He wrote many other plays and even adapted some of his novels to the stage, including The Three Musketeers

Victor Hugo § 1802 – 1885 § French poet, novelist and dramatist § One of the greatest French writers

of all time § Best known for novels

The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Miserables

§ Plays Hernani and Cromwell at the forefront of the romantic movement

Realism § Depicts a selected view of Real Life § Emerged in the mid-19th Century § Dominated by Henrik Ibsen

Henrik Ibsen 1828 - 1906 § Norweigan § The Father of Realism § Works were well-written and constructed

with insight to characterization § Considered mild by today’s standards

themes were shocking to his audiences and revolutionized by theatre of the day

§ Critics were incensed by how the plays dealt with social problems

§ A Doll’s House – Nora leaves her husband and kids – shows the world a new position for women in society.

§ Hedda Gabler; The Master Builder; An Enemy of the People & Ghosts are other famous works of his with provocative themes that exposed societal issues in Ibsen’s world

Henrik Ibsen 1828 - 1906 § Norweigan § The Father of Realism § Works were well-written and constructed

with insight to characterization § Considered mild by today’s standards

themes were shocking to his audiences and revolutionized by theatre of the day

§ Critics were incensed by how the plays dealt with social problems

§ A Doll’s House – Nora leaves her husband and kids – shows the world a new position for women in society.

§ Hedda Gabler; The Master Builder; An Enemy of the People & Ghosts are other famous works of his with provocative themes that exposed societal issues in Ibsen’s world

§ Mutton chop game: Strong

August Strindberg § Swedish § Expressionistic drama §  Influenced modern avant-garde theatre § Rumors about a failed suicide attempt

unleashing his talent §  Took too much opium, but didn’t die §  Fell into a deep sleep § When he awoke, many repressed memories

were unleashed and he began to write. . . § Miss Julie (pre-OD) and A Dream Play (post-OD) both are

remarkably vivid, however § Allegedly Ibsen kept a portrait of Strindberg over his desk.

“I cannot write a line without that madman standing and staring down at me with those mad eyes” -- Henrik Ibsen

Anton Chekhov § 1860 – 1904 § Russian playwright and short story writer § Practiced medicine throughout his career, “Medicine is my

lawful wife, and literature is my mistress” § Along with Strindberg and Ibsen,

Chekhov is considered one of the three seminal figures in early modernism in theatre

§ Four classic plays, The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard §  Thought the premiere of The

Seagull was so bad he renounced theatre until it was revived by Stanislavski’s Moscow Art Theatre

Maxim Gorki § 1868 – 1936 § Russian / Soviet writer, founder of the Socialist realism

literary method and political activist § Five-time Nobel Prize in Literature

nominee § Before finding success as a writer,

he often switched jobs, roaming the Russian Empire – this influenced much of his work

§ Close association with Chekhov § Plays include:

§  The Philistines §  The Lower Depths §  Enemies §  Vassa Zheleznova

Konstantin Stanislaski § 1863 – 1938 § Russian director at the experimental Moscow Art Theatre § Trained actors in a technique on realistic acting § Father of “The Stanislavski System”

§ Grandfather of The Method, made popular at The Actor’s Studio § 1907 – he tried staging an expressionist version of

Andreyev’s The Life of Man §  The show was popular, but he felt that he had failed to challenge

his actors §  This supposedly led Stanislavski to change, and from then on his,

“work and attention were devoted almost completely to the study and teaching of inner creativeness, as opposed to a scenic show.” (James Roose-Evans, Experimental Theatre: From Stanislavski to Today)

George Bernard Shaw § 1856 – 1950 § First to produce Ibsen’s Ghosts in England, bringing Ibsen to

the larger theatre world § Wrote comedic satire § Attacked cherished beliefs § Greatest English writer since

Shakespeare § Prolific writer

§  Androcles and the Lion; Pygmalion; Major Barbara; The Devil’s Disciple; Arms and the Man; The Doctor’s Dilemma; Candida

§ His goal was to change the world through his comedy § He didn’t change the world (but through no fault of his own)

Romanticism § Through the growth of Realism, plenty of writers stuck with

romantic, symbolic and mystical works § Oscar Wilde § Gilbert & Sullivan § Rostand § Gogol

Oscar Wilde § 1854 – 1900 § English § Witty farces §  Importance of Being Earnest is in the style of 18th Century

Comedy of Manners plays

Gilbert & Sullivan § W.S. Gilbert (1854 – 1911) and Arthur Sullivan (1842 – 1900)

wrote their popular operettas §  Including The Mikado and HMS Pinafore § Hated each other

Rostand & Gogol § Edmond Rostand

§  1868 – 1918 §  French § Cyrano de Bergerac (1897)

§ Nikolai Gogol §  1809 – 1852 § Russian §  The Inspector General (1836)

Famous Actors § Sarah Bernhardt and Coquelin of France § Eleanor Duse of Italy § Sir Henry Irving and Ellen Terry of England

§  Almost single-handedly are responsible for bringing the acting profession back to respectability in England

Continental Theatre in the 19th Century