Download Theatre of Cruelty – Artaud

Workshopping - Theatre of Cruelty – Artaud.
Antonin Artaud (1896 – 1948) set out his theory that the stage should voice the inner
turbulence of the human spirit. Physicality is more important than spoken words. This
comes from the idea that theatre should be taken from the human spirit, and in
dreams, words are not important, it is the images that are most powerful. Gestures,
sounds, images, unusual scenery, overwhelming lighting and more should create a
language of its own that can subvert logic, reason and human language.
VISUAL POETRY
When Artaud watched Balinese dancers in 1931, he saw performers using movement, gestures and dance instead of
words to communicate with their audience. Combined with music and different sound effects, this stylised
movement, which he called ‘visual poetry’ had an enormous emotional impact on the audience. It communicated
feelings in a way that words could not. This did not mean that Artaud wanted to eliminate words altogether, but he
insisted that they should only be used when they were totally necessary and important.
ASSAULTING THE SENSES
Artaud argued that the majority of people had been desensitised by the world around them. There was no point in
appealing to their understanding or intelligence. So he wanted the TOC to hypnotise them, putting them into a
trance in which they could be shocked into confronting their way of life, and the meaning and mystery of existence.
To do this, Artaud planned an ‘assault on the senses’ – using lights, music and sound in the same way as modern
rock concerts do. He believed that theatre should have all the expensive equipment that film-makers use and should
employ them just as skilfully.
CREATING A DREAM WORLD (OR NIGHTMARE)
Through the use of masks, ritual objects and traditional and striking costumes, Artaud hoped to remove the audience
from their everyday caress and preoccupations. He wanted no scenery in his theatre, just symbolic objects sometimes
strangely distorted into nightmare shapes. Combined with the use of movement, lights and music these things would
affect he audience in the way dreams do, working directly on the emotions and unconscious mind.
INVOLVING THE AUDIENCE
In the theatre that Artaud imagined the audience would be seated in the centre of the auditorium and the action of
the play would take place all around them, and even among them. Instead of being just spectators, the audience
would be made to feel part of everything that happened.
THE SKILL OF THE ACTOR
Artaud insisted that actors should be highly trained, and able to use their voices and bodies with great skill. Most of
all, they must be totally committed to the their work, so that the intensity of their emotions is felt by the audience. He
believed that actors should be emotionally involved in their work and convinced of the truth of it.
DELIBERATE CRUELTY
This did not mean physical cruelty, which draws blood, but an attack on the emotions designed to shock the
audience and totally involve them in the drama. To do this he suggested the use of violent, terrifying and shocking
actions and images. Artaud did not intend to use shocking actions or effects purely for their own sake. He meant
them to be used, as all his techniques were to be used – to change the way people perceived the world.
IMPROVISING THE PLAY
There were no scripts in the TOC. Artaud preferred to improvise, basing the process on important events, serious
human concerns or important themes taken from existing plays.
In his writings, Artaud laid out a means for the theatre to become more than something acted on a stage and watched
from seats. The Manifesto for the Theatre of Cruelty (1932) and The Theatre and Its Double (1938) set out his
theory that the stage should voice the inner turbulence of the human spirit. Physicality is more important than
spoken words. This comes from the idea that theatre should be taken from the human spirit, and in dreams words
are not important, it is the images that are most powerful. Gestures, sounds, images, unusual scenery, overwhelming
lighting and more should create a language of its own that can subvert logic, reason and human language. Theatre
should be a mirror of life, but enhanced and taken to an extreme; there should be no limits in achieving an
emotional response. The experience of theatre should, according to Artaud, include the audience as part of the
experience and places an equal emphasis on all five human senses: sight, sound, smell, taste and touch.
Lighting & Sound: The lighting of a theatrical experience should
not create a realistic atmosphere on the stage but should be
overwhelming in terms of shade and colour. Equally, sound should
provide an extreme sensory experience and should actually enter the
inner-psyche of the audience and provoke a completely emotive
response from them. The best way to achieve this would be to use
shocking images and sounds.
Acting: An actor does not necessarily represent a human or even a
living thing, unlike the natural theatre of Stanislavski an actor can
play a spirit or represent an abstract ideal. Thus, the actor's body
should be highly-trained in order to achieve a variety of positions
with ease. Strong lungs are required to achieve both loud and quiet
sounds in a variety of strenuous positions. Masks and puppets may
also need to be mastered, as well as a complete confidence in
everything that is undertaken - expressionism has no limits.
Text: Artaud preferred working with detailed scripts rather than
mere dialogue texts. The text should encompass all action taking part
on the stage and around the audience; this has been a great influence
on Arthur Miller and Samuel Beckett who famously use large amounts of
stage directions.
Language: As mentioned before, the language of the Theatre of
Cruelty is not always a recognisable human language and often seeks
to replace it. The language does not even have to be verbal, rather
than distorted and inhuman sounds it could be created by gesture. If
dialogue is used, it should not be the only means of communication;
ritualistic movements, gestures and repetitive sound patterns can
replace traditional speech.
Ritual: Artaudian theatre is, by its very nature, a ritualistic
theatre. It is intended to be full of passion and emotion in order to
provoke an emotional reaction from the audience. It is intended to be
void of rationality in order to probe at the mental status quo of the
audience. The idea of the theatre is to appeal to the five senses and
rarely anything else.
Activity:
In small groups, you are to perform a humble nursery rhyme in the style of Theatre of Cruelty. The performance should be
inspired by the nursery rhyme and would not necessarily need to be a re-telling or literal dramatisation of its events (although
this is fine). Dialogue should be selective and used with purpose. Performance should be largely movement-based. Audience's
senses should be assaulted in some way. Thumping music and harsh stage lights are not essential, as the 'assault' can occur
through movement alone. Choice of space may be crucial. Having the actors and audience 'share' the space, or at least in close
proximity, can be useful when performing in Theatre of Cruelty style. This also helps break down the boundaries of more
traditional modes of performance (spaces) and helps match imaginative ideas with Artaud's theories when creating drama.
As the 'assault' can occur through movement alone- what does this mean? It can mean that you exaggerate all movement or
particular movement e.g The stomping of the three bears coming in the house- they make this bigger/louder/or is it
slower/faster? Same with the sounds- you can exaggerate sounds that are at really dramatic moments- climax. And again, you
can do this by making them louder/softer/ longer/shorter. Think about attempting to make the whole thing more
grotesque/scary.

The nursery rhyme task may sound simplistic, but the challenge is to take a pretty, little, harmless nursery rhyme,
apply Theatre of Cruelty techniques to it, and in the process realise the most innocent of stimulus' can be
Ie:
transformed radically when connecting a particular theatre style to it in performance.
Hanabal Lecter-like Wolf.
Skanky, selfish, slutty Red Riding Hood.
Creepy old Grandma.
Violent Wood Cutter who enjoys the kicking, slicing and stabbing of the wolf! Very gruesome.
However, beyond the shock and the violence, you need to understand that Artaud valued
movement as a language in its own right (particularly in relation to Asian dance-drama).
Stylised movement is an integral part of the "lyrical and symbolic" nature of TOC. "Cruelty"
is not meant to be purely violent or sadistic, but more about shock and the subversion of
established means of physical and vocal communication. Please do not get too carried
away with the idea of violence and not focus on the essence of TOC, which lies in
atmosphere, symbolism and stylised movement.