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Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Introduction
Scene Productions have been creating theatre and workshops for nine years. We have produced five Brechtian plays for
school touring, alongside a number of devised productions and a range of practitioner workshops. We are particularly
interested in theatre which combines expressionism and naturalism and the work of physical theatre practitioners, most
notably Brecht, Berkoff and Artaud. We aim to explore new avenues for creating innovative work such as puppetry,
ensemble, audience interaction, original music, song, unified choral movement sequences, imaginative use of props,
setting and multi roling.
Our show The Other Side (based on the Israel-Palestinian conflict) premiered at the Edinburgh Festival in 2009. In 2011
we created the first ever stage adaptation of the children’s book Vampirates, alongside a brand new adaptation of
Kafka’s Metamorphosis. When rehearsing The Other Side, Vampirates and Metamorphosis, we had the freedom to
explore a number of theatrical styles as opposed to following the specific methods of one particular practitioner. Rather
than creating a play that could be labeled as a distinct Brechtian style for example, we instead drew from a wide number
of sources; practitioners, directors, theatre companies and films that have inspired us over the years, to create a melting
pot of ideas. Following this principle, we were keen to create school shows which have more freedom in their creative
style whilst still being an educational resource. We needed material that was malleable and upon which we could try out
new ideas and a variety of practitioner styles. We toured Woyzeck in 2010, Marlowe’s Dr Faustus and Poe’s The Fall of
the House of Usher in 2012.
Revisiting Woyzeck and creating a brand new adaptation was an ideal choice for many reasons. Firstly, as a set text on
the Edexcell syllabus, and secondly, its short, episodic scene structure, minimal characters and disjointed, unfinished
style offers limitless creative potential. Its social commentary opens the doorway for Brechtian thinking, whereas its
dark pessimism, themes of madness and intense psychological torment pave the way towards Artaud. The heightened
characters of the Drum Major and the Doctor for example could inspire a Berkoff approach using specific movements
and expressions; whereas the heartbreaking moments of loss and betrayal could be stripped down to something more
realistic to create empathy in the audience. Setting the play in the aftermath of WW1 was both an artistic and practical
move; practical in the sense that we are touring the production to theatres, and with the centenary approaching, we
needed a piece that reflected the interests of a theatre-going audience. A WW1 setting also paves the way for
interesting artistic experimentation, looking at flash-back sequences and ways of conveying the effects of post traumatic
stress in soldiers
Georg Buchner died in 1837, before ever finishing Woyzeck, leaving behind four unpolished manuscripts, it is impossible
to have a definitive version of the work. This gives companies such as ourselves a greater level of freedom when it
comes to adapting and interpreting it for a modern audience. Rather than exploring one practitioner’s theories, we aim
to show how a number of styles can gel together and be incorporated into a theatrical production. This teacher’s pack
will outline practitioners we have taken inspiration from, describe their theories and provide examples of how their
methods were used as a backbone when creating the show.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Georg Buchner (1813 – 1837)
Born in Germany to a family of doctors, Buchner was on track to follow in their footsteps. He wrote essays on
‘Friendship’ and ‘Suicide,’ the style and rhetoric of which presented an impressive and original mind. He attended
university in Strasburg where he abandoned his medical vocation and instead involved himself in politics. He joined the
radical movement known as ‘Young Germany,’ co-founded the ‘Secret Society for the Rights of Man’ and in 1834 was
one of the authors of a Revolutionary pamphlet (The Hessian Courier) which urged the working people of Hess, his
native part of Germany, to win social rights by force. The co-authors of this document were arrested and imprisoned.
Buchner escaped by denying any involvement and accepting house arrest at his parents before exiling himself from
Germany to Strasburg, where he wrote Danton’s Death, (about the French Revolution) and translated two plays by
Victor Hugo, Lucrèce Borgia and Marie Tudor. In October 1836, after receiving his doctorate and being appointed by the
University of Zurich as a lecturer in anatomy, Büchner relocated to Zurich. In 1837 he wrote to his fiancé that one play
(presumably Pietro Aretino – there is no evidence and the play is lost) is ready for publication and that it will take a
week’s work to finish another (presumably Woyzeck.) In February 1837 he contracted typhus and died, aged 23.
The script for Woyzeck was discovered as an unfinished pile of manuscripts, some parts barely legible. It was based on a
real case history, a murder and controversial trial in the early 1820s, which Buchner probably read about in journals
from his father’s library. In 1821, in Leipzig, Johann Christian Woyzeck was arrested for stabbing to death his lover, Frau
Woost. He was tried and sentenced to death but before his execution, he told a visiting clergyman that he had seen
visions and heard voices telling him to commit the murder. In Buchner’s play, he made Woyzeck not an individual case
study but more a universal emblem of down trodden, despairing humanity, his worth completely eroded by his superiors
in rank and class.
Social and Historical Context – Quick summary for revision
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Buchner came from a family of doctors. There is nothing in his schoolwork to suggest an interest in the arts
Lecturer in Anatomy.
Passion for politics.
Lived in a politically and socially unstable time. Born after the French Revolution and just after the defeat of
Napoleon who had wanted a French dominated Empire.
As a result, authorities were nervous of any radical thinkers who would incite revolution.
End to the expansion of Liberalism, democracy, religious tolerance and human rights.
In Buchner’s town, Hesse, oppression was harsh, unconcealed and ruthlessly focussed on maintaining the wealth
and power of the royal family. Huge taxes caused peasant revolts which were bloodily crushed. Writers/radicals
were hunted down and murdered.
Woyzeck is inspired by a real incident, showing that Buchner was interested in the effects of an oppressive class
system on human behaviour.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Theatre at the time – Quick summary for revision
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The theatrical styles which prevailed at Buchner’s time were Romanticism and Melodrama.
Romanticism – Refers to romantic ideals, which glorified man's imagination, emotion and freedom, as the key to
transcending his fate as well as the sadness of existence. An emphasis on individualism; spontaneity; freedom from
rules; solitary life rather than life in society; the beliefs that imagination is superior to reason and devotion is superior to
beauty; love of, and worship of, nature; and fascination with the past, especially the myths and mysticism of the middle
ages.
Melodrama - Exaggerated plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It is usually based around having the
same character traits, for example a hero (always the fearless one), heroine (the love of the hero, usually the one that
the hero saves), villain (usually likes the heroine too) and villain's sidekick (typically gets in the way of or annoys the
villain).
The theatre would most likely have been a Proscenium arch with curtains.
Why WOYZECK was ahead of its time?
When describing the shape and style of Woyzeck, you can use terms relating to the movements of both Naturalism and
Expressionism.
Naturalist movement – Explores how man is helpless against the social forces of his environment. It took the Realist
approach (showing life as it really is) and emphasized the gritty, ugly details of it. In Woyzeck, Buchner depicts what he
saw as the hopelessness of life in a world where isolation, monotony, and suffering prevail and are perpetuated by
deterministic historical and biological forces.
Expressionist movement - Theatre of the soul and the unconscious. It looks at the subconscious, the primitive forces
that exist outside of social boundaries.
Naturalism and Expressionism in WOYZECK
Woyzeck is comprised of disjointed, episodic scenes, otherworldly references and symbolism combined with a realistic
and desperate depiction of poverty. Some characters are presented in the naturalist tradition, with names, such as
Woyzeck, Andres and Marie; whereas others are presented in the expressionist tradition and are identified by role, such
as Drum Major, Captain and Doctor. The settings are simple and lack the specific and realistic details required by
realist/naturalist dramatists. The location of each episode is simply identified, for example, “Open fields, the town in the
distance”, “In town”, “Marie’s room” and “Inn”. There are no superfluous props to give the illusion of realism, and the
very few props that are mentioned are required by the action. In the style of expressionism, the play has no particular
plot or causal line of narrative and the structure is disjointed, consisting of around twenty-seven episodes in no
designated order.
Each episode demonstrates how social, religious or military forces affect Woyzeck and contribute to his disintegrating
mental state; suggesting, in the naturalist tradition, that Woyzeck is a victim of circumstances over which he has no
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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control; and demonstrating, in the expressionist tradition, how this unconsciously affects him. The dialogue is filled with
poetic imagery conjuring images of decay, death and feelings of paranoia.
The incredible thing is at the time Buchner wrote the play, neither of these styles had been discovered yet. It is unknown
how finished Buchner considered the play. He could have intended an episodic, fractured, fragmentary structure, or it
could have been the starting point of a conventional murder story. Either way what has been left has opened the door
for a vast array of interpretations.
When creating the show, we explored a mixture of Naturalism and Expressionism using a variety of techniques. We
began with our promotional picture which has an expressionist style, showing the psychological intensity and emotional
states which underlie even the simplest words and actions. This is seen in the paintings of Edward Munch, and the
picture below is our own interpretation of The Scream.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Notes on the adaptation - by Stuart Walker – Co-producer/co-writer, assistant director
Working with the conceptual idea of setting Buchner’s Woyzeck in 1918 England, at the end of the First World War, I
began the delicate task of co-adapting the play alongside Artistic Director Katharine Hurst. Our goal was to create an
engaging production which remained true to Buchner’s major themes and political goals.
A young radical of his time, Buchner intended the play to act as a social protest in Germany and the world, against the
oppression and conditions of the impoverished. These problems are still present in society today and Buchner’s protest
has become our own.
In order to spark change in a modern British audience, we decided to make Andres an English soldier who is killed on the
western front, to make Woyzeck an Irish soldier who develops shell shock which becomes worse during the course of
the play, and to include physical transitions representing the horrors of the battlefield. A British audience is likely to
empathise with these characters as the subject is brought close to home, and due to the symbolic nature of the play, we
hoped people would make connections with the trauma of modern-day warfare,
Of course no empathy can really be achieved if the show isn’t engaging, and this was a good reason to include and
strengthen Buchner’s major themes.
Buchner taps into three worlds in the play:
Man – Woyzeck’s family life, the affair, working long hours just to make ends meet.
The Machine – The oppressive system of hierarchy Woyzeck lives in, represented by the extreme, high status characters
in the play, alongside the monkey and the horse.
The Unknown – The constant references to ethereal forces in the play – the sun, the blood red moon, weather and
Woyzeck’s forbidding apocalyptic visions.
It is the unknown that excites us most and is the most daring to portray on stage. We decided to focus on the idea of
fate, an unknown already present in the play.
Buchner’s constant references to weather, the sun and moon, help us forget ourselves and tap into the beating heart of
Woyzeck, a man ultimately at one with his own fate. Indeed, there was a strong belief in fate in the trenches during
WW1, as soldiers surrounded by death, became fixated on when the ‘dark angel’ would hover above them holding a tag
with their name on it.
We decided that Woyzeck should refer to the ‘dark angel’ during a flashback to the trenches and that Andres should
have a heightened sense of his impending doom – Just before going over the top of the trench, Andres says to Woyzeck
‘I want you to take my drawings’. We also saw the moon as key to opening the mind’s door to the existence of fate and
understanding the shell-shocked and highly receptive mind of Woyzeck. We emphasise in the 2nd doctor scene that ‘the
modern soldier responds to stimulus openly, compassionately’, and it is no wonder that seeing the ominous blood red
moon strengthens Woyzeck’s belief in a greater power – ‘Something we don’t understand. It’ll drive us out of our minds
it will’. To present the moon in such a way to the audience, we decided to experiment and push for something surreal,
something untouchable which would give it a presence, a personality even a soul, through a variety of mediums.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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It must be mentioned that, whilst striving to create a brave and exciting adaptation, it was also important to maintain
historical accuracy wherever possible, to do justice to the subject and create a stronger connection with the audience.
We researched all areas of the production in great detail and rooted many decisions in truth. Names of specific towns
and battles were deliberately left out to avoid inaccuracies.
However, we use projections of original drawings taken from a sketch book which belonged to an English soldier in
1916. The sketches were so pertinent to the subject matter in Woyzeck and are shown during the transitions into each
scene, with images of doctors, soldier’s lost loves, trench warfare and awful conditions. Andres is seen with a sketch
book and we wanted to suggest that these sketches were drawn by Andres whilst stationed in the trenches.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Cast list
Mark Rush: WOYZECK and MONKEY
Katharine Hurst: MARIE and BARKER
Mark Morgan: DRUM MAJOR, HORSE, CAPTAIN, DOCTOR, ANDRES, CHRISTIAN (puppeteer)
Director: Kelly Smith
Co-Director: Stuart Walker
Adaptation: Katharine Hurst & Stuart Walker
Sound and Music Composition: Danny Bright
Lighting design and Technician: James Mitchell
Synopsis
Outlined below is the order in which we have placed the scenes, alongside additional scenes we created for our
adaptation. The scene numbers refer to the generally agreed order in most translations.
Opening scene
The audience enters a dark and ominous space with the sound effects of distant warfare and the stage lit by a projection
of a blood red moon. The atmosphere is sinister and foreboding, as three figures slowly walk onto the stage. The tension
builds, and at the crescendo, the atmosphere immediately changes as lights snap up on the celebrations of a country
reveling in their victory at the end of WW1. Crowds cheer, dance and lose themselves in the giddy and hedonistic
atmosphere. We introduce Marie, The Drum Major and Woyzeck who are dancing in the local tavern. Woyzeck steps
aside and Marie is left to spot the Drum Major for the first time. He drunkenly grabs her and swings her around whilst
singing a WW1 song ‘Are we downhearted? NO! Not while Britannia rules the waves’. Marie is left alone on the stage to
comment on their interaction, ‘Blimey, what a man!’
This interchange represents the first part of Scene 2: In Town where Marie, Woyzeck’s common-law wife, their
illegitimate son Christian and her neighbour Margaret, watch a military parade from Marie’s window.
The music fades away and Marie is left in her home, tending to Christian in his crib. Woyzeck enters and is unable to stay
for any length of time due to the work he has to do. Marie watches as he carefully undertakes his ritual of eating five
peas, checking his pulse and then writing the results in a notebook. Thunder sounds in the distance and Marie runs
outside to retrieve the washing. Woyzeck is distracted by a leak in the roof which drips on his hand. Marie enters and
places a jug under the drip which creates a tinny ‘plink’ sound. Woyzeck stares fixedly at the jug as though in a trance.
His hand shakes slightly and he has a flashback to his time on the front line.
Scene 1: Open Fields
In the original play, this scene plays out as follows:
Two soldiers, Woyzeck and Andres chop wood in a field. Woyzeck speaks of the Freemasons, who he fears are
burrowing underground and plotting. Freemasons were thought at the time to be alchemists and devil worshippers. He
hears voices and alludes to a coming apocalypse. His paranoid ramblings are shrugged off by Andres who ushers him
back to the town.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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In our version, Woyzeck and Andres are seen sitting back to back in a trench. Andres is sketching the trench and
Woyzeck comments on how the place is ‘cursed’, Andres sings a soldiers song to lighten the mood ‘When old jerry shells
your trench never mind, and your face may lose its smile never mind, when the sandbags bust and fly, you have only once
to die, when old jerry shells your trench never mind.’ Woyzeck hears something and tells Andres they are ‘burrowing
underneath’. In WW1 it would have been very common for the enemy to dig tunnels and attack from beneath, so to be
haunted by sounds of digging would have been a real threat for any soldier during trench warfare. Rather than referring
to Freemasons, Woyzeck refers to a ‘Dark Angel.’ This was a common term used by soldiers to refer to, ever looming,
death. Woyzeck refers to visions of fire and the apocalypse. In our adaptation this stems from him seeing explosions
lighting up the sky. On seeing the fire painted red, the scene shifts back to him and Marie in his house. He leaves without
looking at Christian, and Marie remarks: ‘I don’t know who he is anymore, he’s possessed.’
Scene 3: The Fair
Marie and Woyzeck make their way to the town fair. She has her palm read by a fortune teller who remarks ‘On earth
we can’t abide, we all must die, as everyone knows.’ They observe the Barker who mocks humanity by presenting a
dancing monkey, comparing the lowly animal to a lowly soldier.
Scene 4: Inside the Tent
The Barker presents the Astronomical horse, whose intelligence, wildness and unashamed coarseness is celebrated and
praised. In our version we present this as a hypnosis act where the Barker takes Woyzeck on stage and turns him into a
monkey, then doing the same with the Drum Major as the horse. The Drum Major sets his sights on the beautiful Marie
and quickly plots to woo her.
Scene 6: At the Captain’s house
Woyzeck shaves his Captain. The Captain muses on the state of the world, how time rushes by, and mercilessly mocks
Woyzeck for having no morals and a limited intelligence. Woyzeck, after much prompting, explains his thoughts
regarding money, status and God. He explains that poor people can’t afford morals.
Scene 5: Marie’s Room
Marie looks at her reflection in a mirror. She is wearing two golden earrings, a present from the Drum Major. Woyzeck
enters, and when unable to hide the earrings, Marie explains that she simply found them. Woyzeck hands her money
and attends to Christian. When he leaves, Marie initially berates herself for her sinful longings but then exclaims
that she is no different from the rest of humanity, all of whom are doomed to burn.
Scene 9: At the Doctors
Woyzeck is berated by the Doctor for urinating in the street. His urine is needed for analysis as part of a paid experiment
examining the physical and psychological effect of a diet of peas. Woyzeck experiences a rapid heart-beat and is given a
raise as the Doctor delights in hearing that his condition has progressed to him hearing voices.
In our version, the Doctor is a Russian Military Doctor who is fascinated by the condition of soldiers returning from the
war. Their traumatic experiences leave them open to extreme experimentation. Woyzeck’s post war trauma is now
heightened and pushed to its limit by the Doctor’s experiments. At the end of the scene he undergoes electro shock
therapy which was a common technique used by Russian doctors.
Scene Productions
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This scene is followed by a transition where Woyzeck leaves the
Doctors surgery, his senses heightened, muscles and bones
aching. He sits and looks at the moon.
Scene 7: Marie’s bedroom
The Drum Major arrives at Marie’s bedroom. She flirts with him
and has a moment of doubt before allowing him to seduce her.
Scene 8: Marie’s Room
Woyzeck rages into the room and accuses Marie of infidelity.
She shrugs off the accusation but doesn’t deny it. When he
clings to her in desperation, she screams at him that she would
rather a knife in her body than his hand on hers.
Scene 11: The Guardroom
Originally in this scene, Woyzeck sits with Andres and a fever sets upon him. He grows hotter and insists Marie and the
Drum Major will be dancing at the Tavern. We instead chose to show this scene as another flashback to Woyzeck’s time
in the trenches. Here, he and Andres are standing in the trench, waiting for their orders to go over the top. Andres hands
Woyzeck his sketch book and tells him to take care of it. Both men are trying to gain strength by reminiscing about
happy times back home, drinking and dancing in the local tavern. Here Woyzeck comments on how beautiful Marie
looked when she danced. It is this image he holds on to when the whistles are sounded and they go over the top.
Scene 12: The Tavern
Woyzeck stands at the window of the tavern and spies Marie and the Drum Major dancing.
Scene 13: In a field
The music from the tavern distorts into voices which tell Woyzeck to ‘Stab her dead’ He hears the voices all around him,
firstly from the ground and then from the air.
We cut Scene 14: The Barracks where Woyzeck tells Andres he is hearing murderous voices and Andres shrugging it off.
We felt Scenes 12 and 13 were enough to establish his paranoia and the fact that he is hearing voices.
Scene 15: A Courtyard
The Doctor is leading a lecture, presenting Woyzeck to a group of students as a fascinating case study.
The Doctor describes his experiment and examines Woyzeck as if an animal. The Doctor acknowledges Woyzeck’s hair
loss and is delighted to see a new side effect of his diet of peas.
Scene Productions
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Scene 16: In the Tavern
Woyzeck goads the inebriated Drum Major who beats him up and leaves him bleeding.
Scene 18: A shop
In the original, Woyzeck buys a knife from the Jew. In our version, Woyzeck stumbles away from the tavern, his head
spinning and disorientated. We create a sequence where he stumbles through the town and sees a knife in his hand.
This is a vision of what is to come. We didn’t feel we needed to create a scene showing the transaction.
Scene 20: The Barracks
In the original, Woyzeck sifts through a wicker basket and gives away his possessions to Andres. Andres remarks that his
condition will end up with him in hospital. In our version, we establish that Andres died on the battlefield and Woyzeck
visits a memorial in the town. This is where he returns Andres drawings and talks to him. We liked the idea of ‘survivor
guilt’ being another factor contributing to Woyzeck’s state of mind. This is shown through an enormous apparition that
rises from the ground, looms over him and envelops him.
Scene 19: Marie’s room
Marie seeks repentance in the pages of her bible. She is barely able to look at her child. She exclaims that Woyzeck has
failed to visit, these past few days. We end this scene with Woyzeck entering and leading her to the woods. We wanted
him to interrupt Marie whilst praying and then lead her out to be killed, rather than interrupting her with the
Grandmother and children in Scene 21 Where the Grandmother tells a dark story of the little boy who was abandoned
by the world and left alone to cry. We cut the idiot from Scene 19, partly due to the limits of a cast of three and
secondly because we didn’t feel his presence was necessary or enhanced the dramatic impact. We felt it gave the ending
a more chilling atmosphere with Marie sitting alone, and her desperate prayers being answered not by God but by
Woyzeck taking her by the hand and murdering her. The Grandmother’s tale is told through song, with all three actors
singing during the transition from Marie’s room to the woods. In the song, Buchner suggests that suffering is an equally
senseless and inevitable part of the human experience.
So he set off for the sun which had withered where it stood
So he set off for the stars, they were only golden gnats
Which were struck upon a blackthorn bush he wanted to turn back
Scene 22: In a wood
Woyzeck leads Marie to a clearing. They observe the red moon and he stabs her to death. Woyzeck throws the knife into
the river.
Scene 24: By the pond
Woyzeck worries the knife will be washed up or found when people go swimming. He looks at his blood-stained hands
and wades into the water to clean himself. He wades further and further out. The show ends as he sinks beneath the
water. His fate is unknown.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Applying practitioners
Rudolf Laban
Antonin Artaud
Steven Berkoff
These practitioner styles require a high octane, imaginative and innovative approach to performance. Each style
encourages experimentation physically, visually and vocally, looking at new and innovative ways of approaching theatre
and a piece of text. We watched a great deal of theatre in preparation for this show and sought inspiration from as many
sources as possible. So much theatre nowadays has drawn influence from these practitioners. You can see echoes of
their work in productions from companies like:
Frantic Assembly,
Complicite,
Theatre Temoin,
DV8,
Punchdrunk,
Out of Joint,
Gecko,
The Wrong Crowd
The River People,
Gomito,….to name but a few
We will outline the theories and methods of these practitioners and then explain how we have adapted them and
utilised them when creating WOYZECK. This show cannot be defined as fully embodying the methodology of one specific
practitioner or theatre company; but more an example of how a range of ideas, both theoretically and practically, can be
applied to a performance.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
13
LABAN system of Efforts
During rehearsals we drew inspiration from the work of Rudolf Laban and implemented a number of his theories when
creating the characters in Woyzeck.
Rudolf von Laban aka Rudolf Laban (15 December 1879 – 1 July 1958) was a dance artist and theorist, notable as one of
the pioneers of modern dance in Europe. His work laid the foundations for Laban Movement Analysis, Labanotation
(Kinetography Laban), other more specific developments in dance notation and the evolution of many varieties of Laban
Movement Study. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in the history of dance and fencing.
In the early 1940s, Laban was hired to study movement of factory workers, in order to help industry find the most
economical movement for workers in terms of their own bodies and their factory output. He realized that certain
monotonous movements could result in muscle dysfunction unless they were balanced with opposite muscle
movements to provide Recuperation. He called these actions, EFFORTS.
When you put these all together, you end up with eight efforts that classify styles of movement, as well as something of
the personality of the person making that movement. Below is a breakdown of the Efforts and examples of how we
incorporated them into the show.
SPACE
DIRECT
The character moves through the
space with focus and pin-pointed
precision. This was shown by
Woyzeck when he stabs Marie. His
aim is precise. He is going to kill her.
INDIRECT
The character is less certain of their
journey; they could appear lost or
unfocussed. This would relate to
Woyzeck when he stumbles out of
tavern after being beaten up. He
hears voices, is tormented and is
drowning in a sea of paranoia.
WEIGHT
HEAVY
Feeling a certain weight in the body.
We also related it to the psychology
of the character. A character such as
Woyzeck carries the weight of the
world on his shoulders and has a
heaviness about him. He suffers from
aches and pains, and is cursed by a
body which is old before its time.
LIGHT
Feeling a certain weight in the body.
After Marie receives the gold earrings
from the Drum Major, she feels light
and giddy, as if floating on air. We
also related it to the psychology of
the character. An unburdened
character could be light. When
puppeteering the baby, Christian, we
gave his movements a lightness. He is
an innocent and is not yet tainted by
the world around him.
TIME
FAST
Moving quickly through the space.
Woyzeck is constantly scurrying from
one job to the next. He doesn’t have
time to rest so his movements have a
frantic energy about them.
SLOW
Moving slowly through the space.
This is seen through the Captain who
berates Woyzeck for rushing around.
He speaks with a cool and collected
tone, moving about the space with
steady composure.
Scene Productions
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FLOW
BOUND
A restrained movement, such as
trying to stop yourself slipping on ice.
This is seen when The Drum Major
tries to force Woyzeck to drink. He
could retract his arm at any time.
FREE
Refers to a fluid movement, eg
throwing a ball for a dog. This is seen
through Woyzeck’s deteriorating
physical state. He shudders and
twitches. He can’t stop the
movement and has no control over
how he shakes.
When rehearsing, we would walk around the space and build the characters physically, using these Efforts. We would try
different combinations and alter them according to the scene.
LABAN gave the various combination of Efforts specific names, which are listed below, along with some examples of how
they were implemented in the show.
PRESS
Slow
Heavy
Direct
Bound
PUNCH
Fast
Heavy
Direct
Bound
DAB
Fast
Light
Direct
Free
FLICK
SLASH
Fast
Fast
Light
Heavy
Indirect
Indirect
Free
Free
WRING
Slow
Heavy
Indirect
Bound
FLOAT
Slow
Light
Indirect
Free
GLIDE
Slow
Light
Direct
Free
Drum Major trying to force Woyzeck to drink
whilst Woyzeck resists
Drum Major kicking Woyzeck in the face
during the fight
The Doctor probing Woyzeck and testing his
reflexes by hitting him with a stick
Marie dancing in the tavern
Marie trying to fight Woyzeck off when he
stabs her
Woyzeck looks at his hands and clenches his
fists as he hears every bone and muscle ache
Movement sequence after murdering Marie,
Woyzeck lifts her and her arms fall limply
around him in a macabre embrace
Marie stroking Christians face as she soothes
him.
We added our own techniques to help find the characters, such as looking at psychological gestures. These were
movements which could be repeated over and over, using what is known as muscle memory to help cement the
character into the body. The Drum Major, for example, puffs out his chest and holds his jaw tightly. Woyzeck has a
specific physical ritual when he eats his peas. He repeats the same movements of eating peas and checking his pulse, as
though he has been conditioned and programmed.
We also looked at what part of the body a character would lead from. Where does their energy come from? Woyzeck
leads from his hunched shoulders a lot of the time to show the burden he is carrying. The Captain leads from his chin to
given him an imperious status. The Barker leads from her hands as she is conjuring and hypnotising members of the
audience. When doing the animal transformation, the Drum Major leads from his forehead to represent the power of a
horse’s head.
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Antonin Artaud (1896 - 1948)
Total Theatre
An Artaudian performance completely submerges the audience in the action. This is a theatre of the senses, heightened
emotions and extreme, startling experiences. Artaud wanted to unlock and explore the inner urges of man, his fears, his
lusts, his dreams and nightmares. His theatre conjures a surreal world, far removed from the every day, mundane
experiences of man. It taps into the hidden, deep and dark desires of mankind, creating stark and violent images.
Plague
Artaud sought to present a style of theatre that affected an audience in a similar way to a plague. A society affected by
plague loses all sense of social etiquette and ideals. The rules which men live by are forgotten and society becomes
lawless. At this point, mankind’s inner instincts, the animal, primitive side, will take over. The brain is pulverised by the
plague, men will rape women, mothers will abandon their children, people feed off the dead, the greedy banker will
throw away his money, a husband will stab his wife, and a man will gnaw off his leg for sustenance.
Inner urges
Artaud saw humanity the world over, as sharing the same innate sensibilities. Whether you are a tribesman on a remote
island or a city lawyer in London, you will have the same deep rooted, inner urges, fears, desires, lusts, cravings and
passions. Artaud explains, in his manifesto Theatre and its Double, that if you strip away the rules and conventions set
about by society, human beings will find they are all animals under the skin. It is this raw power that Artaud wanted to
tap into and explore in his theatre. This savagery beneath the skin is our DOUBLE. Artaud saw all humanity as sharing a
desire to sin. The part of mankind that can’t resist slowing down to look at a car crash, the part that wishes to throw a
stone at the window of an abandoned building or look closely at a dead animal slowly decomposing.
Catharsis
Artaud believed that if people were all savages under the skin, then something must be done to both release this poison
and contain it. Actors and an audience can release their secret desire to ‘sin’ through theatre. Artaud wanted theatre to
emulate the danger and power of a plague. It should take images and gestures and push them to the limit. Not to
contain, but to give freedom to acts naturally opposed to social life. This can be a very liberating experience, for example
he may get his audience to smash something to pieces, or to watch a rape scene. Just the fact of being ‘allowed’ to do
something one could not normally do, breaks inner boundaries and liberates part of the unconscious self. This has been
described as the audience taking part in a ‘happening.’
Signs and symbols
Artaud wanted theatre to create a language of signs and symbols. Artaud believed Western theatre was too reliant on
everyday language and day to day life. It was limiting its creative potentials. Why not express the inner part of man, his
fears and passions? His theatre uses sounds, visual images and physical expressions which can be understood the world
over. For example, you can say the words ‘I am tormented’ which will only be understood by an English speaker. Or you
can scream, clench your fists, shake, snarl and fall to the floor convulsing. Artaud would see this as a universal sign of
pain and suffering which anyone could understand. Artaud wished to bombard the senses, to create violent and intense
images that rouse incredible passions and emotions in the audience. They then lose their civilised veneer and touch
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something deeper. Artaud would use sounds, breath, movements and cries, to create a type of ritual that compels and
enchants the audience like a snake being charmed:
‘Theatre shouldn’t aim at solving social or psychological conflicts but to express secret truths. Like gazing into a painting.’
(Theatre and its Double)
Inspired by Balinese / Metaphysical theatre
Artaud was particularly inspired by the precision and intense physicality of Balinese Theatre which derived from dance,
singing, mime and music. The performers create physical and vocal symbols to tell their story. There is nothing
naturalistic about their portrayal. They are not trying to replicate or imitate real life and psychology but to strip away the
everyday and tap into states of mind, mystical discoveries and secret perceptions; as though watching a poem unfold
onstage. The movements present a set attention to detail, they are tightly choreographed.
‘Use of angular, sudden, jerky postures, syncopated inflections formed at the back of the throat, musical phrases cut
short, rustling branches, hollow drum sounds, robot creaking, animated puppets dancing creates a new bodily language
no longer based on words but on signs. Actors with their asymmetrical robes looking like moving hieroglyphs.’
(Theatre and its Double)
Theatre of Cruelty
This type of theatre is incredibly physical, demanding and mentally exhausting; hence the name ‘Theatre of Cruelty.’ You
are cruel to yourself in an Artaudian piece. You are pushing yourself and the audience to the limit, through physical and
visual extremes which pulverise and mesmerise their sensibilities.
Artaud checklist








Create an experience for the audience where their senses are heightened and stimulated.
Break the fourth wall with audience interaction.
Use of rousing, powerful music.
Create a nightmare world with surreal physicality and extreme visual images. The audience is presented with
the violence and intensity of a dream.
Physicality to be tightly choreographed and precise.
Use of choral sounds, breath and cries, to create a ritual, tribal feel.
Tap into and explore man’s inner urges, looking at his fears, primal urges, sexual desires and violent
tendencies.
Do not rely on the text to communicate the scene. Use it as a secondary source.
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How we applied Artaud’s techniques to Woyzeck
Production Concept / Setting
Artaud taps into impulses, desires and actions far removed from everyday experience. He sought to explore the primal,
deep-rooted side of man. In previous Artaud workshops we have looked at his techniques in relation to war poetry. The
experiences of a soldier are far removed from conventional human experience. A soldier is forced to kill, a soldier sees
his comrades decapitated or bleeding to death in his arms; a soldier may be commanded to blow up a building, set fire
to an enemy or walk amongst the rubble and decay of a war-torn village. The survival instincts that need to be
harnessed in order to be a soldier, link very closely with Artaud’s theories of the animal lurking within mankind. We all
have it in us to kill, maim and destroy. A war operates outside the rules of conventional society and men are forced to
tap into that savage, to access the beast within. We wanted to explore a new, more topical perspective within our
adaptation, to see how Woyzeck’s experiences as a soldier and the trauma of war could have also contributed towards
his madness.
In conjunction with his low status, poverty and diet of peas, we decided to explore another cause of Woyzeck’s madness
being ‘shell shock.’ Soldiers returning from WW1 suffered from (to coin a phrase of the time) ‘hysterical gait’ and a
number of extreme physical symptoms. This is still affecting soldiers nowadays and is referred to as Gulf War Syndrome,
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI):
One in five Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, 300,000 in total, are returning home with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Almost 700 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are committing suicide each month. That's more that 8000 service members
per year.
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8242465.stm)
We liaised with doctors and therapists to gather information about PTSD. Symptoms include heightened senses,
hallucinations, claustrophobia, suicidal and homicidal tendencies. These all correlate with the Woyzeck character. We
took these accounts and looked for ways of presenting them to an audience in an exciting, shocking and unique
theatrical format. We decided to hint at this mental trauma throughout using sounds, flashback sequences and
physicality. Woyzeck’s hand will shudder and as his health deteriorates, his speech gets more flustered, his vocal pace
stutters as if being choked by the words. PTSD infects his physicality as muscles ache, fingers twitch, his neck spasms and
his legs wobble beneath him. During his argument with Marie, she pushes him and his legs give way leaving him like a
fish out of water, gasping and struggling to right himself and stand up. His physicality alters from moments of extreme
physical strength (when he stabs Marie) to moments of pitiful weakness (final Doctor scene) where he is so weak, he
crumples like paper.
The Moon as a primal force
We wanted the audience to feel submerged in the action from the offset, to be part of the atmosphere and to be
bombarded with sights, sounds and experiences. The first image is of a blood red moon which is projected onto a
backdrop on the centre of the stage. The rest of the stage is dark and the sound of distant artillery is heard amidst a
deep rumble and hum. It builds an atmosphere of tension. The moon plays an important part in our production as a
symbol of impending doom, primitive forces, the raw power of nature and fate constantly looming over the characters.
We show the moon as a projection but also represent it through a low rumbling sound effect and through a lantern
which contains a ball that glows as a lantern would, but which can also change colour to a deep red. During the sex
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scene between the Drum Major and Marie, the globe changes colour, is removed from the lantern and orbits around the
couple, a grim omen of what is to come.
Happenings / Physicality
During the sex scene, the Drum Major initially forces himself upon Marie, holding her and throwing her to the floor:
‘Wild animal’, he kisses her firmly whilst she struggles underneath him. This is a primal act, played out with an
animalistic energy like a ‘beast in heat’. Marie then decides to give into him and indulge her primitive desires: ‘What’s
the use, it’s all the same.’
We wanted the stabbing sequence to feel quite real and unsettling. Marie holds a taut facial expression, mouth gaping
wide in terror, eyes fixed on Woyzeck, neck muscles tight, fingers stretched towards his face as Woyzeck lowers her to
the floor pleading with her to ‘stop twitching, die why won’t you die.’ She initially screams but her high pitches are
replaced with breath and desperate gurgling sounds as her lungs fill with blood. Her body convulses violently as if having
a fit, and slowly ceases as the life drains from her body. This physicality requires strength and discipline, and would be an
example of Artaud’s Cruelty, the actor being cruel to herself, pushing her physical boundaries to the limit. Woyzeck
sways her body back and pulls it towards him, her arms flailing to the sides and wrapping around him in a macabre
posthumous embrace. Coming face to face with a murder scene is something far removed from everyday life, but still a
primitive fascination and curiosity within us all. Death is the ultimate taboo, the unspoken certainty and absolute destiny
for all living beings.
Physicality/movement sequences
Extreme physicality is seen through the Monkey and Horse transformations. The actor playing Woyzeck arches his spine,
bends his knees and balances on his toes. He sticks his tongue over his top teeth to create a monkey face. His arms hang
at his sides and he screeches in a high pitched tone. The actor playing the Drum Major holds his arms in front of him as
though two strong horses legs. He keeps his back long and straight and cocks his head as though swishing an impressive
mane.
We created a tightly choreographed movement sequence during the Doctor scene whereby the Doctor and his assistant
manipulate Woyzeck, using two wooden sticks to check his reflexes ‘chin down, stand up, left leg, right leg’. This
sequence was learnt and played out at regular pace then repeated with a very quick pace. Woyzeck becomes another
dancing monkey, obeying every word and ludicrous command.
Music and Sound
We wanted to use sound as extensively as possible to help convey mood and atmosphere throughout the show. The
sound was composed with the aim of creating something uncomfortable to listen to, something you may hear in a
horror film. We used a lot of base notes, wind whistling, explosions, vibration sounds and thunder cracks. These sounds
all have a deep-rooted connection to people’s innate fears. This taps into Artaud’s ideas of shared human impulses. We
all fear the dark, we feel nervous at the thought of being alone in a wood and we feel unsettled when we hear ominous
thunder, disjointed sounds and indecipherable voices. Music is a very effective way of confronting an audience with
these deep-rooted fears. We used sounds to punctuate the transitions between scenes, such as wind howling or rain
hammering down, as a means of referencing the raw power of nature throughout the play.
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We also played with the power of silence. In scene 11, Woyzeck and Andres are waiting for their orders to go over the
top of the trenches into no man’s land. The scene begins with the sound of heavy artillery bombardment. We hear the
orders ‘ladders up, rifles ready, fix bayonets’ The men mime the preparations and then stand with their backs to the
audience looking helplessly up at the trench. The tension builds when the sound of the bombardment stops and all that
can be heard are Andre’s shallow and shaky breaths. The breaths continue for almost too long as the men await their
fate in silent agony. Neither of the men can stand still, and Woyzeck shifts his weight nervously from one leg to the
other. We wanted the audience to share their tension, waiting desperately and helplessly, simply waiting to die. When
the whistles sound, the grim reality of their climb over the top is all the more disturbing.
Shell shock through sound
We used sound as one of the ways to symbolize Woyzeck’s ‘shell shock.’ Something as simple as the rain pattering down
is enough to trigger off horrific memories. In scene 2, we hear distant thunder, followed by rain. Woyzeck listens to the
rain as the pattering sound starts to warp into the sound of gunfire and artillery. This sound increases in intensity and is
amplified further when Marie enters and begins folding the washing. She billows a sheet in time with a loud whooshing
sound which distracts Woyzeck and sets his hands trembling. Marie places her washing basket down in time with the
sound of a huge explosion. With this sound, the scene turns on its head and Woyzeck finds himself reliving his time in
the trenches.
This sequence was inspired by articles we read on soldier’s experiences after the war:
Inside, Garrison fights a rage that consumes most of his days since returning from 17 months of combat in
Afghanistan. It's a demon that shows no mercy and interrupts even simple routines like eating and sleeping. At any
moment, halfway through a football game or in the middle of the night, he can lose himself to this evil…..The enemy
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Garrison encountered daily in combat still haunts him. He sees the faces of his fallen brothers. He smells the dirty air,
amid the blood. Screams of panic broken with hums of moaning pain lingers and the dust ensues yet another storm
inside him….. Nothing in particular triggered the attacks. He would hear a song or a report about the war and before
he knew it, he was reliving it.
(http://www.military.com/news/article/a-soldiers-struggle-with-ptsd.html)
Lighting
The lighting design for Woyzeck relies heavily on shadows, darkness and foreboding colours such as chocolates, yellows
and red gels. We wanted to create the feel of a poor town on the outskirts of a city. The lighting reflects the characters
mental and emotional states, alongside, their social conditions, struggling to live in a country rebuilding itself after the
war. This is achieved through floor cans and side lights which cast shadows. We also use a back light to represent
moments as shadow images. These moments (Marie receiving the gift of the earrings, Marie and Drum Major dancing in
the tavern) are moments which happen behind Woyzeck’s back. Shadow imagery creates a split screen, montage, filmic
effect where the audience see two scenes occurring at the same time. A bright light is used for the Doctors scene to
represent Woyzeck as a lab rat, exposed and under scrutiny. A brighter light is also used in the Captain’s house, to
represent the difference in social status between himself and Woyzeck. His living conditions are far superior to the grim
and claustrophobic room Woyzeck and Marie share.
Puppetry
We wanted to show how Woyzeck is haunted by memories of warfare; plagued by survival guilt and sees the ghosts of
fallen men. In scene 20, we created a large apparition puppet, using sheets of hessian and a gas mask attached to a
helmet. The actor inside the puppet holds the mask high in his hand which gives the illusion of an enormous force
towering above Woyzeck’s head. The movement of the apparition is disjointed and undulating as it grows bigger and
bigger. We wanted to create something other-worldly, and the gas mask, whilst relating it to the war, also gives it an
inhuman, threatening feel.
Baby Christian is also represented as a ghostly puppet. He is made out of tattered white sheets. The only form is a head
shape with the sheets hanging loose beneath it. There are two slits sewn in for eyes, and the rest is blank. The white is a
symbol of innocence. He has no form, just as he has no future. His fate is determined by the actions of a deranged father
and his murdered mother. We cut the character of the Grandmother, but her tale is sung at the end of the play, during
the transition into the stabbing scene. Her words relate to the fate of little Christian ‘Once there was a poor child with no
father and no mother…he sat alone and cried’
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Steven Berkoff 1937 - Present
Berkoff has been a vital force in British theatre since the late 1960’s. He rejects 20th Century realism, choosing instead
large and blatant theatricality over subtlety. His work shows influences of a number of practitioners and styles:
Brecht
Like Brecht, Berkoff’s work is not naturalistic or presenting realism. His actors demonstrate the characters through
expressive movements with an exaggerated quality. He uses tableaux to highlight key moments in scenes and creates
clear picture postcards that stick in the audiences mind.
A simple set
Berkoff uses minimal props, and scenery, sometimes none at all. He sees a fussy set as distracting and stifling to an
audience’s imagination. Instead, he uses his actors as an ensemble, using the whole company on stage to create the
physical environment around them:
‘A set should be able to melt away in an instant and never
represent a real heavy piece of pseudo reality.’ (Autobiography)
For example, in his production The Trial he used a number of
simple metal door frames as the only set. Rather than building
a real office block, the actors held door frames and mimed being
inside office cubicles. The door frames then became a corridor for
the main character (Joseph K) to walk through. When walking
through them, they would shift back and forth either side of him to
show his inner turmoil. This shows a set constantly changing and
moving, representing both the environment and the states of mind
of the characters.
Artaud
His work shows influences of Artaud through his metaphysical approach to theatre. Berkoff’s work is highly surreal and
symbolic. He uses symbols and theatrical extremes, with a chorus creating wailing sounds and contorting their bodies,
he will show the main character lost in a sea of doorways, he will put a mask on his face that is twisted and melancholic.
He will light the stage with shadows to show an uncertain and foreboding environment. He is showing what is not
perceivable in every day life, but what is inherent and deep within all of us.
Berkoff’s actors experience something similar to Artaud’s ‘Theatre of Cruelty’. The Berkoff actor goes through a rigorous
process. The roles are physically and mentally demanding. Berkoff expects actors to willingly sacrifice themselves
physically and emotionally. His work creates a sense of rhythm and ritual, with slow motion sequences, exaggerated
choral sounds, screams, moans, whines, breaths, sighs and grunts. The movements can become ritualistic and precise,
almost dance like. Berkoff explores the inner, hidden depths of man, his animal urges, his dreams, his nightmares, his
demons, his fantasies. By showing this, the audience will feel a kind of emotional release, a cathartic feeling.
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Jacques Le Coq
Berkoff trained in Paris alongside Jacques Le Coq. His work is therefore heavily influenced by theories of mime and
expressive, stylised movement. He takes mime into a new realm, however, by taking a traditionally silent form and
adding dialogue to it. Each movement is therefore stylised and is coupled with sound and voice. Berkoff uses a chorus in
his theatre to highlight a character’s thoughts and their state of mind. For example, if a scene featured a person waking
up after a heavy drinking session, the chorus would envelop them and create a series of humming, buzzing noises and
waver their voices to show the intensity of the hangover. In his most recent production ‘On the Waterfront’, the chorus
created pigeons by perching on top of chairs, bobbing their heads and creating a cacophony of chirping sounds. When
the characters drove in a car, it was the chorus who used their voices to create the dull roar of the ignition and the hum
of the engine. A chorus can also physically create the environment, with people using their bodies to create doorways,
tables, telephones etc.
Jean Louis-Barraut
Jean Louis-Barraut emerged in the 1930s as an actor of outstanding expressive power. His productions were noted for
their physical invention. He developed a style of ‘Total Theatre’ with mime and oriental techniques.
In 1968 he formed his own company, The London Theatre Group. This was their mission statement:
‘To express drama in the most vital way imaginable; to perform at the height of one’s powers with all available means.
That is, through the spoken word, gesture, mime and music. Sometimes the emphasis on one, sometimes on the other.’
Berkoff checklist
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Minimal set and props. Use of multi purpose props, ie a couple of chairs being used to create the
environment.
Chorus, ensemble work. A chorus of actors can be used to provide the sound effects to the piece. Layering
choral sounds, use of sound scapes, whispers, breaths, grunts, wails, cries, hums and song.
Chorus create the physical environment around the characters, i.e. using their bodies to create chairs, tables
etc.
Break the fourth wall, address the audience, narration.
Use of character doubling, masks, music, lighting and puppetry.
Large, expressive characters. Intense physical control and power from the actors. Movements are precise
and clear. Mime coupled with sound.
Use of tableaux, freeze frames and slow motion sequences to highlight key moments.
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How we applied Berkoff’s techniques to Woyzeck
A number of Berkovian tehcniques have been covered in the Artaud section but additional examples are below.
Symbolic set pieces / multi-purpose props
We wanted to use choreographed sequences where we manipulate simple objects in a slick and fluid style to give them
meaning. An example of this is seen after Woyzeck gets beaten up by the Drum Major and staggers into the street. This
is played out with a sound scape of a deep heartbeat, underneath scratching, whispers and scraping. Two actors hold
two wooden crates which are used to create Woyzeck’s journey. They constantly move and shift around the stage to
symbolise doors, walls, steps, a bucket he is sick into, a tunnel which begins to cave in on him as though a coffin lid. The
crates appear to float and sway in the air, symbolising Woyzeck’s disorientation and an almost out of body experience.
We use a cloth dust-sheet in a variety of ways. Most notably in the Doctor sequences, whereby we wanted to stage a
series of experiments, using only the sheet. It starts off as a screen, then positioned over a crate to look like a dentist
chair, it becomes a bath, a rope which Woyzeck runs against, and a towel. The cloth sheet also becomes the bedding for
Christian’s crib. A plastic dust-sheet is used at the end of the play to represent the large pond into which Woyzeck
throws the knife. The plastic reflects a blue light and creates a shimmering water effect. The sheet is then billowed over
Woyzeck’s head to represent the moment he dives under water to search for the knife. The sheet is then billowed
outwards and pulled back, catching Woyzeck’s face to suggest that he is sinking beneath the surface. The lights go down
to black out before we establish for certain whether or not he drowns. We wanted to keep his ending open and
unfinished.
Character doubling
We wanted to create a stark contrast between the two main archetypes in the play; that being the dichotomy between
the oppressed man and the oppressors. To do this we had one actor playing the principle oppressor roles: Drum Major,
Doctor and Captain, and kept the actor playing Woyzeck to one role only. The aim was to create empathy for the
Woyzeck character whilst keeping the oppressors as nameless, stock archetypes. Marie also doubles up as the Barker
which was presented as a bohemian French stage performer, travelling the country with a hypnosis act.
Slow motion and tableaux
We used these conventions to mark particular moments of significance within the play. For example, when the Drum
Major beats Woyzeck, the scene is played out in normal time until the very end when he grabs Woyzeck by the hair. At
this point the scene plays out in slow motion, in time with a swooping sound. This reaches a crescendo and explodes as
the Drum Major knees Woyzeck in the head. Slow motion is used when Woyzeck describes his visions to the Doctor. This
is coupled with a glowing red light to suggest the primal forces at work.
During the tavern scene, Woyzeck spies Marie and the Drum Major dancing. He sees them kiss, in silhouette, which
triggers a flashback to his time on the battlefield. The severity and pain of what he is seeing is similar to the devastation
he felt at war. The kiss image is frozen as Woyzeck mimes killing someone with a bayonet. The scene then bursts back to
life.
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Mime
We incorporate a mixture of real and mimed props. For example, the crates are used in a number of ways, as seats,
washing baskets, doors etc. However, in the trench scene the soldiers mime putting the ladders up, mime fixing their
bayonets to their rifles. We wanted to avoid littering the stage with large props which would only be used once. A
mixture of real and mimed props works in conjunction with the naturalistic/expressionistic style, and also gives the
props we do see, added significance, such as the knife and Andres sketch book.
Red Drum Major coat
The red coat worn by the Drum Major creates a stark contrast to the earthy colours that pervade the rest of the set. This
allows it to stand out. The colour represents blood, passion and danger and echoes the colour of the red moon.
Berkoff uses colour, like props, sparingly. For productions such as The Trial, he created the sets and costumes with a
monochromatic palette and added colours for effect.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod
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Conclusion
In this production, we aimed to include as many imaginative techniques as possible whilst linking them to established
practitioners. This pack has outlined the methods we used and how they relate to the theories and practices of Artaud,
and Berkoff. Any further information can be obtained by contacting the company, who will be more than happy to
discuss the show further and answer any questions.
A checklist of theatrical techniques and terms to consider when discussing the show:
Style
Mime
Heightened Physicality
Choreographed movement
Unified movement
Slow motion
Sound scaping
Sound effects
Catharsis
Chorus
Symbolism
Visible stage management
Signs
Contrast
Song
Atmosphere
Design
Characterisation
Puppetry
Shadow images
Suspense
Poetry
Multi roling
Mood
Lighting
Facial expression
Gesture
Costume
Set
Props
Tone
Proxemics
Pace
Montage
Themes
Tempo
Space
Language
Empathy
Class
Please join our Scene Productions Group and follow us on Twitter @sceneprod where you can see production photos,
videos and keep updated on exam tips, casting and work experience opportunities. You can discuss practitioners and our
shows, with the directors, cast and crew. You can also keep us updated about what you would like to see in the future.
Scene Productions
14 Curl Way, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 2TJ, Mob 07733 166085,
www.sceneproductions.co.uk, [email protected], @sceneprod