Download Non-Naturalistic Theatrical Conventions

IB Theater J McLean
Non-Naturalistic Theatrical Conventions
Here is a list of some non-naturalistic theater conventions.
See if you can add more conventions to this list.
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use of multiple time frames
stylized movement
use of fragmentary costume
actor playing multiple roles
use of projection to convey a message
use of narrator(s)
use of placards and signs
open white stage lights (no color gels)
actors as props and/or set pieces
use of song or poetry to convey a
message
visible stage lights and other equipment
sophisticated use of freeze frames
monotone use of voice
transformation of props
use of music
limited use of emotion
use of flashbacks and flash forwards
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happy scenes performed sadly and viceversa
fragmentary sets
limited physical involvement between
characters
actors swapping roles in performance
actors speaking stage directions aloud
self-contained episodes (not scenes)
characters with backs to the audience
speaking directly to the audience in
performance
narration that spoils upcoming dramatic
tension
symbolism through movement and
gesture
stylized use of voice
NATURALISM
 Naturalism is the re-creation on stage of life as it is lived. It seeks to reproduce characters,
situations or settings and usually occurs in real time with sets, props and costumes that are
representative of the situation, place or period.
NON-NATURALISM
 Non-naturalism is a broad term for all performance styles that are not dependent on the life-like
representation of everyday life and is based on the work of Antonin Artaud (Theatre of
Cruelty), Bertolt Brecht (Epic Theatre) and Jerzy Grotowski (Poor Theatre). It can allow an
actor to explore and present ideas or stories conceptually.
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Non-naturalism does not seek to re-create life as it is lived, but is focused more on passing
comment on, or responding to, aspects of the real world. Non-naturalistic performance can
occur in any space and is not dependent on specific resources. Non-naturalistic performance
work might include the manipulation of both naturalistic and non-naturalistic conventions.
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A non-naturalistic performance may be defined by the non-naturalistic:
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• use of stagecraft
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• acting style of the performers
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• use of dramatic elements.
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• use of conventions including transformation of character and/or time and/or place and/or
object.
Naturalistic/realistic drama
A movement in late 19th-century drama that aimed to replace the artificial romantic style with
accurate depictions of ordinary people in plausible situations.
 In attempting to create a perfect illusion of reality, playwrights and directors rejected dramatic
conventions that had existed since the beginnings of drama.
 European theatre ordinary people speaking colloquially had only appeared in comedy or farce;
even in such plays no attempt was made to create realistic sets or scenery.
 The 19th-century realist movement revolutionized contemporary theatre in every aspect,
from scenery, to styles of acting, from dialogue to make-up.
 The first moves towards modern realism were made in 16th-century Italy with the
introduction of perspective scenery.
 By the mid-19th century realistic gas lamps had exposed the unnatural appearance of
canvas backdrops
 realistic box set with three walls and furnishings was subsequently popularized by the
US director and playwright David Belasco.
 The Victorians also pioneered mechanical devices that were capable of producing
convincing scenic illusions and sensational effects, such as fires and train crashes.
 In the 18th century David Garrick initiated the use of historically accurate costumes and
sets, a trend that was followed by other directors.
Despite these developments, it was not until the end of the 19th century that the drama began
to emulate the serious treatment of contemporary themes achieved in the novel.
 The move away from melodrama and stilted dialogue to “the plain truthful language of
reality” was led by Henrik Ibsen, who is often called the father of modern realism.
 Ibsen also broke with convention by taking the everyday lives of his middle-class
audience as subject matter for serious drama.
 In this he was followed by the Russians Chekhov and Gorki:
 Chekhov explored the ennui of outwardly uneventful middle-class lives
 Gorki depicted the drudgery and suffering of the poorest classes.
The first serious steps to codify realism in acting were made by Konstantin Stanislavsky for
productions at the Moscow Art Theatre.
 Before his production of Gorki’s The Lower Depths (1902), Stanislavsky sent his actors into the
Moscow slums to prepare for their roles as beggars.
 This technique was later developed and systematized by Lee Strasberg as The Method.