Theatre Studies / Drama: Non-Naturalistic Practitioners

This guide is written to support your study of Brecht as a theatre practitioner

This webpage provides extracts from Bertolt Brecht, 'Brecht on Theatre' that examine proposals for an epic theatre.

NSW HSC Online from Charles Sturt University has support material for the Drama HSC course for the following topics: Australian Drama & Theatre (Dramatic Traditions in Australia; Contemporary Australian Theatre Practice); Studies in Drama and Theatre (Irish Drama, Brecht, Site-specific, Street and Event Theatre, Approaches to Acting, American Drama, Seventeenth Century Comedy); Group Performance and Individual Project (including costume, lighting, set design, script writing and performance).

Bertolt Brecht and Samuel Beckett are two of the giants of the 20th-century stage. CHANGING STAGES examines the work of these dramatists and their profound influences on 20th-century theatre. The generation that came of age during the 1960s and '70s turned to the theatre as an instrument of social change. .....

A useful table to delineate Brecht’s epic theatre from dramatic theatre

This website provides some biographical details on Antonin Artaud, and a brief overview of the principles behind his Theatre of Cruelty.

A brief overview of the life, philosophy and career of Antonin Artaud.

This essay provides a critical overview of Antonin Artaud’s life and work, including analyzing the Theatre and its Double.

This website provides an overview of Antonin Artaud’s life and career.

This article examines the relationship between Artaud’s creative career and mental illness.

Brief overview of the life and work of Antonin Artaud.

An essay examining the influence of Artaud’s mental illness on his life and work as an artist.

Comparative analysis of the theatre styles of Artaud, Brecht and Stanislavski.

Read the first two chapters from Artaud’s creative manifesto, The Theatre and its Double.

This article discusses the theatrical style of Artaud.

This website provides access to two poems by Antonin Artaud.

This essay examines the influence of Artaud’s personal suffering on his artistic endeavours.

This essay examines motifs in the Artaud’s plays, and the paradox of their performativity.

Comprehensive overview of Meyerhold’s philosophy for acting, including theory and exercises.

This website provides an overview of Meyerhold’s life and career, and also of the fundamentals of Biomechanics.

Overview of Meyerhold’s life and career, from The Meyerhold Centre in Moscow.

A theatre practitioner assesses the benefits of the use of Biomechanics in acting training. Contains useful images and videos.

Research thesis on Meyerhold’s Biomechanics technique, including an evaluation of the theory and practice.

This website is host to SCOT, the Suzuki Company of Toga. Read a profile of Tadashi Suzuki, a history of the theatre company, and access the Suzuki’s philosophy of theatre.

Extend your understanding of the work of Suzuki by exploring this study guide, including focus questions and related links.

Archived article exploring the impact of Suzuki training on American theatre.

Read a thesis on the practice of Suzuki method, includes an analysis the techniques and philosophy.

This BBC webpage examines the work of Polish Expressionist dramatist, Jerzy Grotowski, who changed the way theatre is perceived in the modern era.

The BBC has provided a brief article about the Polish playwright, Jerzy Grotowski and Expressionist theatre of the 1960s and 1970s.

This website has a number of links to detailed articles about the work of Polish Expressionist playwright Jerzy Grotowski. The page includes links to articles such as 'Grotowski's ten Principles for Prospective Actors in his theatre' and an actor's reflections on his experiences with Grotowski's work and its relevance to today.