The term ‘postdramatic’ was coined by Hans-Thies Lehmann in his book Postdramatic Theatre. He uses this term to describe the contemporary mode of theatre and performance which no longer relies solely on the text to provide a dramatic basis to performance, but rather include it as only a part of the entire structure. Lehmann explains “The adjective ‘postdramatic’ denotes a theatre that feels bound to operate beyond drama, at a time ‘after’ the authority of the dramatic paradigm in theatre.” (Lehmann, 2009, 27). Liz Tomlin expands on these thoughts in her essay ‘And their stories fell apart even as I was telling them‘ by explaining that students and professionals within the theatre industry sought to focus on aspects other than the text and embrace “a contemporary practice that rejected the forms and conventions of the authored written text, in favour of collaborative practice with an emphasis on the live, the physical and the visual aspects of theatre.” (Tomlin, 2009, 57).

Lehmann further describes the term with reference to the emergence of events such as ‘happenings’, Fluxus events and live and performance art, stating “The changed use of theatre signs leads to a blurred boundary between theatre and forms of practice such as Performance Art, forms which strive for an experience of the real. With reference to the notion and practice of ‘Concept Art’ (as it flourished especially around 1970), postdramatic theatre can be seen as an attempt to conceptualize art in the sense that it offers not a representation but an intentionally unmediated experience of the real (time, space, body): Concept Theatre.” (Lehmann, 2009, 134).

Postdramatic theatre challenges the three Aristotelian unities of action, time and place. It seeks to distance itself from these controlling restraints, favouring instead a more flexible approach. As Lehmann states “In postdramatic theatre, breath, rhythm and the present actuality of the body’s visceral presence take precedence over the logos.” (Lehmann, 2009, 145). Further he adds “The principle of exposition applied to body, gesture and voice also seizes the language material and attacks languages function of representation. Instead of a linguistic re-presentation of facts, there is a ‘position’ of tones, words, sentences, sounds that are hardly controlled by a ‘meaning’ but instead by the scenic composition, by a visual, not text oriented dramaturgy.” (Lehmann, 2009, 146).

Martin Crimp’s play The City employs the three unities but only for the purposes of knocking them down again. He makes it clear from the outset that he acknowledges their existence but intends to render them ‘Blank’. Although The City does include characters, text and a setting, it does not fulfil all the tenets of a traditional piece of dramatic theatre as the world of the play is confused and we are left without a satisfactory resolution. However, in Crimp’s play Attempts on her Life, we see a clear movement away from the dramatic, towards a distinctly postdramatic structure, as he chooses to eschew all reference to character, (except for Anne, whom we never meet) place and dialogue. All 17 scenarios offer an insight into ‘Anne’ and who she may or may not be, even suggesting at one point that she is a car. There is no linear narrative, no conflict and no neat resolution, leaving us only to ponder the messages conveyed within each scene.

Session notes;

Postdramatic theatre does not have a coherent plot, definable characters, a certain setting. It is interested in exploring reality and the pretence of performance.

The making of the piece and the receiving of the piece happen simultaneously, in the same time and place, and draws attention to the weird relationship between performers and audiences, and attempts to bring this into the performance.

It addresses the relationship between the form and subject matter of theatre. The stage ought to be a ‘point of departure’ for a piece.

Lehmann’s theory essentially follows on from Szondi’s theories, in which he talks about ‘Absolute Drama’ in the 17th and 18th C, in which dialogue, communication, exclusion of anything outside the dramatic world, linear time and adherence to the three unities were paramount. At the end of the 19th C there is a ‘Crisis of Drama’ with playwrights such as Ibsen, Chekhov and Strindberg. Then 20 C drama is ‘Modern Drama’. Lehmann argues that Szondi cannot see ‘theatre without drama’.

Forced Entertainment use postdramatic methods within their performances, to explore issues of identity, politics, relationships and creating a dialogue with audiences.

Bibliography.

Lehmann, Hans-Thies. (2009) Postdramatic Theatre. Abingdon: Routledge.

Tomlin, Liz. (2009) Performance Research. Abingdon: Taylor & Francis.

In her book Applying Performance: Live Art, Socially Engaged Theatre and Affective Practice, Nicola Shaughnessy says “The decomposing corpse of performance is, after all, transforming into something else, a different kind of performance matter” (Shaughnessy, 2015, xiv). The concept of moving into a different era of performance is compelling and the fact that we no longer feel the need to abide by certain unwritten ‘rules’ of drama is extremely refreshing and freeing.

Theatre makers, performers and directors are increasingly looking to include audiences, spectators and the wider community in the creation and reception of performance and live art. Shaughnessy also states “The role and experience of both the spectator and the community in which the art is produced is central to the re-evaluation of efficacy in these relational and participatory practices and encounters” (Shaughnessy, 2015, xvi). There is also a greater inclination to affect social and political awareness (if not indeed change) by highlighting the issues relevant at any particular moment, in any particular society.

TheatreNO99 explored this in their project Unified Estonia, as they created a fictitious political party and sought to gain real public support, which astonishingly they did, ultimately receiving a 25% share of the vote in poles. Check out the introduction to their fake political convention below…

I found this concept fascinating, and the fact that large amounts of people can be affected to the point that they would actually consider voting for a ‘fake’ political party based on their very effective self promotion and use of spectacle is concerning, to say the least. This is further supported by Shaughnessy when she states that “…post-dramatic theatre, live art and applied performance converse, conjoined by shared interests in audience engagement, innovation, affect and a commitment to the social value of the arts” (Shaughnessy, 2015, xvi).

Session notes:

Brett Bailey, Exhibit B. South African artist who created a piece which sought to expose the atrocities against black people. The piece used motionless performers situated throughout a gallery, with actual artifacts from colonial times. However, does Bailey highlight these issues effectively or merely perpetuate the racism by illuminating the issue? Does Bailey simply replay what has gone before, or can this sort of performance alter the way people conceive of others? Many people reacted angrily to the exhibit, particularly in London, where the production was cancelled. In a quote from an interview Bailey gave with The Guardian online, he questions whether this kind of censorship is a reasonable measure to take, saying “I stand for a global society that is rich in a plurality of voices. I stand against any action that calls for the censoring of creative work or the silencing of divergent views, except those where hatred is the intention.The intention of Exhibit B was never hatred, fear, or prejudice. It is about love, respect and outrage. Those who have caused Exhibit B to be shut down brand the work as racist. They have challenged my right, as a white South African, to speak about racism the way I do. They accuse me of exploiting my performers. They insist that my critique of human zoos and the objectifying, dehumanising colonial/racist gaze is nothing more than a recreation of those spectacles of humiliation and control. The vast majority of them have not attended the work” (Bailey, 2014).

A still from ‘Exhibit B’.

In their book The Affective Turn: Theorizing the Social, Patricia Ticineto Clough and Jean Halley speak about the era of performance we find ourselves in now, and that “We are no longer in a ‘performance turn’, we are in the ‘affective turn” (Ticineto Clough and Halley, 2007, ?????) This signals a move towards making theatre count and using it as a tool to affect political and social change. Furthermore, Baz Kershaw suggests in his book The Radical in Performance: Between Brecht and Baudrillard that “…’radical performance’ might usefully replace ‘political theatre’, not because it will enable us to somehow settle the issues raised by the promiscuity of the political in post-modern, but rather because it will allow us to more directly encounter them” (Kershaw, 1999,17).

Bibliography.

Bailey, B. (2014) Yes, Exhibit B is challenging – but I never sought to alienate or offend. The Guardian, 24 September. Available from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/24/exhibit-b-challenging-work-never-sought-alienate-offend-brett-bailey [accessed 25 October 2016]

Kershaw, B. (1999) The Radical in Performance: Between Brecht and Baudrillard. London: Routledge.

Shaughnessy, N. (2015) Applying Performance: live art, socially engaged theatre and affective practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Ticineto Clough, P. and Halley, J. (2007) The Affective Turn: Theorizing the Social. USA: Duke University Press.