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[(Evoking (and Forgetting!) Shakespeare)] [ By (author) Peter Brook ] [September, 2002]
"Now supplemented with a new piece about the need not to be overwhelmed by Shakespeare, this book addresses a number of essential questions about performing Shakespeare today. 'Why is Shakespeare not out of date?' 'What do we mean by Shakespeare's "genius" or "creativity" or "poetry"?' 'What, in fact, is the Shakespeare phenomenon?'" In attempting answers to these and other questions, Peter Brook invites us to consider the actual conditions of the Elizabethan theatre and the actual qualities of Shakespeare's language. The result is a typically illuminating and provocative take on our greatest playwright by one of his most influential modern interpreters.
- GenresShakespeareTheatre
Paperback
First published September 26, 2002
102 people want to read
About the author
Peter Brook
102 books130 followersPeter Brook is a world-renowned theater director, staging innovative productions of the works of famous playwrights. A native of London, he has been based in France since the 1970s.
Peter Brook's parents were immigrant scientists from Russia. A precocious child with a distaste for formal education but a love of learning, Brook performed his own four-hour version of Shakespeare's Hamlet at the age of seven. After spending two years in Switzerland recovering from a glandular infection, Brook became one of the youngest undergraduates at Oxford University. At the same time he directed his first play in London, a production of Marlowe's Dr. Faustus. Brook made his directing debut at the Stratford Theatre at the age of 21, with a production of Love's Labours Lost.
Over the next several years, Brook directed both theater and opera, as well as designing the sets and costumes for his productions. He eventually grew disillusioned with opera, calling it "deadly theater." He directed prominent actors, including Laurence Olivier in Titus Andronicus and Paul Schofeld in a filmed King Lear. He also directed a film adaptation of Lord of the Flies. In 1962, he was named a director of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Despite his popular successes, Brook sought out alternative ways to create vibrant, meaningful theater. He directed a season of experimental theater with the Royal Shakespeare Company, inspired by Antonin Artaud's "Theatre of Cruelty." He sought to turn away from stars and to create an ensemble of actors who improvised during a long rehearsal period in a search of the meaning of "holy theater."
Out of this search came Brook's finest work. In 1964 he directed Genet's The Screens and Peter Weiss' Marat/Sade, for which he received seven major awards and introduced Glenda Jackson to the theater. Influenced by Brecht and Artaud, Marat/Sade shocked the audience with its insane asylum environment. In 1966 he developed US, a play about the Vietnam experience and the horrors of war. Jerzy Grotowski, one of the most important theater directors of this century and a man who profoundly influenced Brook, came to work with the company during this production. Brook also did an adaptation of Seneca's Oedipus by poet Ted Hughes, a who continued to collaborate with him for many years. The culmination of this phase of Brook's work was his production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1970). Using trapezes, juggling, and circus effects, Brook and his actors created a sense of magic, joy, and celebration in this interpretation of Shakespeare's play.
After this, Brook moved to Paris and founded the International Center of Theatre Research. He wanted to find a new form of theater that could speak to people worldwide--theater which was truly universal. He also wanted to work in an environment of unlimited rehearsal time in order to allow for a deep search-of-self for all involved. The first production that came out of this phase was Orghast (1971), which employed a new language developed by Ted Hughes. This production, performed at the ruins of Persepolis in Persia, used actors from many different countries.
Peter Brook's parents were immigrant scientists from Russia. A precocious child with a distaste for formal education but a love of learning, Brook performed his own four-hour version of Shakespeare's Hamlet at the age of seven. After spending two years in Switzerland recovering from a glandular infection, Brook became one of the youngest undergraduates at Oxford University. At the same time he directed his first play in London, a production of Marlowe's Dr. Faustus. Brook made his directing debut at the Stratford Theatre at the age of 21, with a production of Love's Labours Lost.
Over the next several years, Brook directed both theater and opera, as well as designing the sets and costumes for his productions. He eventually grew disillusioned with opera, calling it "deadly theater." He directed prominent actors, including Laurence Olivier in Titus Andronicus and Paul Schofeld in a filmed King Lear. He also directed a film adaptation of Lord of the Flies. In 1962, he was named a director of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Despite his popular successes, Brook sought out alternative ways to create vibrant, meaningful theater. He directed a season of experimental theater with the Royal Shakespeare Company, inspired by Antonin Artaud's "Theatre of Cruelty." He sought to turn away from stars and to create an ensemble of actors who improvised during a long rehearsal period in a search of the meaning of "holy theater."
Out of this search came Brook's finest work. In 1964 he directed Genet's The Screens and Peter Weiss' Marat/Sade, for which he received seven major awards and introduced Glenda Jackson to the theater. Influenced by Brecht and Artaud, Marat/Sade shocked the audience with its insane asylum environment. In 1966 he developed US, a play about the Vietnam experience and the horrors of war. Jerzy Grotowski, one of the most important theater directors of this century and a man who profoundly influenced Brook, came to work with the company during this production. Brook also did an adaptation of Seneca's Oedipus by poet Ted Hughes, a who continued to collaborate with him for many years. The culmination of this phase of Brook's work was his production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1970). Using trapezes, juggling, and circus effects, Brook and his actors created a sense of magic, joy, and celebration in this interpretation of Shakespeare's play.
After this, Brook moved to Paris and founded the International Center of Theatre Research. He wanted to find a new form of theater that could speak to people worldwide--theater which was truly universal. He also wanted to work in an environment of unlimited rehearsal time in order to allow for a deep search-of-self for all involved. The first production that came out of this phase was Orghast (1971), which employed a new language developed by Ted Hughes. This production, performed at the ruins of Persepolis in Persia, used actors from many different countries.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 26, 2022
I am not even sure what to say about this slim little volume of meaty thought. I did get this one through an inter-library loan but will be purchasing it for my own library. I am not even going to try and express any of my own thoughts, I will just toss out a few of the quotations I will be marking once my own copy is in my hands.
"A poet is different. The absolute characteristic of 'being a poet' is the capacity to see connections where, normally, connections are not obvious."
"If actors are taught that Shakespeare wrote in pentameters, and the pentameters have a certain beat, and the actors try to use this in their speech, you get a dry, empty music, which is not the living music that is there in the words."
"If one refuses to accept the reality of a world of spirits it's much better to burn all the works of Shakespeare becuase they don't have any meaning at all any more." -Gordon Craig
"Each line in Shakespeare is an atom. The energy that can be released is infinite - if we can split it open."
"Actors are once more drawn into the trap of believing that their own everyday experience can give them what they need and that they can base their understanding on their personal set of references. This leads him - or her - to apply current political and social clichés to situations and characters whose riches go far beyond ideas. When for instance one tries to use The Tempest to illustrate stereotyped notions about slavery, domination, and colonialism, or to play complex characters to fit in with sexual attitudes that happen to be in the air, the result is taking characters who have fascinated audiences over the century because of their being to unfamiliar, so hard to encompass - and making them ordinary."
"A poet is different. The absolute characteristic of 'being a poet' is the capacity to see connections where, normally, connections are not obvious."
"If actors are taught that Shakespeare wrote in pentameters, and the pentameters have a certain beat, and the actors try to use this in their speech, you get a dry, empty music, which is not the living music that is there in the words."
"If one refuses to accept the reality of a world of spirits it's much better to burn all the works of Shakespeare becuase they don't have any meaning at all any more." -Gordon Craig
"Each line in Shakespeare is an atom. The energy that can be released is infinite - if we can split it open."
"Actors are once more drawn into the trap of believing that their own everyday experience can give them what they need and that they can base their understanding on their personal set of references. This leads him - or her - to apply current political and social clichés to situations and characters whose riches go far beyond ideas. When for instance one tries to use The Tempest to illustrate stereotyped notions about slavery, domination, and colonialism, or to play complex characters to fit in with sexual attitudes that happen to be in the air, the result is taking characters who have fascinated audiences over the century because of their being to unfamiliar, so hard to encompass - and making them ordinary."
June 3, 2018
I found nothing special in this book. It's just like that some random thoughts about Shakespeare.
Özel bir şeye rastlamadım, Shakespeare ve onu özel kılan şeylerin neler olabileceği üzerine düşüncelerden oluşuyor.
September 8, 2012
A very very short book (47 pages) and therefore a quick read. But the virtue of lectures is that the speaker gets right to the point without padding so this makes stimulating reading. I had never before considered that with Shakespeare scenery can change faster than is possible even in film.
October 14, 2011
Quick read... really interesting!
March 11, 2016
Please check out my blog for the full review of this handy little book! https://booksbakesbeliefs.wordpress.c...
June 18, 2011
Love people who demolish myths.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews