Antonin Artaud: The Man and His Work

by Martin Esslin

The influence of Antonin Artaud on the contemporary theatre has only become evident since the early Sixties, although writers and directors have been directly or indirectly influenced by his thinking and innovations for many years. Today his pre-eminence as a founder of modern theatrical style is rivalled only by Brecht, with whom he has much in common.
The man and his work, as Martin Esslin persuasively argues in this perceptive study, are inseparable and must be considered together. Genius or madman, everything about Artaud is fascinating – his extraordinary life, his passions, his wide-ranging interests, the brilliance and originality that he brought to his plays, his productions and his other writings. Artaud died in 1948 at the age of fifty-two, but accomplished a revolution in his short life that is still bearing fruit today.
This compact, carefully researched study is an invaluable guide, combining readability with a sympathetic and authoritative study of its subject.

Genres: Theatre, France, Biography, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Plays

128 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 1976

About the author

Martin Julius Esslin OBE (6 June 1918 – 24 February 2002) was a Hungarian-born English producer and playwright dramatist, journalist, adaptor and translator, critic, academic scholar and professor of drama best known for coining the term "Theatre of the Absurd" in his work of that name (1961).

Born Julius Pereszlényi (Hungarian: Pereszlényi Gyula Márton) in Budapest, Esslin moved to Vienna with his family at a young age. He studied Philosophy and English at the University of Vienna and also graduated from the Reinhardt Seminar as a producer. Of Jewish descent, he fled Austria in the wake of the Anschluss of 1938.

Esslin defined the 'Theatre of the Absurd' as that which

"The Theatre of the Absurd strives to express its sense of the senselessness of the human condition and the inadequacy of the rational approach by the open abandonment of rational devices and discursive thought."

Esslin's definition encompassed not only Beckett's works but those of Sławomir Mrożek, Eugène Ionesco, Harold Pinter, Jean Genet, Günter Grass and Edward Albee amongst others.

He began working for the BBC in 1940, serving as a producer, script writer and broadcaster. He was head of BBC Radio Drama 1963-77, having previously worked for the external European Service. After leaving the BBC he held senior academic posts at Florida State and Stanford Universities.

He also adapted and translated many works from the original German, for example many plays of Wolfgang Bauer between 1967 and 1990. Original works included the seminal Theatre of the Absurd, and The Field of Drama.

Esslin died in London on February 24, 2002 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.

Source: Wikipedia

Reviews

[Sepehr Asadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written work. An essential read for anyone who wants to unravel the mystery that was Artaud. It doesn't become that much mysterious like some works who decide to just look at him as a sufi-like figure; it does justice to the man. One must read this as a companion to Artaud's writings. I'm retranslating one of Artaud's play, The Spurt of Blood, and this book is giving me a clear background to how his body of works developed up to that point when he wrote The Umbilicus of Limbo in 1925.

Unfortunately I'm reading a Persian translation that has many errors. If you're an Iranian, avoid Nimaj's translation of this book. Read it in English.

[Gurhan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kısa bir kitap ama okunması gerektiğini düşünüyorum :)