Gwybodaeth Modiwlau

Since the beginning of the 20th century, Western theatre artists have been more and more influenced by non-Western concepts relating to philosophy or psychology in general and theatre aesthetics in particular. This development has led to intentional and conscious attempts at intercultural theatre, which can be broadly grouped into three categories: productions in which material from other cultures dominates, being regarded as models or ideals (e.g. productions "in the style of" Peking Opera or Noh theatre). Productions in which the original culture dominates, and foreign elements are used to enlarge the range of expression in the theatre (e.g. Mnouchkine's Shakespeare productions). The third group of intercultural theatre aims at a universal language of the theatre (e.g. Peter Brook, The Mahabharata). Theatre practice has been followed, over the last 10 years, by theoretical approaches to intercultural theatre by Pavis, and in a scathing critique by Rustom Bharucha. The debate is only just beginning. In 12 two-hour lecture/seminar sessions (spread over six weeks) this module will introduce the major Western intercultural theatre artists of this century, and discuss their intercultural theatre practice in the light of the theory and the criticism. Finally, an alternative model of interculturalism is proposed, inviting lively discussion.