Trauma, Memory, and Resistance in Theatre and Film I

Session Submission Type: Panel

Brief Description

This panel throws new light on Soviet theatre directors and their productions, from the twenties to the 21st century. Dr. Maria Berlova focuses her research on Evgeny Vakhtangov’s modernizations of the MAT methods. Unlike Nemirovich-Danchenko and Stanislavsky, Vakhtangov's approach focused not on the fusion of the actor and character, but on dialectical unity implicating the dialog of two opposing forces: the actor-creator with the actor-character. Dr. Edite Tisheizere examines the central theme in Adolf Shapiro's Riga productions, which portrayed the destruction of intellectual and moral values and the "zombification" of the new generations. Drawing direct parallels between different totalitarian regimes was a bold civic act in the mid-1980s and a precursor to the following perestroika. Varvara Sklez explores the Jubilee Year Group project, which took place at Taganka Theatre between 2013 and 2014. During this time, Yuriy Lyubimov, the theatre's director for nearly fifty years, stepped down following a series of disputes with the troupe. As the theatre approached its 50th anniversary, a group of young theatre artists, known as the Jubilee Year Group, was invited to re-examine and reinterpret its history and legacy. In turn, the young artists faced significant resistance and criticism from the theatre's staff. Opponents accused them of disregarding Lyubimov’s legacy, lacking historical knowledge of the theatre, and being unprofessional. Ultimately, the group departed after a year, and none of their performances were staged at Taganka Theatre again.

Sub Unit

• Arts II: Music, Theater, Performance Studies

Chair

• Julia Listengarten, U of Central Florida

Papers

• Body Language as an Archive of Culture and History: Adolf Shapiro’s Performances on Totalitarian Systems - Edite Tisheizere, U of Latvia (Latvia)

• East Meets Brecht: The First Soviet Threepenny Opera - Dassia N. Posner, Northwestern U

• Dialogues with History: Aleksei Dikiy's Productions at the Habima Theatre - Olga Levitan, Hebrew U of Jerusalem (Israel)

Discussant

• Natalia Plagmann, Dartmouth College