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The Director's Prism: E. T. A. Hoffmann and the Russian Theatrical Avant-Garde

Dassia N. Posner 2016

The Director's Prism investigates how and why three of Russia's most innovative directors— Vsevolod Meyerhold, Alexander Tairov, and Sergei Eisenstein—used the fantastical tales of German Romantic writer E. T. A. Hoffmann to reinvent the rules of theatrical practice. Because the rise of the director and the Russian cult of Hoffmann closely coincided, Posner argues, many characteristics we associate with avant-garde theater—subjective perspective, breaking through the fourth wall, activating the spectator as a co-creator—become uniquely legible in the context of this engagement. Posner examines the artistic poetics of Meyerhold's grotesque, Tairov's mime-drama, and Eisenstein's theatrical attraction through production analyses, based on extensive archival research, that challenge the notion of theater as a mirror to life, instead viewing the director as a prism through whom life is refracted. A resource for scholars and practitioners alike, this groundbreaking study provides a fresh, provocative perspective on experimental theater, intercultural borrowings, and the nature of the creative process.

ISBN(s)

978-0-8101-3356-3 (hardcover)
978-0-8101-3355-6 (paper)
978-0-8101-3357-0 (e-book)

Subject

Performing Arts

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Etching foreground: two male figures in half masks, round spectacles, and hats adorned with long feathers face one another, talking, a jug on the ground between them. Etching background: two figures sword fight, one with jug in hand, while others look on.

Scapino and Captain Zerbino, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Scapino and Captain Zerbino, plate 12 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.29.4. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Etching foreground: a woman with her hands tucked into her long gown, right, stands facing a man in a half mask and round spectacles, left, his feather-adorned hat in one hand. Etching background: two figures dance to the music of a theorbo while others watch.

Captain Cerimonia and Lady Lavinia, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Captain Cerimonia and Lady Lavinia, plate 3 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.27.2. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Etching foreground: a woman, left, dances to the music of a theorbo, played by a man, right, in a half mask and feather-adorned hat. Etching background: two musicians entertain families and riders on horseback.

Riciulina and Metzetin, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Riciulina and Metzetin, plate 8 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.28.6. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Etching foreground: a woman, left, plays a tambourine, while a man, right, waves a wooden sword and cape. Etching background: two acrobats perform; a strolling guitarist plays; and several others watch.

Fracischina and Gian Farina, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Fracischina and Gian Farina, plate 17 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.27.6. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Etching foreground: a man with a half mask and wooden sword extends his hat to a woman, who has placed her hand on his elbow. Etching background: a figure, center, waves a sword while another, left, wields a cape.

Pulliciniello and Lady Lucretia, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Pulliciniello and Lady Lucretia, plate 9 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.29.1. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Etching foreground: a woman, left, holds out her shoe, while a man, right, kneels to kiss it. Etching background: pairs of lovers and onlookers talk.

Lady Lucia and Trastullo, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Lady Lucia and Trastullo, plate 21 from Balli di Sfessania (c. 1621). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gray Collection of Engravings Fund, by exchange, S4.28.7. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Two identical male figures in distorted poses and half masks dance in the same position from opposite perspectives.

Two Pantaloni Turning Their Backs, etching

From Introduction: Hoffmann’s Prism

Jacques Callot, Two Pantaloni Turning Their Backs (1617). Etching. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of William Gray from the collection of Francis Calley Gray, by exchange, S4.3.3. Photo: Imaging Department © President and Fellows of Harvard College.