ABSTRACT

Routledge Performance Practitioners is a series of introductory guides to the key theatre-makers of the last century. Each volume explains the background to and the work of one of the major influences on twentieth- and twenty-first-century performance.

Antonin Artaud was an active theatre-maker and theorist whose ideas reshaped contemporary approaches to performance. This is the first book to combine

  • an overview of Artaud’s life with a focus on his work as an actor and director;
  • an analysis of his key theories, including the Theatre of Cruelty and the double;
  • a consideration of his work as a director at the Théâtre Alfred Jarry and his production of Strindberg’s A Dream Play; and
  • a series of practical exercises to develop an approach to theatre based on Artaud’s key ideas.

As a first step towards critical understanding and as an initial exploration before going on to further, primary research, Routledge Performance Practitioners are unbeatable value for today’s student.

chapter 1|38 pages

Biography in Social and Artistic Context

chapter 2|35 pages

Artaud's Key Writings

chapter 3|27 pages

The Théâtre Alfred Jarry (1926–1929)

chapter 4|33 pages

Practical Exercises