ABSTRACT
This essay addresses the importance of visual spectatorship in Meyerhold’s theatre. By identifying and exploring the ‘modes of looking’ suggested by production examples from the late 1920s and 1930s, it considers the relationship between how scenographic structures invite audiences to look and how looking can become a profoundly ideological act, particularly within the context of a totalitarian state. The examples analysed in this chapter come from a specific subset of Meyerhold’s productions; those that were cancelled prior to their first performance. Despite often being neglected in Meyerhold scholarship, these ‘unseen’ works provide an illuminating starting point to consider the nature of looking. This essay considers the different models of looking found in two of Meyerhold’s unseen productions: I Want a Baby (1927–1930) and One Life (1936–7). It begins with a survey of Meyerhold’s unseen works, establishing their status in his oeuvre. The two productions are then explored in detail, using a focus on Meyerhold’s scenographic approaches as a way to identify the modes of looking suggested in each project: in I Want a Baby, the spectator is asked to ‘look through’ the production; whereas in One Life, an emphasis on flat surfaces forces the viewer to ‘look at’ the stage. The essay concludes by returning to the question of unseen productions, considering their role and value in the study of historical theatre practice.
