Embedded Files
Known for its crude language, outrageous violence, and rejection of conventional dramatic structure, Ubu Roi (by Alfred Jarry, 1898) deliberately provokes and satirizes power, bourgeoisie, and human folly.
Absurdist theatre, emerging mid-20th century, rejects traditional dramatic structures to explore the meaninglessness and irrationality of human existence. Plays often feature illogical dialogue, repetitive or nonsensical actions, and characters grappling with a futile search for purpose in an indifferent universe. It aims to evoke a sense of bewilderment, humor, and despair, reflecting the post-war disillusionment with reason and societal conventions. Key influencers and playwrights include Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Samuel Beckett, Eugène Ionesco, Antonin Artaud, and Jean Genet.
Theatre of Philosophers
Theatre of Philosophers
Theatre of the Absurd is a big file of playwrights and plays based on larger thoughts that concern all of us. As we begin our journey, think of it more as Theatre of Philosophy.
The first half of the 20th century was a period of immense global change, marked by two devastating world wars, major technological advancements, and significant shifts in political and social landscapes. It pushed humanity to the brink of destruction. And as we headed back, we sighed a collective WTF, reflected, and decided that is was...
"It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question."-Eugene Ionesco
Directorial challenges with Symbolism
Directorial challenges with Symbolism
As Stanislavki himself strove for a unity of all elements of theatre, he drifted away from the mundaneness of Real Life. He continued to conduct experiments in symbolism: prepped the interpretation of every role, blocking and mise-en-scene in advance.
Stan more interested in rehearsal than in production; attention shifted away from MAT and satellite projects to the “theatre studios”
First started by strictly choreographing the actors’ every gesture (in line with full control of the mise-en-scene)
Later favored an “active analysis”, sequence of dramatic situations are improvised; originated tablework discussion to promote a detailed analysis of the play, which brought greater attention to the concept of inner action
Later, 1908: “…rehearsals are divided into 2 stages: the first stage is one of experiment when the cast helps the director, the second is creating the performance when the director helps the cast”
First Studio, 1912: Founding members. Actors trained in stage technique, voice and speech, movement, dance. They focused on experimentation, improvisation, self-discovery:
Yevgeny Vakhtangov
Michael Chekhov
Richard Boleslavsky
Maria Ouspenskaya
Vsevold Meierhold
Second Studio, 1916: Pedagogical work; developed techniques for An Actor’s Work. As Stan continued to evolve past Realism, students were continuing to evolve to find the technique.
Vsevold Meyerhold's work takes us into Futurism and Constructivism (now we're headed into the beginnings of the avant garde and absurd). Enjoyed more of a theatrical, dreamlike aesthetic. As a director, incorporated commedia, didn't hide the theater behind a backdrop. Theatre at its most theatrical; primary is the director, not the actor. Developed Biomechanics, theatre becomes a "meaning factory" (Crash Course Theater #39).
Michael Chekhov, Nephew of Anton. Author of To The Actor. Created the concepts of Psychological Gesture, Centers of Attention, Creative Individuality (pieces of his technique to find empathy). Another defining difference (attributed to Ragnar Freidank's lecture to the left) is when Stan focuses on the actor within the character, Chekhov felt "the technique is there so the actor can forget himself... actor [looks] for something bigger than he" (Freidank). If there's distance between you and the character, you need technique to bridge the gap.
Solo Performance
Solo Performance
As the performance style implies, this technique features one performer onstage, typically sharing personal content in the form of narrative (telling a story), but some allegory in solo performance really goes off the deep end. Performers include Eric Bogosian, John Leguizamo, Laurie Anderson, Danny Hoch.
Spaulding Gray performing Swimming to Cambodia (above)Anna Deavere Smith performing Four American Characters (below)
Dadaist-inspired media by Opera Theatre Oregon
The Viewpoints Method. With the ability to leave Realistic Acting behind, modern practitioners are finding more efficient use of performance and allegory to create another theatrical experience. With its approach closer to dance than realistic acting, the nine viewpoints give the actor tools that acknowledge pretense and find efficiency of expression to the spectators.
Guerilla, Absurdist and Performance Art
Guerilla, Absurdist and Performance Art
Removing the guide:
Once a production becomes self-aware and we - performers, audience/spectators - are aware that we're pretending, a lot of doors open for creation. We lose the chains of realism, we don't get locked in the struggle of a protagonist.
Actors' ideal performance is the efficiency of presenting a symbol, as opposed to living a struggle as an audience watches.
Now we're allowed to be theatrical; we're allowed to pretend; we're allowed to live outside presenting real life.
Theatre of the Absurd
Solo performance/stand-up comedy (techniques are related)
Surrealism/Dadaist theatre
Artaud/Theatre of Cruelty
Musical Theatre
Viewpoints
Verbatim
Enhancing the guide: stand-up comedy; solo performance
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett
National Theatre's 5 Truths: Artaud. "This video features two films from the Five Truths installation that focus on an Antonin Artaud influenced approach to the character of Ophelia."
Play Study: Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
Play Study: Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot is a seminal play in the Theatre of the Absurd, featuring two tramps, Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), who endlessly wait by a barren tree for the arrival of a mysterious figure named Godot. Godot never appears, sending messages that he will come "tomorrow."
"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better."-Samuel Beckett
The play's circular structure emphasizes its central themes: the meaninglessness of human existence, the search for purpose in an indifferent universe, the nature of companionship, and the struggle to pass time. The characters' endless waiting symbolizes humanity's perpetual search for external meaning or salvation that never arrives, leaving them perpetually trapped in a cycle of anticipation and despair.
The work was written after World War II, a period marked by widespread disillusionment and questioning of traditional values and beliefs. The play reflects the existential crisis experienced by many individuals during this time and the broader sense of uncertainty and absurdity that characterised the post-war era.
-thedramateacher.com
Throughout their wait, Didi and Gogo engage in repetitive, nonsensical, and often philosophical conversations to pass the time, debating whether to leave, contemplating suicide, and performing various routines. Their efforts to fill the void highlight the futility of their existence. They are briefly interrupted by the domineering Pozzo, who leads his enslaved, suffering servant Lucky on a rope. Their interaction is equally perplexing, with Pozzo demonstrating arbitrary power and Lucky delivering a fragmented, stream-of-consciousness monologue.
<---- Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
<---- Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
Author: Samuel Beckett
Written: 1948-1949
Publication: 1952 (in French), 1954 (in English)
Premiere: 5 January 1953, Théâtre de Babylone, Paris, France. Director Roger Biln.
Absurdist Acting Style
Absurdist Acting Style
The Absurdist form challenges traditional notions of plot, character development, and dialogue. It rejects traditional theatrical conventions and aims to shock audiences into confronting the irrationality and futility of the human condition.
Absurdist acting demands that performers embody the contradiction and meaninglessness inherent in the human experience, often through a blend of heightened realism and stylized, almost ritualistic, behavior.
Due to their symbolic & theme-based presentation, Absurdist plays are highly controlled and precisely crafted. Frequently they come with highly specific "instruction manuals" that define design and performance.
Characters are non-specific and based on archetype / stereotype. Similar and influenced by Brecht, "good" acting is defined by the actor's efficiency and clarity of symbol.
The Pause: using pauses to create tension and misunderstanding
"The Theatre of the Absurd tends toward a radical devaluation of language, toward a poetry that is to emerge from the concrete and objectified images of the stage itself."
-Martin Esslin
The goal is not to portray psychological realism but to illustrate the profound absurdity of being.
The goal is not to portray psychological realism but to illustrate the profound absurdity of being.
Clichés, non-sequiturs, and circular arguments: Clear communication through physical and vocal efficiency, that demonstrates a complete lack of meaningful communication.
Devaluation of Language and Communication Breakdown: Absurdist plays often feature repetitive, nonsensical, or fragmented dialogue that highlights the inadequacy of language to convey meaning or foster genuine connection. Characters often talk past each other, or their conversations go nowhere.
Actors pursue objective and create, complete actions, but those objectives are not tied to plot nor have cause/effect (creating a narrative plot). Roles lack motivation; rather actions / behavior is repeated as if a ritual.
Futility and Repetitive Actions: Characters in absurdist plays frequently engage in repetitive, circular, or pointless actions that underscore the futility of their efforts and the meaningless nature of their existence.
Blurring of Illusion and Reality: Absurdist theater often challenges the audience's perceptions by balurring the lines between what is real and what is not, creating a dreamlike or surreal atmosphere. This can involve unconventional staging, illogical events, or characters who are unsure of their own identity or surroundings.
Example: In Ionesco's Rhinocéros, the slow transformation of townspeople into rhinoceroses is treated as a bizarre yet increasingly normal occurrence, highlighting the absurdity of conformity and the fragility of human identity.
Tragicomedy and Dark Humor: Despite the bleak themes, absurdist plays often incorporate elements of broad comedy, vaudeville, and physical humor, which can be unsettling as they juxtapose with the existential despair. The humor often arises from the absurdity of the situations or the characters' futile attempts to make sense of their world.
Example: The clown-like antics and verbal games of Vladimir and Estragon in Waiting for Godot provide moments of dark humor amidst their desperate and fruitless wait.
Challenging Audience Expectations: Absurdist acting is designed to provoke and disorient the audience, pushing them out of their complacency and forcing them to confront uncomfortable truths about the human condition. This can involve breaking the fourth wall or other unconventional staging techniques.
"Nothing is funnier than unhappiness … it’s the most comical thing in the world."
"Nothing is funnier than unhappiness … it’s the most comical thing in the world."
- Nell in Beckett's Endgame
- Nell in Beckett's Endgame
Circular Plot Line
Circular Plot Line
In absurdist theatre, a circular plot refers to a narrative structure where the play begins and ends in a very similar, if not identical, state or situation, suggesting a lack of progression, resolution, or meaningful change.
There's no protagonist: so no change, no story arc.
Symbols - not characters - don't evolve. They interact.
Unlike sketch structure, there's no heightening nor exploring.
This cyclical nature emphasizes the futility of human endeavor, the arbitrary nature of existence, and the inescapable repetition of life's meaningless routines. It deliberately denies traditional dramatic arcs, reinforcing the existential themes of entrapment, stagnation, and the absence of definitive answers or closure.
"Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes, it's terrible."-Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot
Characters often repeat actions, dialogue, or situations, returning to a starting point despite various events or attempts at advancement.
"Absurd is that which is devoid of purpose. . . . Cut from his religious, metaphysical, and transcendental roots, man is lost; all his actions become senseless, absurd, useless." - Eugène Ionesco
ABOVE: The Bald Soprano (Eugène Ionesco, 1950) features two couples engaging in nonsensical, repetitive dialogue that eventually breaks down into complete gibberish. The play ends with the first couple's lines being repeated by the second couple, suggesting an endless, cyclical repetition of absurd social interactions.
LEFT: And Now For Something Completely Different, Monty Python 1971.
In these sketches, an announcer (often Eric Idle) would declare "And now for something completely different," only for the subsequent sketch to sometimes quickly revert back to the previous one, or for the announcement itself to become part of a larger, self-referential loop. This described a structural circularity that subverted the expectation of a new segment, highlighting the show's chaotic and unpredictable nature.
Another example that isn't a strict "plot" but creates a strong sense of circularity and inescapable absurdity is the way many of their sketches would break down and self-destruct, only to restart or transition abruptly to something else that felt like a continuous, illogical flow rather than a series of distinct, progressing narratives. The feeling of "déjà vu" and the perpetual sensation of things not truly ending but merely morphing into something equally bizarre is a hallmark of their style.
In these sketches, an announcer (often Eric Idle) would declare "And now for something completely different," only for the subsequent sketch to sometimes quickly revert back to the previous one, or for the announcement itself to become part of a larger, self-referential loop. This described a structural circularity that subverted the expectation of a new segment, highlighting the show's chaotic and unpredictable nature.
Another example that isn't a strict "plot" but creates a strong sense of circularity and inescapable absurdity is the way many of their sketches would break down and self-destruct, only to restart or transition abruptly to something else that felt like a continuous, illogical flow rather than a series of distinct, progressing narratives. The feeling of "déjà vu" and the perpetual sensation of things not truly ending but merely morphing into something equally bizarre is a hallmark of their style.
Assignment: Circular Plot Lines
Assignment: Circular Plot Lines
Create a scene that uses a circular plot line, emphasizing a futility of human endeavor, the arbitrary nature of existence, and the inescapable repetition of life's meaningless routines.
Allegorical Theatrical Design
Allegorical Theatrical Design
The acknowledgement of performance (and, at the same time, the discarding of capturing reality) opens many opportunities for expression. Just as the actors don't need to remain under the strict rules of realistic acting, neither do designers. It's not complete randomness and chaos (unless it is); rather, designers' work helps support the rules of the allegories.
SYMBOLS, CONTRAST, COMPOSITION, UNIFIED THEME. As with acting, designers benefit from their sophistication. Knowledge of the community, knowledge of historical/aesthetic periods, and knowledge of art and experience in aesthetic composition creates detailed, efficient work.
Historical Verisimilitude. A frequent device used to acknowledge the meta-play is accurate, authentic, specific portrayal of an historic time. Productions that utilize historical verisimilitude are called period pieces and distance an audience from the events of any plot. When you watch a piece that's so far removed from your life, you'll tend to objectify it.
Start with the bare stage. Our theatrical predecessors Bertolt Brecht and Peter Brook preferred to acknowledge the performance space (in fact, Brecht's theatre style developed alongside Constructivism). Function typically upstages Form; instead of developing beauty of the aesthetic, we acknowledge and prefer the beauty the way it works.
It's all about efficient communication of message. Designers focus on the look and sound of the allegory, supporting the actions portrayed by the actors. Sometimes designers support the reality of an embedded narrative; sometimes designers support the meta-play with a distancing effect. Some examples of distancing effects include:
Signs, words, headlines, quotes, instructions, titles
Lights/set support explanation, clarity, efficiency
Historical verisimilitude in sets is frequently contrasted with the black background of the acknowledged production stage
Production equipment like cameras, boom mics, lighting instruments are frequently exposed as part of the spectacle of performance
Tools, utility, unfinished/unpainted/unfinished surfaces
Deliberately fake or "rehearsal grade" props and costumes, as well as staged or deliberate mistakes
Design that incorporates/produces irony (frequently a joke or gag)
High-utility "props" needed by the performer such as water bottles, lecterns, script prompters, note cards
High-allegory design choices (in opposition to high-utility) for deliberate obscurity or vague interpretation
Projections, inserts, subtitles
Start with the bare stage. Our theatrical predecessors Bertolt Brecht and Peter Brook preferred to acknowledge the performance space (in fact, Brecht's theatre style developed alongside Constructivism). In this media, function typically upstages form. Instead of developing the aesthetic, we prefer admiring the way it works.
Efficient communication of message. Designers focus on supporting the actions portrayed by the actors in the allegory. Sometimes they create an embedded narrative; sometimes designers support the meta-play with a distancing effect. Some examples of distancing effects include:
Projections, inserts, subtitles for signs, words, headlines, quotes, instructions, titles
Lights/set support explanation, clarity, efficiency
Production equipment like cameras, boom mics, lighting instruments are frequently exposed as part of the spectacle of performance
Tools, utility, unfinished/unpainted/unfinished surfaces
Deliberately fake or "rehearsal grade" props and costumes, as well as staged or deliberate mistakes
Design that incorporates/produces irony (frequently a joke or gag)
High-utility "props" needed by the performer such as water bottles, lecterns, script prompters, note cards
High-allegory design choices (in opposition to high-utility) for deliberate obscurity or vague interpretation
Historical verisimilitude in sets is frequently contrasted with the black background of the acknowledged production stage
Absurdist Design
Absurdist Design
The acknowledgement of performance (and at the same time breaking the illusion of reality) opens many opportunities for expression. Just as actors don't need to follow the strict rules of realistic acting, neither do designers. It's not complete randomness and chaos (unless it is); rather, designers' work helps support the allegory.
SYMBOLS, CONTRAST, COMPOSITION, UNIFIED THEME. As with acting, designers benefit from their sophistication. Knowledge of the community, knowledge of historical/aesthetic periods, and knowledge of art and experience in aesthetic composition creates detailed, efficient work.
Drunk History's design aspects (that's costumes, location, props) are historically accurate when, compared to the actor's conditions, is a high contrast irony.
Historical Verisimilitude. A frequent device used to acknowledge the meta-play is accurate, authentic, specific portrayal of an historic time. Productions that utilize historical verisimilitude are called period pieces and distance an audience from the events of any plot. When you watch a piece that's so far removed from your life, you'll tend to objectify it.
Absurdist Finals
Absurdist Finals
Our final assignment this quarter is either
creation and/or performance/presentation of non-narrative media, or
an independent project which displays mastery of another type of content
PERFORMANCES BEGIN DECEMBER 12, 2025
PERFORMANCES BEGIN DECEMBER 12, 2025
"No more masterpieces!"-Antonin Artaud, Theatre and its Double
Q2 Absurdist Theatre Playlist
Q2 Absurdist Theatre Playlist
Here's my YouTube playlist of all the videos we watched throughout the quarter. Enjoy!
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