96432 - History of Directing (1)

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide students with the following competences and skills: - Knowledge of the milestones in the history of stage direction; - Knowledge of the main historiographic and critical perspectives of studies in the field of stage direction; - Ability to use a method of investigation for the analysis of stage direction as an event.

Course contents

The Invisible Hand of the Stage: Figures, Practices, and Poetics of Theatrical Direction

The course will begin with a historical overview of the phenomenon of directing, with particular attention to moments that mark paradigm shifts in the conception of theatrical events. It will start with the pioneering productions of early 19th-century France, move through the experiments of naturalism and symbolism, examine attempts at both de-theatricalization and re-theatricalization of the stage, and ultimately arrive at the exceed of representation in the work of the 20th-century masters of theatrical research.

The second part of the course will begin with an analysis of No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre. Starting from this text, various stage productions will be compared, examining how different directorial approaches can lead to highly diverse performances, all based on the same script. The dramatic, literary, philosophical, and psychological richness of the play—suspended between familiar and uncanny atmospheres—opens up multiple interpretations on themes such as the gaze, otherness, and desire.

The final sessions will be dedicated to experimenting with individual and collective directing exercises, based on the techniques studied during the course and the students’ own creative needs.

Readings/Bibliography

Bibliography for Attending Students

- Il teatro di regia: genesi ed evoluzione (1870-1950), a cura di U. Artioli, Carocci, Roma 2004;

- J.-P. Sartre, Porta chiusa, in Le mosche - Porta chiusa, Bompiani, Milano 2013;

- Handout consisting of extracts from plays analysed during lectures;

- Lecture notes.

In addition, students must choose one text from the following list:

- A. Antoine, Il Théâtre-Libre e altri scritti, edited by Maria Grazia Porcelli, Dino Audino, Roma 2021;

- A. Appia, Attore, musica e scena, edited by Marrotti Ferruccio, Cue Press, Imola 2020;

- B. Brecht, Scritti teatrali, Einaudi, Torino 2001;

- J. Copeau, Il luogo del teatro. Antologia degli scritti, La Casa Usher, Firenze 1988;

- E. G. Craig, L’attore e la supermarionetta, in Edward Gordon Craig, Il mio teatro, edited by Ferruccio Marotti, Feltrinelli, Milano 1971;

- J. Grotowski, Il teatro povero, Bulzoni, Roma 1970;

- T. Kantor, Il teatro della morte, ubulibri, Milano 2000;

- K. Stanislavskij, Le mie regie. Il gabbiano, Cue Press, Imola 2016.

 

Bibliography for Non-Attending Students

Non-attending students must choose two texts from the following list:

- R. Alonge, Il teatro dei registi. Scopritori di enigmi e poeti della scena, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2006;

- R. Alonge e R. Tessari, Lo spettacolo teatrale. Dal testo alla messinscena, LED, Milano 1996;

- Il teatro di regia: genesi ed evoluzione (1870-1950), a cura di U. Artioli, Carocci, Roma 2004;

- F. Perrelli, I maestri della ricerca teatrale. Il Living, Grotowski, Barba e Brook, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2007;

In addition, students must choose three other texts from the following list:

- A. Antoine, Il Théâtre-Libre e altri scritti, edited by Maria Grazia Porcelli, Dino Audino, Roma 2021;

- A. Appia, Attore, musica e scena, edited by Marrotti Ferruccio, Cue Press, Imola 2020;

- B. Brecht, Scritti teatrali, Einaudi, Torino 2001;

- J. Copeau, Il luogo del teatro. Antologia degli scritti, La Casa Usher, Firenze 1988;

- E. G. Craig, L’attore e la supermarionetta, in Edward Gordon Craig, Il mio teatro, edited by Ferruccio Marotti, Feltrinelli, Milano 1971;

- J. Grotowski, Il teatro povero, Bulzoni, Roma 1970;

- T. Kantor, Il teatro della morte, ubulibri, Milano 2000;

- K. Stanislavskij, Le mie regie. Il gabbiano, Cue Press, Imola 2016.

Teaching methods

The course consists of lectures. Various examples of stage directions will be analysed during the through textual sources, iconographic materials and audiovisual documents. The active participation of the attending students will be solicited through classroom discussions. The lectures will occasionally include meetings with artists and scholars on topics close to those dealt with in the course.

Assessment methods

The final examination will consist of an oral interview that will focus on the topics covered in the lectures and on the texts in the bibliography in the case of those who attend; those who do not attend, on the other hand, will refer to the volumes indicated in the bibliography. The interview results in a grade in 30/30. No further papers are due before the oral examination interview. Active attendance of lectures is a relevant factor in the learning process and will therefore also influence the final assessment.

The learning of knowledge, the ability to analyse and synthesise, the organic view (and not the mechanical repetition) of the topics, lexical and expressive mastery, originality in the critical reworking of content will be taken into consideration for the assessment.

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities. It is necessary to contact the relevant University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) with ample time in advance: the office will propose some adjustments, which must in any case be submitted 15 days in advance to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of these in relation to the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Lectures accompanied by videos, iconographic material, textual sources.

Office hours

See the website of Caterina Piccione