TWENTIETH CENTURY THEATRE

DRAMA IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY CONFLICTING TRENDS The word that defines the modern stage is eclectic No other era offers such a complex set of confusing trends. During the Elizabethan period and the Restoration and other periods there was no doubt considerable diversity in influences from without and in the flow of native theatrical currents. Drama of the years 1900 and 1962 they must indeed appear simple and orderly. This means that while it is enterely proper to look at the drama of these 60 years as a unit .A clear line can be drawn from the plays which were being produced during the reign of Edward Vil on to those now being performed during the reign of Elizabeth II. Wee must be alert t observe the series of dramatic waves which within the six decades constantly disturbs and at times redirected the main currents. In order to appreciate fully the growth of the theatre from 1900 onwards there are Items to be considered.

Fundamental is the fact that the twentieth century witnessed the final culmination of the stage commercialism and , as an answer to that commercialization, the rise of repertory playhouses, all ultimately taking their inspiration from the devoted work of Annie Horniman at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin (1903) and at the gaiety of the theatre in Manchester (1907) Apart from the theatrical activity there were movements: Music hall soared into prominence and much of were concerned with drama as such, the fairly regular short sketches incorporated contributed to the one-act play several associated The the music hall turns not performances of the popularity of the

There was also the extension of the dramatic companies

Amateurs of course have been active on the stage from medieval times. Yet only th in the 20 c they have come to take their work seriously and aided in the encouragement of young playwrights. Partly this was due to amateur companies intent not merely upon amusing themselves but also upon presenting dramas which for one reason and another had hardly any chance given professional public performances.

These companies were adjunct to the theatre clubs which from the time of the stage society onwards, put on new plays and old for the matine to the repertory movement as a whole.
In 1919 Nugget Monk thus establish the Norwich Players and created an Elizabethan Type stage in Madder Market Theatre, shortly before in 1911, The People 's Theatre at New Castle was founded; out of an originally amateur touring group called pilgrim players

TWENTIETH CENTURY DRAMA

The significance of these amateur activities was recognized by Geoffrey Withworth, who in 1919 founded the British Drama League for the purpose of aiding their efforts and encouraging their more serious endeavors

The Scottish Community Drama Association was established with a similar objective for the territories north and border. For the first time since the days of the mystery pJays amateurs began to make contributions to the stage as a whole.
At the same time other developments operated on the theatre from without. Just before 1914 the silent cinema was beginning to make its impact on the public, and soon luxurious films and picture palaces sprang up all over the country, rapidly destroying the last remnants of the last Theatre Royal tradition

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In the Thirties carne the popularity of the SOUND FILMS Dominant until they were confronted with the revivary of television. The music halls and films were to a certain extent responsible for the tremendous vogue of reviews themselves contributed much to the growth of new styles of musical drama. Many of them originating abroad in New York and elsewhere. Perhaps at no time has the English theatre shown such a keen eager and informed interest in current dramatic rnovements outside its own national boundaries. Only in the twentieth century do we encounter a determined effort to know everything about what was going abroad.

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Translation in forieng words proliferated, while dozens of books and articles were devoted to the current fortunes of the theatre in many countries. Thus playwrights such as Strinberg, Chejov, Toller carne to mean for English dramatic authors more than Moliere and Racine had meant for the men of the Restoration we are concerned now, not merely with the adapting of some particular plays chosen at random, but with attempt to explore fundamental dramatic attitudes. English intellectuals have been engaged in a continual series of discoveries most of them arousing immediate excitement and then being tossed aside.

The stage of the period was deeply coloured by the historical events and by the scientific trends which have so markedly altered and disrupted their lives The world wars could not but leave an impress on the theatres. At the same time the curious fact must be observed that neither 1914 -1918 or 1939-45 war made any such break in dramatic development as we might have expecified The bombings of the later years for a time caused some of the playhouses to close, we can not see any distinction between the dramatic writing before 1914 and immediately after 1918 or between 1939 and irnmediately after 1945. It is not possible to speak of pre-war or post-war stage in so far as the stage is concerned. Realism is the great movement of the 20th century with all its departures The plays written in 1955-1962 can be traced back to a combination of forces to the establishment of scientific priesthood without any God t worship and an ironic contrast between washing machines and nuclear bombs These conflicting influences and conditions make it impossible to speak of any prevailing modern style on dramatic compostion.

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There is a tendency to draw a distinction between commercial and non commercial drama with the implication suggested that only in the former area was virtue to be found

As regards the achievements of the period as a whole all we can do is to draw the attention to a few general tendencies.
One of these is the definite establishment of the prose realistic play, sometimes concerned with the personal realistic conceptions of characters sometimes seeking to present theatrical images of wider social force so often with particular stress upon ideas. In saying this however it is necessary to emphasize once more that Realism in the theatre is a relative term that even now at the time when realistic endeavor have been have bee pursuing its course though many generations there is an active debate as what the term implies.

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Through sixty years there have been constant efforts on the parts of many dramatists to plead for and to experiment in plays constructed according to different patterns. The fantastic, the poetic all coexisted alongside the naturalistic and realistic and in so far as the poetic is concerned we are forced to admit that several of the dramas written in this style during recent years have come closer to genuine success. There were more imaginative dramas particularly those who have written their dialogue in verse forms have endeavored to look back towards the time that honored tragedy. But the efforts in this direction have been sporadic and uncertain. With the result that we may regard the cultivation of the middle range of drama as one of the ages characteristics. The majority of the 20thc. dramas are called nothing but plays occasionally mingling together. The laughable and the serious, but mostly pursuing a path quite distinct from the tragedy's passionate intensity.

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Themes: Play writing of the time tended to cultivate two areas those of social and sexual revolt The modern theater was established. So the names of some plays were like The New Son ,The Younger Generation, The New Idea. The trend led towards two things. First in certain circles there are signs that dramatic works are being regarded as less important than the social attitude adopted by a particular author and in addition there is an interest in romantic inclination to speak of plays not in terms of good or bad. But in terms of modern and od. Revolt between Victorian conventions against parental authority, against romantic love against all sort of conditions lead towards the employment of shock tactics. In itself such a movement is by no means reprhensible. Yet the problem about the shock tactics is that as we proceed the shock is made greater and intensified and so over the passage of years the audience are reluctant to become familiar with the way of presenting tings upon the stage.

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George Bernard Shaw was startling his public by introducing the word "bloody in his dialogue within recent years his success have been taking delight in exploiting words able to control its natural functions or eager to talk about their bowels. The difference lies not in the dramatists objectives but in the nature of their subject matter. The impact of that relatively innocuous bloody was far greater than the entire mass of shock effects

PUBLIC In the 1900 the play going public was an extensive one and the theatres in the provinces were flourishing today (in those days) The metropolis having expanded and now attracting hundreds of visitors from

the outside.
Yet the play going public has materially declined and inspite of the activities of the repertory playhouses there have been a marked falling of interest in the

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theatres though out of the provinces. Two things are responsible before 1910 the silent pictures were beginning to attract the public away from the stage. During the thirties the sound films carne into their own and within the past ten or fifteen years television has swept over the country. The rival attractions have much to do with the difficulties which many theatre encounter in gathering audiences sufficient to cover their costs. At the same time it may have suggested that the element of revolt within the drama of the period has been partly responsible.

From the close of Victoria's reign until now playwrights have shown themselves interested into the instruction al element. Indeed writing these instructional elements have been presented not in an implied or suggested way but clearly stated.As a result the quality o entertainment has declined. Playgoers now go to the theatre in order to be entertained

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TASTES Spectators prepares genuinely for tragic effect, to be caught up by an also plot to be charmed, by dialogue, to have their laughter aroused by comic concepts What motivates them is dullness and sermonizing. The trouble with the stage during the modern period has been that the cleavage has developed between entertainment and instruction, leading to two kinds of performances almost akin to legitimate and illegitimate productions of the 19 . those which devoid of the deeper significance aim only at the thrill of vacuum laughter. And those which subordinate the giving of pleasure to an intellectual and often political end. In view of this it is perhaps not surprising that the audience have declined. The thoughtless entertainment can be obtained more easily and more cheaply

from the offering of the cinema and the television. And the more serious plays
lack intensity and excitement. The crisis in the theatre during the six decades in question depend upon within as well as from external conditions.

The thoughtless entertainment can be obtained more easily and more cheaply from the offering of the cinema and the television. And the more serious plays lack intensity and excitement. The crisis in the theatre during the six decades in question depend upon within as well as from external conditions. The Realistic Social Drama The perplexing variety of styles and influences make very difficult the grouping of the numerous playwrights who has made significant contribution to the stage During the opening decades of the century the social drama takes the first place. In 1906 John Galsworthy immediately established himself as forc. We

REALISTIC STAGE CONVENTIONS

Proscenium stage Audience as fourth wall Change in acting conventions Continued improvement in stagecraft: electric lighting, set design, costumes, etc.

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are confronted with a drama which strives o gain social effect from social situation rather than from character JG motto: one law for the rich another for the poor. If a rich man behaves as badly as the poor one on the latter goes to prison the other does not With great care Galthsworthy avoids condemning the individual person the :;. invisible social structure becomes the hero of the play and what emerges is a sense of inevitability and waste

Some works The Pidgeon (1912) Justice (1910)

In STRIFE (1914) he does not make either Antony, director of the company; or Roberts, leader of the workers, men who govern events. Both no doubt have iron wills; both are determined to fight to their bitter end and they are no drawn in individualistic heroic terms. One takes his strength for what is called capitalists faith the other from the faith of the rebels

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For his dramatic tasks Galsworthy possessed certain outstanding qualities . He has a profoundly humanitarian outlook upon life, and he strove to the best of his ability to adopt an objective attitude, he was slow to condemn individuals and preferred to balance vices and virtues, In general he was not sentimental in his approach and only rarely did he rely upon pathos for the effect of his scenes

He had an excellent sense of his dramatic architecture. And though there is no emphasis upon individuals. He has the power to give a living quality to the persons with whom he dealt. He provided for domestic tragedy in which instead of concentrating upon characters resembling the Shakespearean tradition he has to give dramatic expression to these invisible forces holding mankind in the grip.

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Characters are ordinary common place men and women even when they are the best of their kind the stress is upon themes like Strife, Justice Loyalty. The stature of man derives rather than from the environment which has shape rather than from within himself. Galsworthy was indeed at the threshold of a new kind of theatre adapted to suit the demands of an age different in outlook and in circumstances from the ancient Athenian and Elizabethan Yet he did not succeed in reaching his goal and that the prose realistic stage must perforce abandon all hope of reproaching the range of tragedy. Tragedy bases itself upon emotion and ordinary prose dialogue inevitably fails when it essays to explore the passions . This is the failure of Galsworthy 's plays through his employment of one particular device. Many silent scenes or episodes in other of his dramas are used, instead of effectively expressing by action what could not be given in words, are in fac confessions of the total inadequacy of the prose medium. Because he cannot discover words within this medium to convey emotions.

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DRAMATIC IMPOTENCE OF THE REALISTIC PROSE MDIUM. It is not Galsworthy's fault the one he cannot convey in words the emotion intended to be aroused by these senses; the fault lies in the form itself and all the playwrights who have adopted have been compelled to accept its limitations.