Visual Elements, Artaud plays, The Jet of Blood
Theatrical practice has been an influential part of English literature since time immemorial. The theatre, in ancient times, was a place of ceremony, healing, and rituals, where an audience could conduct an exorcism over a demon or any other such ceremony that required seclusion and intense concentration. Thus, theatres included even the churches and hospitals. However, by the eighteenth century, theatrical practice was mainly conducted in specific structures. Here, the audience enjoyed a variety of plays and other performances with the main aspect being the utilization and organization of a variety of visual elements in order to convey the story to the viewers. This paper tries to analyze how visual elements contributed to the development of ideas and narratives in Artaud plays, particularly the Jet of Blood.
Artaud wrote the Jet of Blood, also called the Spurt of Blood, in the mid twentienth century. It openly displays cruelty, aggressiveness, and absurd twists in the plot that cannot be staged in modern plays. As a result, Artaud is the master of the theatre of the illogical and his publications continue to spike up criticism and controversy up to date. An example is in the Jet of Blood in the scene where Artaud tries to describe how scorpions emerge under the clothing of a wet nurse and then throng into her private parts.
[...] They used their bodies and voices create an element of truth and emotional commitment to their work. Thus, the viewers acquired concentration to the play and followed it with love and satisfaction. Artaud also used the three dimensions in the stage in order to involve all parts of the audience and create a more vivid picture in their minds. Surrealism According to Levy it is impossible to translate dreams to words in a play. One can only visualize them by use of images. [...]
[...] All these elements describe how Artuad viewed the modern theatre in terms of development of its ideas and narratives. In his mind, every show should have its own operative elements, including vocals, lighting, and appearances. The duality between the stage manager and the author will also have to be replaced by a single mastermind who will ensure that the script is transformed to a theatrical performance that portrays physical reality. Furthermore, the auditorium should not have a partition in order for the audience to attain a direct contact with the play whereby they sit at the center of the action. [...]
[...] However, his instruments and equipment were primitive and his works was not a success. Mesmerism This describes the state where the character in the play is in a state of constant rhythm and YourLastName 7 movement in response to certain internal or external prompts. He or she is neither intellectual nor emotional. Plunka (102) argues that, in this element, where emotional intensity is required, the actors acquire such sensation from external stimuli like when at a political rally or rock concert. [...]
[...] He wants the audience to think beyond what they see and try to connect the visual situations in the play with the life in the society. Furthermore, Artaud saw theatre as more about the logic of a dream rather than any natural order of actions and events. He believed that dreams make us see what we do not want to speak or think of and collectively, they invoke greater change in the society. An example is in Seashell and the Clergyman' where the clergyman is obsessed with the wife of the general. [...]
[...] They make the audience to view and understand these intentions on the stage. From this point of view, music, lighting, and dance are laden with specific magical forces that empower them to form the concrete from the amorphous (Levy, 98). These Balinese theatrical elements made Artaud plays more exceptional especially since they expressed his ideas so vividly and cruelly. Furthermore, Artaud believed that words alone are not capable of expressing any feelings or attitudes. Their expression has to be felt YourLastName 8 symbolically where costumes, chanting, music, objects, words, and gestures have to collaborate in a play in order for maximum effectiveness in attaining powerful reactions from the spectator. [...]
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