DUE APRIL 3
- Pay particular attention to my recorded lecture on Brecht, minutes 3:30 – 33:30 and Chemers’ summary of Brecht on Digital Theatre +.  Watch the video-taped production of “Stunted Trees” on Digital Theatre +.
- Choose TWO Brechtian ideas and/or methods from the recorded lecture and/or Chemers to discuss elements of “Stunted Trees.” For instance, one of the things I discuss in the lecture is how Brecht used set design to “alienate” his audience. How does the set design of “Stunted Trees” express this Brechtian idea? Explain. Make sure you cite the scene from the production by listing the minute/second mark in the video.
- Take ONE of the Brechtian ideas that you discussed above, and imagine how it could be applied to the story of any of the productions we have watched this semester so far (Antigone, Henry V, A Doll’s House). Discuss how the production we saw would look if Brecht had directed it or re-written the story. How would it have been staged (set, structure of story, or acting).Â
Epic Theater, When Emerson (12:09) and Miles does their inter dialogue of what they think of the moment and the possible future action. We all knew what was going to happen to Emerson, of him getting convicted for beating up another person and with him getting worked up and frustrated that he goes insane, which doesn’t help him in the long run. Now the audience has to wonder what will he do next that would only cause him to go further down.
Alienation Effect: the non-realistic props and settings that do not resemble naturalistic environments can serve to remind the audience that they are watching a performance. For example, the MRI machine with the brain scanner and Miles “lab” with all the item he likes to tinker with. This creates a disruption and break the illusion of reality and prompt audiences to question.
If Brecht were to re-directed Macbeth, there would be many changes. Such as the set design, like instead of realistic backdrops or elaborate set pieces, the set might consist of minimalist, abstract structures. This would remind the audience that they are witnessing a performance and prompt them to critically analyze the themes and messages of the play. The only thing that won’t change is the EPIC style since we the audience get spoiled by the fate of Macbeth from the start of the play where the witches foretold his death. Now we are to ponder how Macbeth will die and who is the man not born from a woman.
Bertolt Brecht’s ideas of epic theatre revolves around the audience’s ability to envision, crafting a production that didn’t involve a high cost production set, and to introduce the audience into an unfamiliar territory in which they have not experienced before. Alienation is the main term used in Brecht’s style of theatre because he chooses to do things out of the ordinary. For example, in the set of “Stunted Trees and Broken Bridges” there is only a single set used and the audience has to imagine the type of setting the actor is in. This can be seen from 13:00 – 19:00 where the characters are carrying around a tray with food, showcasing that they are in a cafeteria environment. Although the production can be seen as designed for parkour and other activities, this scene stands out because it shows you don’t need a specific set design to show the audience what you’re trying to portray.
If Brecht were to portray his vision on a production such as A Doll’s house, I would like to envision that his set design would be similar to “Shunted Trees.” Because A Doll’s House takes place on a single set of a revolving home, this would merge with Brecht’s idea perfectly. Not only would he be able to have a single, simplistic set without the revolving house, he wouldn’t need walls, decorative home furniture and windows. Instead, he would probably have some sort of seating arrangement, perhaps a single stand alone wall to experiement with isolated conversations. The point being that Brecht would design something with a minimalistic point of view but would get through to the audience what he is trying to portray with minimal props using acting.
In “Stunted Trees,” the set design, particularly its abstraction and minimalist approach, alienates the audience, discouraging emotional engagement and encouraging critical engagement. For instance, the use of unconventional props like a tree stump as a podium doesn’t give realism and emphasizes the artificiality of the theatrical space. The abstract set design around the 12:00 mark serves both to distance the audience and to incorporate Brecht’s concept of Epic Theatre. This departure from realism encourages viewers to engage critically with the play’s themes, which is in line with Epic Theatre’s goal of provoking intellectual thinking rather than emotional identification.
If Brecht had directed “Henry V,” the production would have critiqued militarism and idolization of war. Staging would most likely show minimalist sets and symbolic imagery to describe the consequences of conflict.
Two methods Bertolt Brecht uses to “alienate” the audience is a very minimalist (brightly lit) set and another is the actor coming out of character to remind the audience that they are watching a piece of fiction.
The production uses these Brecht methods for the scanning scene at (9:00 – 13:00) The design of the set is very abstract and simple compared to a “realistic” set and it feels very detached. Emerson also comes out of character breaking into a monologue which makes it very apparent that this is fiction so the audience can turn off their heart in a sense. This allows the audience to focus on the “why” of everything that is happening.
One way I think the Brecht method of breaking out into character would work in Henry V is perhaps before King Henry goes into his own camp disguising himself as a soldier, maybe he would acknowledge the tensions of the war to the audience and announce his worries of the final battle and his army’s perception of him. This would potentially allow the audience to detach themselves for a brief moment and to focus on the plays overall message and goal. It would allow for a mental break and achieve that alienation effect the Brecht likes to use in his plays. I believe the set would have also been way more simplistic. There would be the same floor stage, without those props used in the original as a background. I do believe the costumes could have remained the same, but this would allow for less immersion and bring more light to the fact that this is a fictional work.
Brecht style is seen in the play by the set design. The set designed with a thrust seating arrangement so the audience surrounds the stage. The stage is made up of movable light colored blocks to separate the audience as well as keep their attention on the actors. The blocks are non realistic to any location but work in all the scenes shown. The different locations such as the lab (11:35), parkouring scenes like the one at 35:00, and Miles’ workshop at 26:00 were able to seamless flow thanks to the design.
The stage design of Stunted Trees and Broken Bridges could be used if Brecht reimagined The Dolls House. The play has a bigger cast but never quite many on stage at once. Any needed prop could be hidden away till needed. Nora would be the most redesigned as she would profess her desires and opinions without much hesitation or runaround when speaking to Torvald. We would have seen the growth of independence throughout the play and hear more about the complexity she experiences with love. And of course, we would know the true feelings of everyone so we can focus on why they behave way.
After watching the projection what I can tell is how the set design is set towards the action and how there is questions towards their brain and study. I do see that in both they applied in the way that in other films the setting as this had been done in a simulation while the other film has more of acting and this is more real. In the video studded tree in the time 4:05 that there where a question that was answered.
Two Brechtian ideas
Non-linear narrative(Fragmented narratives): (18:05) As the music picks up from silence, Miles asks an introspective question to the audience. The silly joking kid turns to the audience with multiple questions. Questioning their morality, if they’ve committed horrible acts if they feel like they’re different. This is supposed to represent isolation in social environments. Being different or carefree can viewed as troubling when put under an analytical lens. Questioning and doubting yourself with the different actions you’ve made in your life. The stage forces you to focus on Miles as he speaks.
I can imagine Hamlet with the music of this production. The music could’ve added an air to the films as the actions of the play, Hamlet, were the main driving point for the importance of the play. However, with the addition of music, it could reflect the emotions and themes of each scene thus empowering the actions of the play.
Music: The music has an eerie tone with clicks, clacks, and reverb. Creating an eerie atmosphere considering the sets are blocky and elevated with a projection of buildings, the music creates tension within the scene thus amplifying the tension between the actors. This tone in music is odd. It’s always tense. The music and the actor’s aggressive menacing gaze always make me uneasy thus making me invested in the plot. (10:50) As the doctor asks Emerson questions, the music goes through a consistent reverb sound and gets louder and harsher with each lie. Pressure begins to build.
JIANWEI SHI
Two of Brechtian ideas in lecture records are to alienate the audience and to make the audience think and question the world they live in. In the recorded lecture, Brecht alienates the audience by modulating the storyline through the characters’ performances and specific set designs on stage. Particularly when the characters interact, the camera switches and the proximity of where the characters are positioned show Brechtian idea of leaving the audience to imagine rather than invest in the story. The set of the dwarf trees plays a crucial role in Brechtian ideas because instead of making the audience more invested in what is happening in the play, the set of the dwarf trees brings the audience closer to being half involved in the end of the play and half thinking about the issues. In particular, the passage from 35:00 to 40:43 in the video left the deepest impression on me because it gave me the feeling that the main character was dialoguing with someone in his mind, and gave a sense of the gap between reality and illusion.
I think that if Brechtian had come to direct A Doll’s House, much of it would have been rewritten. He would probably have designed a dark cartoon-style set, like cartoon-style nights and buildings. But the performances in A Doll’s House would probably stay the same because the style of Brechtian performances tends to make the audience think rather than make them guess what is going on in the play. Particularly when light comes in through the windows, passages of love or male/female bickering may occur. Overall, Brechtian production of A Doll’s House would have been a different experience for the audience; the style of performance may have been the same, but the content and scenes of the show would have been altered a bit, and he would have made the audience think about the situations that took place in the play, and whether or not there were any memories they had of experiencing the same thing.
One of Brechtian’s methods I’d like to discuss is his method of minimalistic designs. The set design of “Stunted Trees” expresses this idea by making the stage’s design minimalistic and simple allowing for words and the actors’ actions to be expressed “louder.” (01:40). Another one of Brechtian’s methods is his form of didacticism, in the case of “Stunted Trees,’ the actor who plays Miles talks to the audience and poses a question to the audience. This type of structure makes it so that the audience feel a bit more engaged.(18:06)
Brechtian’s method of didacticism would work well if it were applied to Antigone, giving the actors a brief moment to talk to audience and propose a question based on the current event. If Brecht were to have directed the play, there would be a moment where the stage dims and the focus centers Antigone, who debates and questions the audience if she’s on the right for wanting to bury her brother, this scene would touch upon the theme or morality.
The set design of “Stunted Trees” expresses the idea of alienation by having a very bare stage with pieces of the floor missing in various areas, a single projector casting the backdrop and placards prior to the start of each scene. This type of set design allows for the audience to focus more on the dialogue between actors making it easier to pick up on things like power inequality between characters. At (47:04) the scene begins with the placard “Experimental treatment. 2017” already preparing the audience for what will happen in the scene; it then continues with the actor who plays miles changing clothes in order to begin playing the role of the judge, another Brechtian idea meant to alienate the audience from the characters. Lastly the part of this scene which the set design really amplified this idea was when the Judge was sentencing Mr. Kent. The actor stood in the missing floor piece and the judge stood on top of the floor so that there was a height disparity and the scene taking place in a courtroom really showed the power imbalance between the two characters. One of the Brechtian methods I noticed a lot in stunted trees was breaking of character. Some of the actors play multiple characters and even go as far as swapping into the characters on stage in front of the audience, this ties into the Brechtian idea of engaging the audience and keeping them entertained while also separating them from their emotions from the characters the actors are playing. Another Brechtian idea i saw was in scene “The Love Spray. 2017.” (at 42:45), the placard spoiling the contents of the scene is a Brechtian idea in itself but the music and actors dancing is what I was really focused on. The actor dancing coupled with the music appeared to be “gestus” and immediately you can see the effect it has on the audience, evoking laughter from many of the members.
I would imagine the Brechtian idea of Alienation and apply it to the play “doll house”, one of the main aspects i could see being affected is the set design if this play was directed by Brecht. This being a realistic play it is very contrary to almost everything Brecht likes to write so one thing I could see is the set being very bare, similar to the set in Mother courage which would allow the audience to focus and analyze the audience between the husband and the wife more. Another alienation effect I could see being used are the placards that often spoil the scene especially at the ending when she leaves him as the build up in this scene was very intense and her decision really unexpected given the character she was portrayed as throughout the play. I believe the use of these placards in key points when she’s meeting with the collector in private or at the ending would allow the audience to analyze the scenes deeper and possibly even predict the ending or see deeper into the relationship between the husband and wife.
Brecht used two methods to alienate the audience which includes the character suddenly speaking to the audience and minimalist sets. As mentioned in the lecture, Brecht would use very few elements in the stage such as bit of costumes and a pool of light to have the audience mainly focus on what the actors are doing. We can see the minimalist set of “Stunted Trees” having lights that mainly focus on the actors, ignoring other parts of the theater (9:00). Therefore, once the actor begins to break character and speaks to the audience, it comes out as a shocker. The audience is so focused on what the actor says and does which proves how invested they are to the story and it reminds them that they are still in a theater. Although, the set is limited we can see how these two methods work great with each other.
If Brecht would have directed A doll’s house he would probably remove the interior of the house and leave every single room empty. This would allow each character to have their own “space” essentially where the audience is left to think of whats going on in the characters head and their emotions. He would most likely keep the actors performances the same way or similar to a way that the audience can relate to the characters. The lighting would be more on the actors to help with his other methods such as an actor breaking character.
Brecht, the renowned playwright, utilized two distinctive methods in his theatrical works: Verfremdungseffekt (alienation effect) and epic theatre. These approaches aimed to provoke critical thinking and engagement among the audience by breaking the illusion of realism and encouraging analytical detachment. In his play “The Caucasian Chalk Circle,” Brecht employs these techniques masterfully, notably through the metaphor of stunted trees. These trees symbolize the oppressive societal structures that hinder human progress and justice, prompting audiences to reflect on the underlying social and political messages embedded within the narrative