Development of the Dramatic Genre
3.2 Style
After analysing the text, the designer and the director will meet and discuss their ideas in order to formulate a concept and a style for the production. Palmer (1994:167) defines style in theatre as "a recurring way of doing things characteristic of a given director, designer, or actor, typical of a specific theatrical period, or peculiar to a certain theatrical form". The style or 'look' of a production is influenced and shaped by a number of factors, which include the directorial style and approach, the dramatic genre, the theatre space, and the production budget.
3.2.1 The Directorial Style and Approach
Before a designer starts working on a production, s/he must be aware of the director's decisions with respect to his/her directorial style chosen for the production. The director is often the central pivot in a production and communicates his/her concepts and ideas to the performers and other members of the production team. However, each director approaches the written text in a different way and his/her decisions with regard the interpretation or use of the text may influence and impact on the choices taken by the designer. A number of theorists, including Robert Benedetti (1985), Charles Marowitz (1991) and Robert Smallwood (1996), have divided the director's approach to the text into various categories that can range from the conservative/purist4 to the moderate/liberal5 and, thirdly, the radical/interpretative6. The above three approaches differ widely and each will affect the final design. The designer working with a purist director needs to pay close attention to the information (historical period, social, economic and geographic) contained in the text that relates to the scenery, so that the
4 The director chooses to leave the text alone and interpret it only as far as is necessary to tell the story (Smallwood, 1996:178).
5 The moderate director acknowledges the fact that the text needs to be cut and will make the relevant edits that are in line with his/her ideas for the production (Marowitz, 1991:16).
6 The radical director views the text as a starting point from which the text can be altered, adapted and reworked to suit his/her directorial concept (Marowitz, 1991:16).
design compliments the director's approach. A radical director's approach permits the designer to experiment with concepts and materials that may not be considered conventional or traditional and thus create a new and exciting design that breaks preconceived ideas for the production. In addition, when working on a text framed in a particular historical period, the director and designer have the option of keeping the production within the timeframe in which it was written or they can explore new ways to present the text. This can include setting the text in an alternative historical period, taking a modern interpretation, or using an eclectic mix of periods, styles and ideas (Berry, 1989:5-23).
3.2.2 Theatrical Styles
Once the director has chosen his/her directorial approach, the theatrical style of the production can be discussed. Set design styles can be divided into various categories, because of the similar features they possess, and range from a faithful recreation of an existing environment to an abstract non-representative structure that provides a purely functional background for the director and performer.
The first style, realism (Wright, 1972:153) or naturalism (Palmer, 1994:168), originated from the realistic and naturalistic theatre movements of the nineteenth century (discussed in chapter one) where an exact copy of an environment was recreated on the stage and included using real grass, glass and other properties. This unquestioning attention to detail was not always practical and most audiences are able to "accept the premise that all art is [a process of] selection rather than representation [and] that the theatre must seem real [but] not be real" (Wright, 1972:153). The style, therefore, evolved into simplified (Wright, 1972:153) or selective (Palmer, 1994:169) realism that allowed for the substitution of various elements. Walls were now constructed from wood and canvas flats, and the joins were concealed with Dutchman. Gauzes replaced glass in the windows. This style is able to retain the realistic look while providing a suggestion of a 'real-life' environment without the impracticalities of the realist or naturalistic style. In figure 3.1. (overleaf) the room appears to be a 'real' environment with a fireplace, bookcase, window, and realistic furniture.
Figure 3.1. Simplified Realism for Eugene O'Neill Long Day's Journey into Night (1971), set design Elmon Webb and Virginia Dancy (Pecktal, 1975:85)
A further move away from realism is the impressionistic (Wright, 1972:154), fragmented (Palmer, 1994:169), suggestive (Selden and Sellman, 1959:8) or modified (Huberman, Ludwig and Pope, 1997:340) realistic style. This style creates a suggestion or impression of a setting by partially removing sections of the walls or by using clearly identifiable scenic units such as a fireplace or prison bars to locate and orientate the design. All scenic units within the design are painted and constructed realistically and the spectator is expected visually to 'fill' in the blanks. In figure 3.2. (overleaf) the corner of the room is indicated by a thick vertical beam and a horizontal cornice from which is suspended an open picture frame, with a moulded square arch representing the entrance. The furniture in the design is realistic and helps to identify the purpose of the room.
Theatricalism (Wright, 1972:154), an alternative style, has its roots in the perspectively painted scenery of the Renaissance period and relies on an exaggeration of a realistic source for its inspiration. The style can be identified by its approach to the painting as the audience is aware that the setting is a painted representation of the real thing. This is evident in figure 3.3. (overleaf) where the Greek decoration is painted in exaggerated stylised lines. An adaptation of this style creates a 'cartoon-like' (Palmer, 1994:171) appearance where realistic elements are selected and "simplif[ied] or exaggerate[d]"
through the use of "line, color [sic], form, or details to create a very distinct style, one firmly rooted in realism, but self-consciously distorting reality".
Figure 3.2. Fragmented Realism for Beethoven (playwright and date unknown), set design Ariel Balif (Parker, Smith and Wolf, 1985:82)
Figure 3.3. Theatricalism design for Barthe Halle's musical version of Aristophanes' Lysistrata (1951), set design Kaare Hegle (Hainaux, 1970:153)
Expressionism (Selden and Sellman, 1959:9; Wright, 1972:154; Palmer, 1994:176), symbolism (Palmer, 1994:174) or surrealism (Palmer, 1994:176), all early twentieth century artistic movements (Brockett and Hildy, 2003:411, 432-433, 439), follow
abstract themes that are not rooted in a realistic interpretation of the text.
Expressionism uses distorted images, exaggerated colour, texture and/or shape in the setting. In the design for Hamlet (figure 3.4.), the designer sought to reflect the mental or emotional state of the characters. A surrealistic design places unrelated pictures/objects together, often changing their size and scale, to create an altered, almost dreamlike, perception of the environment, while a symbolist setting attributes meaning to objects and images in the design that the spectator will, consciously or subconsciously, interpret within the context of the production.
Figure 3.4. Expressionistic design for Tchaikovsky's ballet Hamlet (1942), set design Leslie Hurry (Hainaux, 1970:177)
Lastly, settings can be created using an abstract, non-representational approach. The formalist style (Selden and Sellman, 1959:9; Wright, 1972:155; Parker and Wolf, 1996:172) seeks to create a neutral setting that can consist of rostra, stairs and walls assembled in a purely functional manner. It provides an environment in which the actor and director can work without 'fixing' it to a specific period or locality and is often suitable for productions where multiple scenes are required and budgets limited. In figure 3.5. (overleaf) the design is composed of a series of levels, stairs and vertical poles that allows the director to use the given space in a number of ways.
Figure 3.5. Formalistic design for Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra (1963), set design Ming Cho Lee (Warre, 1968:67)
However, most designers respond instinctively to the needs of the production, which often means "few settings will ever fit solely into a single classification, for freedom permits borrowing from any source that will contribute to the total effectiveness of the artist's goal in creating the proper locale" (Wright, 1972:151).