The Story
Arguing against the notion that theatrical success depends upon a spectators suspension of disbelief, this study emphasizes the audiences recognition of theatre as theatre, of rhetorical categories, and of the byplay between mimetic representation and explicit artistic conventions. It discusses the shifts between stage action and appeals to the audience to gauge the relative distances of actor and spectator (King Lear, for example, begins as the master of all around him but ends as a helpless witness, moving steadily toward the audience with enormous dramatic effect). Treating six plays Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Measure for Measure, Othello, Hamlet and The Winters Tale and referring to many others, it takes advantage of Shakespeares diversity to elucidate fundamental questions about how theatre elicits effects.
Description
Arguing against the notion that theatrical success depends upon a spectators suspension of disbelief, this study emphasizes the audiences recognition of theatre as theatre, of rhetorical categories, and of the byplay between mimetic representation and explicit artistic conventions. It discusses the shifts between stage action and appeals to the audience to gauge the relative distances of actor and spectator (King Lear, for example, begins as the master of all around him but ends as a helpless witness, moving steadily toward the audience with enormous dramatic effect). Treating six plays Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Measure for Measure, Othello, Hamlet and The Winters Tale and referring to many others, it takes advantage of Shakespeares diversity to elucidate fundamental questions about how theatre elicits effects.
