Contrary to his well-known principle, « after the practice, the theory », Edward Gordon Craig dreamt of the Übermarionette and wrote his famous essay about it (“The Actor and the Übermarionette”, dated March 1907) before he had any possibility to experiment with it. Therefore, it is impossible to determine what the real nature of this instrument was, as theatre historians usually attempt to do, because it had none. The word « Übermarionette » refered indeed not to a single invention, but to a plurality of scenical and technical hypotheses among which Craig was never to chose. All these hypotheses – either with actors or with puppets – aimed to resolve the same question: how can the theatrical performance become a piece of art that would be the work of one sole artist? Following step by step, from 1904 to World War I, the tracks left in Craig’s notebooks, letters and manuscripts, or in testimonies from friends and relatives, this article brings into the light the development of his ideas for the Übermarionette and the various technical solutions he imagined to realize it: first a double masked actor, then lifesize figures encapsulating their “movers”, or keyboard-puppets. It also demonstrates how these projects were deeply rooted in the stage director’s fascination for puppets, and his progressive discovery that puppetry is by itself an art. Lastly, it underlines Craig’s desire for simultaneously combining different modes of presence on stage (Übermarionette, actor, puppet, shadow etc.) as an anticipation of today’s evolutions in puppet theatre.
Contrariamente al suo ben noto principio, "dopo la pratica, la teoria", Edward Gordon Craig sognò l'Übermarionette e scrisse il suo famoso saggio su di esso ("L'attore e la Übermarionette", datato marzo 1907) prima che avesse la possibilità di sperimentarlo. Pertanto, è impossibile determinare quale fosse la vera natura di questo strumento, come in genere gli storici del teatro tentano di fare. La parola «Übermarionette» si riferisce infatti non a una singola invenzione, ma a una pluralità di ipotesi sceniche e tecniche tra le quali Craig non avrebbe mai scelto. Tutte queste ipotesi - sia con attori che con pupazzi - miravano a risolvere la stessa domanda: come può la performance teatrale diventare un'opera d'arte che sarebbe opera di un unico artista? Seguendo passo dopo passo, dal 1904 alla prima guerra mondiale, le tracce lasciate nei quaderni, lettere e manoscritti di Craig o nelle testimonianze di amici e parenti, questo articolo mette in luce lo sviluppo delle sue idee per l'Übermarionette e le varie soluzioni tecniche immaginò di realizzarlo: prima un attore a doppia maschera, poi figure a grandezza naturale che incapsulavano i loro "movers", o burattini a tastiera. Dimostra anche come questi progetti fossero profondamente radicati nel fascino del regista teatrale per i burattini, e nella sua progressiva scoperta che il burattino è di per sé un'arte. Infine, sottolinea il desiderio di Craig di combinare simultaneamente diverse modalità di presenza sul palco (Übermarionette, attore, burattino, ombra, ecc.) come anticipazione delle evoluzioni odierne nel teatro dei burattini.
La velocità del cavallo e quella della lumaca: teorie e pratiche della Übermarionette in Gordon Craig
Paolo Sommaiolo
2018-01-01
Abstract
Contrary to his well-known principle, « after the practice, the theory », Edward Gordon Craig dreamt of the Übermarionette and wrote his famous essay about it (“The Actor and the Übermarionette”, dated March 1907) before he had any possibility to experiment with it. Therefore, it is impossible to determine what the real nature of this instrument was, as theatre historians usually attempt to do, because it had none. The word « Übermarionette » refered indeed not to a single invention, but to a plurality of scenical and technical hypotheses among which Craig was never to chose. All these hypotheses – either with actors or with puppets – aimed to resolve the same question: how can the theatrical performance become a piece of art that would be the work of one sole artist? Following step by step, from 1904 to World War I, the tracks left in Craig’s notebooks, letters and manuscripts, or in testimonies from friends and relatives, this article brings into the light the development of his ideas for the Übermarionette and the various technical solutions he imagined to realize it: first a double masked actor, then lifesize figures encapsulating their “movers”, or keyboard-puppets. It also demonstrates how these projects were deeply rooted in the stage director’s fascination for puppets, and his progressive discovery that puppetry is by itself an art. Lastly, it underlines Craig’s desire for simultaneously combining different modes of presence on stage (Übermarionette, actor, puppet, shadow etc.) as an anticipation of today’s evolutions in puppet theatre.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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