The period 1920–40 saw the flowering of high modernism, involving radical innovation and experimentation across literature and the arts including the theatre. Dramatists in these decades ...
MoreThe period 1920–40 saw the flowering of high modernism, involving radical innovation and experimentation across literature and the arts including the theatre. Dramatists in these decades stretched audiences’ expectations and imaginations as never before, and introduced ever more daring subject matter and characterization. ‘Metatheatre and modernity’ discusses some of the key figures in modern drama, including Bertolt Brecht and Luigi Pirandello. Both playwrights wanted to provoke their audiences, but where Pirandello’s aesthetic was philosophically inclined, Brecht’s was informed by ideology, politics, and the desire to change society. This period also witnessed a surge of new plays by women—many dealing with feminist concerns—as well as the emergence of political theatre and surrealism. ...
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