Total Theatre: A Critical Anthology

"Total Theatre," or "The Theatre of the Future," holds that the theatre is the place of intersection of all the arts: music, movement, voice, scenery, lightning, etc. More important, however, is the concept that there must be an effective interplay among the various elements or a significant synthesis of them.  This synthesis must always be intensive, effecting a true integration of the various components. At the same time, total theatre is yet to be realized, and this realization is to be a result of history, of a cultural evolutionary process. This outstanding anthology introduces the reader to the basic underlying principles and techniques that will contribute to the creation of the theatre of the future. The contents are divided into the following six sections: "The Foundations of Total Theatre," "Abstract Man: The Essence of Total Theatre," "Futurism and the Theatre of the Future," "Creative Staging: A Key to Total Theatre," "The Oriental Stage: Hieroglyphic Form," and "Light and Environment: The Context of Total Theatre." Total Theater is essential reading for all students and practioners of the modern theatre. Included are essays by Richard Wagner, Edward Gordon Craig, Walter Kerr, Sergei Eisenstein, Jean-Louis Barrault, and Antonin Artaud.