Prof. De Kerckhove's Address

[lisa fitzpatrick]

Prof. Derrick de Kerckhove will give the keynote address at the opening
of FOOT 2000, Wednesday March 22nd at 3:30pm, at the Robert Gill
Theatre.

Beyond Brecht and Artaud: Positioning Theatre in the Context of New
Media.

It is interesting, in retrospect, to observe that Brecht knew everything
about the nature of theatre, but didn't know where it was going, while
Artaud really didn't have a clue about theatre's role, but was
already pushing it in the direction it seems to follow today. Theatre,
being a rather unique feature of western civilization, is dependent on
media and reacts swiftly to the changes in the mediascape. Its previous
role in classical antiquity was to effect a separation between the
audience and the stage and the stage was to serve as model for the
development of the typically private and individualized western
consciousness. Now that new interactive media and virtual realities are
both narrowing the gap between audience and stage and extending
consciousness outside the mind, what is theatre's new job? How does the
electronic total surround affect writing, character-building, acting,
staging, and indeed, audiences of theatre?
Are we looking at a Renaissance or a meltdown of theatricality?

Robert Gill Theatre, Graduate Centre for Study of Drama,
Koffler Student Services, 214 College St., 3rd Floor.