The final of the three practitioners we are studying in this experimental term is Peter Brook, an English dramatist. It is very difficult to say what type of work Brook produces because it changes based on which group of actors he works with, a key part of Brook's work because he wanted to try many different styles regardless of whether they were popular at the time. I find Peter Brook the most interesting person to study because he is still alive, and still making work according to an interview he did with The Guardian in 2011 (there is a link below).
Brook was born in 1925 to a privileged Latvian background and was transfixed on film and theatre from an early age. He became a successful director and was renowned for innovative ideas and an alternative style of working in the theatre. Brook was keen to move away from 'commercial acting' and concentrate more on experimental and pure theatre. He began making his own style of work - often taking a pre-existing text and changing it or even re-writing it to focus in on the key message of the piece in his eyes. This brought him many critics but also many supporters; his audiences were often divided in their responses to his work.
Brook was born in 1925 to a privileged Latvian background and was transfixed on film and theatre from an early age. He became a successful director and was renowned for innovative ideas and an alternative style of working in the theatre. Brook was keen to move away from 'commercial acting' and concentrate more on experimental and pure theatre. He began making his own style of work - often taking a pre-existing text and changing it or even re-writing it to focus in on the key message of the piece in his eyes. This brought him many critics but also many supporters; his audiences were often divided in their responses to his work.
Brook is probably most well known for his book, 'The Empty Space' and its famous quotes including- "“A stage space has two rules: (1) Anything can happen and (2) Something must happen.” I have read this book and found it very grabbing and interesting. Brook divides theatre into four sections; deadly, holy, rough and immediate and expands on what he thinks theatre is within these categories. I enjoyed reading the book, reading it in only two sittings because of the simplistic nature of what he is talking about and the complexity and layers of the language.
Sources:
http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/discover-more/platforms/platform-papers/peter-brook
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/81172/Peter-Brook
Brook's interview with the Guardian:
http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2011/mar/16/peter-brook-magic-flute-interview
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