A keen observer and writer of theatre in Europe, the Romanian scholar Georges Banu teaches Theatre Studies at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He is Honorary President of the International Association of Theatre Critics (IATC) and Editor in chief of the magazine Alternatives Th��trales. He has authored many books on prominent European directors such as Peter Brooks, Giorgio Strehler, KM Gr�ber and others. He has also written about the relationship between theatre and painting and has done two well-known documentaries on Chekhov and on Shakespeare. His latest book Les Voyages du com�dien was presented recently at the Salon du livre in Paris, which is the second largest book fair after Frankfurt�s. Here, Georges Banu reflects on the contemporary theatre scene in Europe and in France where he lives.
Deepa Punjani
GEORGES BANU
Deepa Punjani (DP): You have written extensively about theatre in Europe, and have also focussed on the work of significant theatre personalities like Brecht, Grotowski and Brooks. How do you view the present generation of theatre-makers in Europe? What are the new trends, if any?
Georges Banu (GB): Today, those earlier references are rather theoretical. They partake of an active memory of European theatre, but creators today are adopting different positions: they often work on non-theatrical texts, or view the performance as work-in-progress. They are called "writers/directors", like Castellucci (Italy), Pippo Delbono (Italy), Rodrigo Garcia (Argentina), Fran�ois Tanguy (France). They mostly foreground a dialogue with the image on the screen and by relying on genuine scenographies designed by video artists. They include live music on the stage� methods, relatively unknown to earlier artists.
The original conceptions by the new breed of artists whom I have mentioned tend to establish a real dialogue with spectators belonging to the same generation, and who are used to the swiftness of the Internet. The aesthetic break claimed thereby relies on the age recognition between these theatre creators and their audience.
DP: What kind of issues and concerns are being reflected in the theatres around Europe today?
GB: The new, multimedia productions are also witnesses to the disorder that prevails in the world, as their predecessors did. Usually, the aim is to question and feed on the zeitgeist in order to criticise the excesses of the "society of the spectacle" (with reference to Guy Debord's 'The Society of the Spectacle'- a work of philosophy and Marxist critical theory). This revolt is unanimous.
DP: Europe, I would think, has also a fair number of people doing theatre that is not always mainstream- whether it is theatre by the immigrant communities or by people negotiating gender for instance. Are there any such groups whose work you have liked?
GB: The kind of work you are referring to is to be found more in England. In Germany or in France theatre makers resort to mixed casts where actors from different nations are united. Thus the stage tries to reflect the multicultural influences which the great metropolises of the world imbibe.
DP: In France, has the current economic scenario been posing challenges to theatre people? How are they dealing with them?
GB: In France, the economic problems are getting more severe but it all depends on who you and where you are. The hierarchy of institutions is mirrored in the hierarchy of subsidies. The smaller companies are the most hit, but the general trend continues even as a larger crisis looms.
DP: Tell us about your new book- Les Voyages du com�dien in which the actor is at the centre. It seems that you think that unlike the times in which directors like Peter Brooks and Ariane Mnouchkine left their individual imprint on the productions they did; it is increasingly now the actor around whom the mis-en-scene is determined.
GB: Indeed today actors have regained the special status they lost ten or fifteen years ago when direction reigned supreme. In my view, this should not imply a neglect of direction, but a new alliance between actors and stage directors like in the productions of two artists whom I particularly respect: Thomas Ostermeier (Germany) and Krszystof Warlikowski (Poland). They claim the modernity of the stage, without giving up, or sacrificing the actors, who are their key allies.
DP: What has been your best personal experience thus far in the context of your writing about theatre?
GB: It is difficult for me to answer this. However I understood that I couldn't be an actor, and so I gradually felt content and happy with my position as spectator, which I consider as the vital shadow of the stage, the hidden double of the actor!
DP: You teach at the Sorbonne. Are there young people still actively seeking to pursue Theatre Studies? Are they able to be gainfully employed post their studies?
GB: Many students are still interested in Theatre Studies. They are basically motivated by the desire to indulge in "theatre practice", but this does not prevent them from studying or analysing theatre. Eventually, and most of the time, they find a job among the so-called, but necessary "secondary jobs" provided by theatre, like in press or public relations, as documenters, etc. If the part played by theatre tends to be on the wane, the desire to come to grips with it lives on.
*Deepa Punjani is the Editor of this website. Jean-Pierre Naugrette translated the interview from French to English.
