Academıc problems of research of the reflection of space and time in theatre



Key words: culturology, historical investigation, theatre, scene

There are many meanings to the term “globalization”, which entered the culture, if I remember correctly, in the 50ies of the last century. However, the best explanation was put forward by American Linguist, Philosopher and Critic Noam Chomsky, according to who Globalization is a global spread of neoliberal of economic model. Let’s rephrase Chomsky’s words to fit the theatre arts and say that globalization in theatre is a global spread of neoliberal model of the theatre. This means free, neoliberal theatre that has a unique possibility of free circulation, intercultural communication and mutual enrichment in the entire world. There also is a threat of standardization; however the theatre, I think, has inner resources to avoid it. We will be talking of those resources later in this article.

Roland Barthes, Theoretician and Philosopher of Art and an Essayist, wrote in his “Critical Essays” as early as 1963: “What is Theatre? A kind of cybernetic machine. When it is not working, this machine is hidden behind a curtain. But as soon as it is revealed, it begins emitting a certain number of messages. These messages have this peculiarity that they are simultaneous and yet of different rhythm; at a certain point in the performance, you receive at the same time six or seven items of information (proceeding from the set, the costumes, the lightning, the placing of the actors, their gestures, their speech), we see that some of them are static (for instance, the set), but some of these remain (the set, for example), while other change (speech, gestures). What we have then is a real information polyphony which is what theatricality is: a density of signs”.

In the 21^st century new realities appear which sometimes are called the third reality — a kind of a cyber world with digital possibilities of their translation to the theatrical language. These realities brought to the world of theatre the forms of multimedia, video art, digital installation, as well as change of rhythm of action and movement, change of psycho-emotional attitude of the audience, change of text in the majority of cases, which sometimes is turned into a kind of electronic messages. However, the cybernetic machine put to motion by Roland Barthes, although not hidden by curtains any more, still works sending us visual and informational polyphony in agreement with modernity, polyphony that without exception identifies with the theatricality.

The modern theatre tackles the themes dictated by time: wars, unsettled life, people with unrealized possibilities, aims deposited in the subconscious, dreams, secret vices and deeds, problems of gender equality, bisexualism, communication and alienation. Eternal problems, the opponents will exclaim, yet the eternal is also subject to time, needs thinking over, searching new forms of expression, adapting to the new theatre forms.

Summing up the above mentioned, I would like to underline once again the components that shall enable theatre of any country can enter the process of globalization of culture without losing its own identity:

1. The ability to absorb the best and a kind willingness to give and show one’s own, i.e. the openness.

2. The ability to find and express those common and global that can touch and interest everyone, i.e. the story or the idea of the performance, without which none of the theatre art can exist.

3. Actor, and maybe even a director, who can speak any theatrical language with body and soul in a way that passing though body and soul can reach the audience and exchange the sparkle of understanding and compassion.

4. Theatricality — informational polyphony that uniting all forms of art and new technologies into cyber and real spaces in the hands of a real master with fabulous taste and vision of modernity has all the chances to become universal theatrical language in the process of globalization of this form of art.

Theatre in the globalised world, as the wine, from the God of which it first appeared, remains to this day the form of life communication and will remain to be such in the times to come.

What is the meaning of reflection of space and time in theatrical area?.. Can space and time have the reflection action in general, not only in theatre, somewhere else — but in universe whole, in molecular world? It’s difficult to find an answer, may be. But we pay attention to such fact, that the reflection of space and time exists in our consciousness, in our understanding of life.

Try to find out and understand what exactly the philosophical concepts such as space and time are, reveal the importance of these categories and identify their main problems to consider in parallel the impact on the performing arts and the aesthetics of theatre in general. Understand the impact of space and time in the theatrical aesthetics, identify the faces of this effect is possible only through knowledge and learning the true and mysterious symbols enclosed in performing arts. On the space and time of spoken and written a lot, even from ancient eras, for example, in ancient China and India, in ancient Greece or Rome, where were born the first rudiments of philosophical thinking and philosophy itself as such. So what is it that represent the concept of «space and time» if we try to know the nature of these phenomena and to lift the curtain (not only the theatre, but also sacred) over the life of these units?

The space includes a variety of noises, voices, sounds, movements, real communication, all the vibrations that occur around us in nature and coexisting society. Phenomena such as: length, homogeneous, isotropic and three-dimensionality — can be attributed to the properties of space. Time is comparable to the ancient Greek philosopher of IV century Aristotle with other categories of being, and he represents «some movement and change» has only homogeneity property that determines the equality of all its moments. According to Aristotle, the time is not a movement as such, because the traffic can vary in time, and time more than the absolute and unwavering substance. If we want to show the relationship of time and motion in the scenic space, then clearly shows that acting and facial expressions represent a continuous movement in a given space, then, as the time during which all the «stage modification» is the absolute in a certain interval.

For example, the performance of «Catharsis» Pantomime Theatre shows us these changes happening to the characters in their inner world. Across the entire statement betrays the alienation of the main characters — men and women — to each other, and this is reflected in the whole context of the play time. Each of these characters live their «internal time» in which he feels, experiences, contacts with their memories, awkward attempts to return to the past and the realization that the return to the previous step is no longer possible, all these elements give the impression of timelessness, in which there are heroes. «You can live in the same house... but in different rooms, you can live on one planet... and will never meet. Something close to you or someone else? What do these two concepts? Probably every person must decide it for himself”.

The spatial resolution performance is quite specific — all the action takes place on a small stage, although the actor and the audience very close contact, yet is a fine line between them, which, of course, cannot be said about the mystical theatre productions of «Yug», where the actor communicates with the audience directly, visual contact, as, for example, in the productions of «Viy» or «Sheb and Hidzhran». The relationship is between actor and spectator? Over recent years, this method is especially practiced in some Azerbaijani theatres: the viewer is mesmerized by the action especially if it occurs in the immediate vicinity.

Reflections of culture estimate it as the taken place fact. Proceeding from requirements of the art truth, Lessing in «Laokoon» allocates for the fine arts only the space sphere, and dramatic art — only time sphere. To this determination of distinction of spheres there corresponds also the statement of the German art critic Herder: «The artist creates a complete picture by means of images, creating illusion for an eye, the playwright influences the spiritual force of words, in the process of their temporary sequence creating full illusion as a hobby».

What is necessary for understanding the individual stage work? Probably its thinking + feeling. These two components are necessary not only for the perception of stage spectator, but also in the process of working on the show. From this it follows that the time is a means «secure» and save any event, or tangible object, in this case, on the stage, and yet at the same object can have a property or escaping extinction, while remaining out of reach of the auditorium. An example is the reincarnation of the actors during the performance of their sudden disappearance or behind the scenes, the opposite is the emergence of what might be causing at a given time interval in a given spatial decision sense of surprise or interest in the action. This state is definitely a plus any production.

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