Germ 360 Prof Peters Winter 2021 THEATER AS PERFORMANCE Course Outline and Itinerary

PREAMBLE For the past hundred years, the German-speaking lands have been at the very forefront of theater and the theatrical.In this course we will examine six internationally known plays of the modern German canon, not simply as literary works, but in their medial and performative context, as in their transpostions to film and/or the realm of the musical theater. In this way it is hoped that we can present and understand these dramas not simply as texts on the written page, but also as corporeal three dimensional realizations and events. Each work thus itself represents a cutting edge piece of innovative theater, which has retained its power to challenge and excite, as well as elicitng compelling medial adaptations, which have also helped make theatrical, musical, and cinematic history.

This course offered in English AND German. An initial overview lecture will be offered in English at the beginning of each week, and a subsequent lecture of a more close textual reading nature will be held later in the week in German for German program and language students. NB. A major part of this course will consist in the attentive watching and hearing of the various performances.

FORMAT This course is in a lecture format and in a blend of fixed and flexible presentation. The lectures will be made available in audio format on the day they are scheduled to be given with the possibility for the subsequent submission of questions and comments by the class. The lectures will be recorded and available in their entirety on mycourses.

SELF-PRESENTATION (Selbstdarstellung) I do not as a general rule mediatize myself, and for reasons of deeply held religious and philosophical conviction regard the generation of the simulacra of living human presence though Skype or Zoom as idolatrous and highly problematic. Students who nonetheless wish to get some idea of what I look and talk like may Google: Paul Peters Heine Orient. I studied German literature at the Free University of Berlin and my main areas of interest are Heinrich Heine, Franz Kafka, Bertolt Brecht, Paul Celan, postwar literature, Georg Büchner, the German Lied and Romanticism. In terms of my overall approach to literature and culture, I am most indebted, though not exclusively so, to the positions of Walter Benjamin and Theodor Adorno.

Similarly, if each student could email me a brief three sentence statement on their background and general academic interests, as well as their particular interest in this course, this would help me greatly in associating a person with a face.

THEATER ALS PERFOMANCE

GERMAN 360 Prof Peters

COURSE SYLLABUS AND ITINERARY (English Version)

I Frank Wedekind FRÜHLINGS ERWACHEN - Sheik/Slater, SPRING AWAKENING

Frank Wedekinds (1864-1919) at once unsettling and tender turn of the century play on the taboo subject of adolescent socialization and sexuality has lost none of its power to shock and move. We will discuss the play’s origins and context and its recent and surprisingly successful adaptation as a Broadway musical.

II Georg Büchner WOYZECK - Alban Berg, WOZZECK

This revolutionary tragedy of the underclass and of underclass love by the youthful dramatic prodigy Georg Büchner (1813-1837) is a milestone of theatrical history: in 1925 Alban Berg’s jarring and haunting atonal opera made of this material a milestone of musical history as well.

III Bertolt Brecht BAAL - David Bowie/Rainer Werner Fassbinder, BAAL

The edgy and transgressive play of the young Bürgerschreck Bertolt Brecht on the figure of the enfant terrible and poête maudit Baal announced,with a first resounding tremor, the coming of the theatrical earthquake that was to be Brecht. We will look at the play and its main figure, and how it was then subsequently personified by two legendary “bad boys” of the contemporary musical and cinematic scene, David Bowie and Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

IV Brecht THE THREEPENNY OPERA - Kurt Weill, Georg Pabst THE THREEPENNY OPERA

The classic and representative theatrical work of the Weimar Republic immediately went from the Berlin around the world ,and has never stopped circling it since, becoming in New York for example the formative musical - poetical experience of the young Bob Dylan. It is a work of classical modernity in three media - theater, musical theatre, and film. We will discuss it in each of these manifestations.

V Peter Weiss MARAT/SADE - Peter Brook MARAT/SADE

In the mid-1960s, this first great work of the post-Brechtian theater combined themes and methods of the German master with the avantgarde techniques of the “Theater of Cruelty” of Artaud, and quickly became an international theatrical event. The celebrated English director Peter Brook then directed the play both for stage and film, creating its perhaps most compelling and convincing performative realization.

VI Heiner Müller HAMLETMASCHINE - Einstürzende Neubauten HAMLETMASCHINE

In the musical adaptation by the legendary German techno and industrial rock band Neubauten of Heiner Müller’s play, two tendencies of the recent Berlin avantgarde collide and coalesce: the postmodern and postrevolutionrary despair of the great East German dramatist Heiner Müller (1929-1995), and the hardedged posthuman Klangwelt, or sound world, of the Neubauten, so that at the end of this course, we will also have occassion to explore the very “dead end” of history at which, from ther perspective the Berlin of the late 1980s (but perhaps not only there), we as a species seemed to have arrived.

TEXTS

Frank Wedekind, Spring Awakening

Georg Büchner, Woyzeck

Bertolt Brecht, Baal

Bertolt Brecht, Threepenny Opera

Peter Weiss, Marat/Sade

Heiner Müller, Hamlet Machine

The texts will be available from the bookstore for curbside pickup.

EVALUATION (English)

EVALUATION Two Papers (ca 8 pages) 50 (25% each) takehome exam 40 Participation 10

Co-ordinates: Prof Paul Peters Tel 514 561 7756 (available office hours only) email: paul.peters @ mcgill.ca (Virtual) Office hours: Tuesday 14-1500 (available for calls and email)

DEUTSCHE FASSUNG

Seit mehr als einem Jahrhundert stehen die deutschsprachigen Länder weltweit an der Spitze der theatralischen Impulse und Innovationen. In diesem Kurs werden sechs klassische Werke der modernen deutschsprachigen Bühne in dem Mittelpunkt stehen, nicht einfach in ihrer Eigenschaft als literarische Texte, sondern auch in ihrer Dimension als mediale und performative Ereignisse sowie in ihrer Transponierung in den Bereich des Filmes und des Musiktheaters. Auf diese Weise wird hier beabsichtigt, diese Dramen nicht nur als literarische Werke, sondern in ihrer Eigenschaft als multidimensionale und sowohl körperliche, visuelle wie klangliche Umsetzungen und Realisierungen zu erfahren. Denn stellt jedes dieser Werke einen Durchbruch bzw. Einbruch in der Geschichte des Theaters dar, die Meilensteine in der Geschichte der Bühne darstellen, so haben sie auch mediale Umsetzungen ausgelöst, die ebenfalls in ihren respektiven Medien Geschichte gemacht haben.

Als Experiment, wird dieser Kurs simultan auf English und Deutsch angeboten, in einem wöchentlichen Turnus von einer englischsprachigen Sitzung zu Beginn der Woche zur allgemeinen Einführung, und einer deutschsprachigen Sitzung gegen Ende der Woche, um Einzelheiten der Texte näher zu besprechen. Von den deutschsprachigen Teilnehmern erwarte ich jeweils ein Referat. KURSPLAN

I Frank Wedekind FRÜHLINGS ERWACHEN - Sheik/Slater SPRING AWAKENING

Frank Wedekinds (1864-1919) so skandalumwittertes wie sensibles Stück der Jahrhundertwende, wo es um das damalige Tabu der jugendlichen Sexualität geht, hat nichts an seiner aufrüttelnden Suggestionskraft eingebüßt. Hier werden Entstehungshintergründe und Thematik des Stückes erläutert sowie die neuerliche und erstaunlich erfolgreiche Adaption als Musical auf dem Broadway.

II Georg Bücher WOYZECK - Alban Berg WOZZECK

Das revolutionäre Drama von der Unterklasse - und der Liebe in der Unterklasse - von dem frühvollendeten Genie Georg Büchner (1813- 1837) stellt einen Meilenstein in der Geschichte des Welttheaters dar. 1925 machte Alban Bergs so verstörende wie wirkungsmächtige atonale Oper aus dem Stoff einen Meilenstein auch in der Musikgeschichte,

III Bertolt Brecht BAAL - David Bowie/Rainer Werner Fassbinder BAAL

Das transgressive und tabuverletzende Erstlingsstück des jungen Bürgerschrecks Bertolt Brecht über die Figur des enfant terrible und poète maudit Baal hat als mächtige Vorankündigung des theatralischen Erdbebens gedient , zu welchem Brecht in der Folge dann mutierte. Wir werden uns Thematik und Hauptfigur des Stückes näher anschauen, und wie sie in der Folge von zwei legendären "bösen Buben" der zeitgenössichen Rockmusik- bzw. Filmszene verkörpert wurden, von David Bowie wie von Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

IV Brecht DREIGROSCHENOPER - Kurt Weill/Georg Pabst DREIGROSCHENOPER

Der Welterfolg des wohl repräsentativen theatralischen Werkes der Weimarer Republik setzte sofort nach seiner Berliner Premiere ein, und ging gleich um den Globus, den es seitdem nie aufgehört hat, wirkungsvoll zu umkreisen: in seiner New Yorker Insenierung wurde es beispielesweise zur Inspiration des jungen Bob Dylan. Es ist ein Werk der "klassischen Moderne" in drei Medien: Theater, Musiktheater, Film. Auf jede diese Versionen werden wir hier eingehen.

V Peter Weiss MARAT/SADE - Peter Brook MARAT/SADE

Mitte der Sechziger Jahre verband dieses erste bedeutende Werk des postbrechtschen Theaters die Themen und Methoden des deutschen Meisterdramatikers mit den avantgardistischen Techniken des Theaters der Grausamkeit von Artaud, und wurde dabei schnell zum international einschlagenden Theaterereignis. Der zelebrierte englische Regisseur Peter Brook hat das Werk dann sowohl für Bühne und Film eingerichtet, und schuf dabei seine wohl zwingendste peformative Umsetzung.

VI Heiner Müller HAMLETMASCHINE - Einstürzende Neubauten HAMLETMASCHINE

In der musikalischen Adaption des Stückes von Heiner Müller durch die legendäre Techno- und Industrie-Rockband Neubauten kollidierten und fusionierten zwei Tendenzen der neuerlichen Berliner Avantgarde: die postmoderne und postrevolutionäre Verzweiflung des großen DDR-Dramatikers Heiner Müller (1929-1995) mit der herben posthumanen Klangwelt der Neubauten. Somit haben wir Gelegenheit, am Ende dieses Kurses, auch "das Ende der Geschichte" zu betrachten, wie dieses am historisch toten Winkel des Berlins der späten Achtziger, aber vielleicht nicht nur dort, aufleuchtete.

DIE TEXTE Frank Wedekind, Frühlings Erwachen

Georg Büchner, Woyzeck

Bertolt Brecht, Baal

Bertolt Brecht, Dreigroschenoper

Peter Weiß, Marat/Sace

Heiner Müller, Hamletmaschine

Die deutschen Bücher werden auch über die McGiller Universitätsbuchhandlung erhältlich sein.

KONTAKT Prof Paul Peters Tel: 514 561 7756 email: [email protected] Virtuelle Sprechstunde: Dienstag, 14-1500 (per Anruf oder Email) oder nach Vereinbarung

NOTENVERTEILUNG Zwei Hausarbeiten (ca 8 Seiten) 40 (jeweils 20%) Klausur (takehome) 30 Referat 20 Teilnahme 10

POLITIQUE DE LANGUE

Tous les travaux écrits pour ce cours peuvent aussi être redigés en français.

Sie dürfen alle schriftlichen Arbeiten in diesem Kurs auch in deutscher Sprache verfassen. The books will be available from the bookstore for curbside pickup or delivery by post. The course pack will be available digitally. Additional materials will be emailed to you.

LEGAL STUFF (but important)

Language of Submission: “Students in this course have the right to submit in English or in French any written work that is to be graded.” “ Chaque étudiant(e) a le droit de soumettre en français ou en anglais tout travail écrit devant être noté ». The language of instruction this course is English. Written work may be submitted in English, French, or German.

Academic Integrity: McGill University values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures” (see McGill’s guide to academic honesty for more information).

Extraordinary Circumstances Statement In the event of extraordinary circumstances beyond the University’s and instructor’s control, the content and/or evaluation scheme in this course is subject to change. COMMENT: There can be in my view no substitute for the direct personal interaction of living and present human beings in the educational process, and this course is not going to pretend to be such a substitute. I will however do my best as instructor to provide a positive educational experience and environment.

Copyright of lectures and personal image and utterance Statement © All Instructor-generated course materials (e.g., handouts, notes, summaries, exam questions) are protected by law and may not be copied or distributed in any form or in any medium without explicit permission of the instructor.All lectures and lecture materials. remain the instructor’s intellectual property and are governed by copyright. As such, you may use these only for your own learning (and research, with proper referencing/citation) ends. You are not permitted to disseminate or share these materials other than in the context of the course; doing so may violate the instructor’s intellectual property rights and could be cause for disciplinary action. Similarly, you as students have an inalienable human and legal right to control over your own image and utterance, and that these not be medially disseminated without your prior and express consent. To ensure this, NO recordings will be made of classroom discussions or student class presentations in this course.

Lecture/Conference/Seminar Recording Statement The pre-recorded lectures for this course will be available on the scheduled day on Mycourses recorded lectures. German language students will do an oral presentation to the German language group which they will prerecord and submit to mycourses. Due to the basic lecture format of this course and the legal and for me ethical problematic of the reproduction of your utterance and image, it should be pointed out that there will in fact be no Zoom discussion in this course, but we will address the discussion aspect differently.

Netiquette Statement The University recognizes the importance of maintaining teaching spaces that are respectful and inclusive for all involved. This also applies to all your communications through the internet and the computer in this course.

Indigenous Land Statement: McGill University is on land which has long served as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. We acknowledge and thank the diverse Indigenous people whose footsteps have marked this territory on which peoples of the world now gather. COMMENT The genuine recognition of indigenous land title, a fair and just settlement of First Nations land claims, and systemic racism towards indigenous people remain ongoing and pressing issues of the Canadian polity.

Sensitive content / Trigger warning Please be aware that some of the course content may be disturbing for some students. These themes been included in the course because of its thematic focus. Please contact the instructor if you have specific concerns.

Inclusive learning Environment: As the instructor of this course I endeavor to provide an inclusive learning environment. However, if you experience barriers to learning in this course, do not hesitate to discuss them with me and the Office for Students with Disabilities, 514-398-6009.

If you use text-matching software freely available on the internet: Note that to support academic integrity, your assignments may be submitted to text-matching or other appropriate software (e.g., formula-, equation-, and graph-matching).”