Evreinov and Questions of Theatricality Inga Romantsova BA (Theatre and Film) St Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy; MA (Theatre and Film) University of New South Wales A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Drama November 2017 This research was supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship I hereby certify that the work embodied in the thesis is my own work, conducted under normal supervision. The thesis contains no material which has been accepted, or is being examined, for the award of any other degree or diploma in any other university or other tertiary institute and to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. I give consent to the final version of my thesis being made available worldwide when deposited in the University’s Digital Repository, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 and any approved embargo. Inga Romantsova Declaration of Transliteration I, Inga Romantsova, Australian citizen born in Voronezh, Russia, hereby declare that I am fluent in both the English and Russian languages and the translations and transliterations provided in this dissertation are true and accurate. The transcriptions from Russian (Cyrillic) into English are based on the 'Modified Library of Congress' system, widely used by all major libraries in the UK and the USA. Abstract As a professional actor I have always been puzzled by the question of what drives our desire for acting. Russian theatre practitioner of the 20th Century Nikolai Evreinov preconceived or intuitively searched for an answer to that exact same question, and he believed he found it. He called it “Theatricality’ or the Instinct of Transformation”. Throughout this thesis I present the research work conducted to explore the answers regarding the question above stated and, more specifically, what Evreinov meant by Theatricality itself. Is Theatricality related or identical to the transformational ability of human nature? How can it be used for positive effect in the wider society and culture? Perhaps the work here presented will influence future discussions about the understanding and expression of modern drama, especially Western drama applications. I investigated Nikolai Evreinov's theory and directorial work (combined with his concepts of Theatrical Instinct and Monodrama) and constructed an analysis of the influence of Evreinov's works on contemporary theatre practitioners. The core of this thesis is the translation and interpretation of three heretofore- untranslated key articles authored by Evreinov between 1908 and 1922. Evreinov’s theoretical work is characterised by an intricate and reflective written style. This complexity, along with the banning of his work by the Soviet regime (1922 - 1991), makes this dissertation the first academic work to translate and interpret the aforementioned material. These particular three articles were chosen as the foundation of my research as I deemed they underline the major milestones in Evreinov’s development of his theories of Theatricality. Read together, they can effectively be considered his manifesto of Theatricality. Excerpts from other works by Evreinov are also used throughout this dissertation, supporting the conclusions drawn from the three main articles. The main outcomes of this research are the repositioning of Nikolai Evreinov’s work in the academic discussion and the facilitation of Evreinov’s Instinct of Theatricality to become more widely and properly recognised. The theories of Theatricality have the potential ability to be utilised in a wide spectrum of disciplines as a tool to realise behavioural changes and social interactions for an increased awareness of people’s own theatrical ability. Acknowledgements This research would have not been possible without the enormous and varied support of the University of Newcastle. Particularly, I would like to thank the School of Creative Industries for their academic and financial support, which allowed me to cover both academic and technical needs. I am also very grateful for the support and guidance provided by the Office of Graduate Studies and the Faculty of Education and Arts who would always lend a hand with my administrative and official requirements. In my journey of discovery, reflection and creation through research I had the fortune of having the encouragement and support of two great supervisors. I am profoundly grateful to my knowledgeable supervisors, Dr Gillian Arrighi and Professor Victor Emeljanow, who believed not only in my ability to conduct research but also in the importance of bringing Evreinov’s work back to discussion. Their extensive wisdom and endless contribution, their trust in my work, their patience with the translation process, and their understanding of the obstacles I was faced with throughout my research process were simply invaluable. In addition, I would like to thank librarian Fiona Neville for her professional dedication and her willingness to be such an important source of knowledge for me. My family became a crucial part of my research from the early days. Both my partner Andrew and our daughter Eleanore provided an enormous emotional and practical support through the different stages of my work. Andrew and Eleanore patiently sailed with me through the storms and sunny ocean of dramatic ideas. I am particularly grateful to Andrew Sladen, whose IT and human knowledge, mixed with his creative mind, assisted me with issues that spanned from clarifying my written expression to fixing software and hardware hiccups. Many people from my academic and personal life contributed to the development of my research project in different but valuable ways. I would like to extend my gratitude to Di Lightfoot and Louise Newcombe, who made this research project a unique experience of personal growth. Dr Alejandra Mery Keitel who reviewed and proofread this dissertation to make sure the content was conveyed in a proper and clear manner. I would like to thank my wonderful colleague Michael Kilmister from the Centre for Teaching and Learning for navigating the last stage of this journey with me. My acting students gradually became my guinea pigs in my experiencing of Theatricality and its tools for which I am so thankful. Finally, but not least, my gratitude goes to Evreinov himself for coming to my life when he was needed the most. When I came to Australia all I wanted to do was acting. Life had other plans and I found myself doing more teaching than acting; however, this introduced me to the world of academia and later to the fascinating world of research. I am amazed with how much of my acting skills contributed to my research process, as paper would slowly develop into a stage on which I could express my passions. This research work is dedicated to my mum, Larisa, and my sister Lena who were proof of Theatricality as a human instinct. Contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................................. 6 Contents .................................................................................................................................................................... 8 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 9 1.1. Theatricality ......................................................................................................................................... 9 1.2. Short Biography ............................................................................................................................... 12 1.3. Evreinov in Context ........................................................................................................................ 17 1.4. Approaching Evreinov .................................................................................................................. 20 1.5. Issues of Translation ...................................................................................................................... 21 1.6. Literature Review ........................................................................................................................... 23 The Translations ................................................................................................................................................. 34 2. Apologia for Theatricality ..................................................................................................................... 35 2.1. Commentary ...................................................................................................................................... 39 3. New Theatrical Inventions .................................................................................................................... 50 3.1. Commentary ...................................................................................................................................... 56 4. Theatre in the Future .............................................................................................................................. 64 4.1. Commentary