Disincarnation Jack Smith and the character as assemblage Tranholm, Mette Risgård Publication date: 2017 Document version Other version Document license: CC BY-NC-ND Citation for published version (APA): Tranholm, M. R. (2017). Disincarnation: Jack Smith and the character as assemblage. Det Humanistiske Fakultet, Københavns Universitet. Download date: 26. sep.. 2021 UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN FACULTY OF HUMANITIES PhD Dissertation Mette Tranholm Disincarnation Jack Smith and the character as assemblage Supervisor: Laura Luise Schultz Submitted on: 26 May 2017 Name of department: Department of Arts and Cultural Studies Author(s): Mette Tranholm Title and subtitle: Disincarnation: Jack Smith and the character as assemblage Topic description: The topic of this dissertation is the American performer, photographer, writer, and filmmaker Jack Smith. The purpose of this dissertation is - through Smith - to reach a more nuanced understading of the concept of character in performance theater. Supervisor: Laura Luise Schultz Submitted on: 26 May 2017 2 Table of contents Acknowledgements.............................................................................................................................................................7 Overall aim and research questions.................................................................................................................................9 Disincarnation in Roy Cohn/Jack Smith........................................................................................................................13 From disidentification to disincarnation (via Muñoz)...................................................................................................14 Research status: Jack Smith ..........................................................................................................................................17 Research status: The character in performance theater.................................................................................................18 Theoretical framework ..................................................................................................................................................20 Theoretical framework: Both social constructivism and new materialism...................................................................23 Itinerary .........................................................................................................................................................................29 CHAPTER 1: DISINCARNATION AS A PERFORMATIVE PRACTICE........................... 31 Introducing Jack Smith and Maria Montez..................................................................................................................31 The practice of Jack Smith............................................................................................................................................31 The reception of Smith’s practice .................................................................................................................................31 Castle of trash................................................................................................................................................................34 Performative hybrids.....................................................................................................................................................35 Maria Montez: Life and work .......................................................................................................................................36 The fabrication of stars..................................................................................................................................................40 Hollywood’s orientalism...............................................................................................................................................41 Smith’s aesthetic, politics and position on Maria Montez............................................................................................43 The beginning of a lifelong obsession ..........................................................................................................................43 The superstar character: Maria Montez.........................................................................................................................43 Cultic Diva worship ......................................................................................................................................................44 The Beautiful Book: Superstars of Cinemaroc ..............................................................................................................46 Leitmotifs in The Beautiful Book ..................................................................................................................................48 Performing politics........................................................................................................................................................51 Camp .............................................................................................................................................................................54 The politics of Smith’s practice ....................................................................................................................................56 Disincarnation: a performative practice ........................................................................................................................59 Subject- and character formations.................................................................................................................................61 Subject positions in philosophy: the Cartesian subject .................................................................................................61 19th Century: Crisis in the Cartesian subject................................................................................................................61 Subject positions in post-modernism: The nomadic subject.........................................................................................62 Character positions: Presence and authenticity in the four concepts of character ...................................................63 The classical concept of character.................................................................................................................................63 19th Century: Crisis in the classical character ..............................................................................................................65 3 The Brechtian concept of character...............................................................................................................................66 The Artaudian concept of character ..............................................................................................................................67 Artaud, performance, and the performative turn...........................................................................................................68 The postdramatic concept of character and bodily presence.........................................................................................69 Hans-Thies Lehmann and bodily presence ...................................................................................................................73 Postdramatic theater and authenticity effects................................................................................................................74 The material and discursive merge on stage .................................................................................................................74 Smith’s acting manifestos: converging character concepts..........................................................................................76 Opposites attract: Emotional identification in Smith’s Reptilian Acting Technique (R.A.T) ......................................76 Disincarnation: a material assemblage of the classical, Brechtian, Artaudian, and postdramatic concept of character ........................................................................................................................................................................83 Assemblage ...................................................................................................................................................................83 Disincarnation: a practice in constant becoming...........................................................................................................85 Becoming-woman .........................................................................................................................................................85 Body without organs (BwO): Attacking the organic subject ........................................................................................87 CHAPTER 2: DISINCARNATION: THE ETHICAL-POLITICAL POTENTIAL OF BECOMING-MONTEZ....................................................................................................... 89 Jack Smith and the disincarnation practice ..................................................................................................................89 Disincarnation and the body without organs (BwO).....................................................................................................90 Disincarnation: Becoming-Montez: A relation of desire