Bertolt Brecht

Bertolt Brecht

1. date of birth

   • born in Augsburg on 10 February 1898
   • died August 14, 1956, East Berlin

2. style of theatre

   • epic theatre
     • Epic theatre, German episches Theater, form of didactic drama presenting a series of loosely connected scenes that avoid illusion and often interrupt the story line to address the audience directly with analysis, argument, or documentation.

3. was a Marxist and made his theatre highly political

4. Specific techniques

   • break down the fourth wall
     • making the audience directly conscious of the fact that they are watching a play. Use of a narrator. Because this character is outside the
   • songs or music.
   • narration
     • The narration needs to be told in a montage style.
     • this character is outside the character framework, they change the relationship with the audience.
   • use of signs/plakards
     • reminds the audience they are watching a play
   • freeze frames / tableaux
     • unnatural
       • make the audience think of the frozen moment
   • multi rolling
     • he differences in character are marked by changing voice, movement, gesture and body language but the audience can clearly see that the same actor has taken on more than one role.