More than just tricks : the implications for stage design of Tennessee Williams' notion of 'plastic theatre'

Abstract

This thesis is an exploration of Tennessee Williams' idea of 'plastic theatre,' locating its origins within the theatrical context of the period, with the object of identifying its chief principles and seeking something approaching a definition 'of plastic theatre,' as a starting point from which to demonstrate its application to theatre production and especially to set design. In 1945, with the published version of The Glass Menagerie, Williams launched his theory of 'plastic theatre,' a theatrical mode that would, he believed, answer the problems he perceived in American war-time theatre, and that would help develop a stronger post-war American theatre. Williams claimed that theatre in America placed too much emphasis on words and not enough on the essential elements of theatre. Taking an anti-realist stance, he asserted that this emphasis on words should be replaced by a theatre that recognised the plasticity of the stage and the expressivity of all the elements of play production. In his scripts he sought to present his vision of how his plays would work on stage by demonstrating how these elements should be integrated with text. From Williams' assertion that the physicality of the stage environment is as important as the text, we can deduce that the manner in which the stage space is arranged is a crucial performance element. The notion of 'plastic theatre,' therefore, has significant implications for the practice of set design. The aim of this project is to place Tennessee Williams' ideas within the history of American scenic design and demonstrate the way designers have expressed his ideas. This project engages in two types of research methodologies: historical and practical. The first component begins with an exploration of Williams' theory by reference to his published and unpublished works, particularly his journals and notebooks, followed by a consideration of the rise of the set designer in America so as to contextualise the work of designers of Williams' major plays. I look at the first designers of his plays, leading practitioners who responded to his all-encompassing vision and created designs which not only answered the demands of his scripts, but were to influence the history of stage design in America. I then explore the work of leading designers of Williams plays since 1960, considering how their designs have related to their precedents and to dominant trends in twentieth-century set design. Even though this thesis explores design issues up to the twenty-first century, the focal plays will be limited to those major works of Williams' career up to 1960, the period in which he developed his idea of 'plastic theatre' and wrote plays which demonstrably illustrate its principles. In order to assess what a practical engagement with the texts can reveal about 'plastic theatre,' the practical component comprises the designing of three major Tennessee Williams plays: The Night of the Iguana, Suddenly Last Summer and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Designs for these plays were created and constructed for performances in Canberra, Australia. --provided by Candidate