#vakhtangov

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Fountain "Princess Turandot" on Arbat street, Moscow, Russia

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« Oncle Vania » du Théâtre Vakhtangov -❤️❤️❤️une délicieuse folie de Rimas Tuminas, bouleversante et pleine d'humanité, portée par des comédiens russes exceptionnels. Courez-y ! #vakhtangovtheatre #vakhtangov #onclevania #rimastuminas #marigny #avoirabsolument #merveille #театрвахтангова #гастроливпариже #дядяваня #огромныйуспех #сергеймаковецкий #владимирсимонов #артуриванов #кириллкрок #людмиламаксакова #bestofrussia #theatre #theatrerusse #russiantheater (à Théâtre Marigny) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2_NPbTCIyg/?igshid=1bwn8u4baz2zx

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Fantastic Realism

“Fantastic realism” is a combination of the reality of life and the “fantastical” nature of theatre. To say it another way “fantastic realism” is theatrical realism (i.e. a whole complex of theatrical methods by which one can express real life on stage).

Russian actor and theatre director, Yevgeny (or Eugene) Vakhtangov believed that there is no such a thing as an objective character on stage: He subscribed to the thought that all characters created by actors are subjective. That is to say that they are a combination of the actor’s personality and what has happened to them so far that day, prior to their entrance on stage, AND their character’s intentions within the play. This far from subscribes to Stanislavsky’s principal that the actor should leave their day at the stage door.

Vakhtangov encouraged actors to feed their immediate mood and experiences directly into their acting.

The first feeling with which the actor walks on stage or into a rehearsal room is their “life state” (i.e. a chain of incidents that have happened to them and affected them thus far in that day). This state must be preserved as it will enable the actor to bring to their role a sense of unique immediacy and responsiveness.

The second feeling - or character mood - which is activated by the actions in the play is the combination of the actor’s personal mood with the character’s states. Both of these then, in turn, create a rich expressive range within the portrayal of a role.

The fact that the actor keeps their personal mood active up to the very moment he walks on stage renders the special and often lengthy pre-performance preparation, during which they work on “channelling” in order to become a character, unnecessary. Instead we should be able to take on a character in an instant or - using Vakhtangov’s own words - “jump into the role”.

He also established the concept of “inner justification” for the actor. Contrary to Stanislavsky, who placed the actor’s identification with the character deriving from the given circumstances of a play alone; Vakhtangov believed that the performer’s justification of their stage actions could be totally unrelated to the conditions of either play or character.

In conclusion, justification is an actor’s secret weapon and we must always remember that we undeniably have the ability to invent our own inner reality at any particular moment.

And for me, this simple technique breeds the most pure form of creativity: a belief in oneself.

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Государственный Академический театр имени Евгения Вахтангова