Expressionism in The Theatre

• GENRES AND STYLES / SENIOR DRAMA
Expressionism In The Theatre

BY JUSTIN CASH · PUBLISHED JULY 24, 2012 · UPDATED JUNE 10, 2020
My early days of teaching high school drama were somewhat saturated with
a fascination of German theatre practitioner Bertolt Brecht (many of my current
students would probably suggest that same fascination is still alive and well!). As I
dug deeper into the mind of Brecht trying to discover what it was that made this
genius tick, I found he was heavily influenced by expressionism in the
theatre happening in Germany when he was a young man. So began my interest in
expressionism, itself.
Expressionism sometimes means many things to different people, so I thought I’d

blog verbatim a key section from a seminal text on this style: J.
L.
Styan’s Modern Drama in Theory and Practice 3:
Expressionism and Epic Theatre, first published back
in 1981. The following excerpts are what initially helped me understand this
most complex of theatrical forms, one that was much stronger in the visual than
performing arts (Edvard Munch’s The Scream etc).
Particular characteristics and techniques became

associated with the early (German) expressionist play:
1. Its atmosphere was often vivdly dreamlike and

nightmarish. The mood was aided by shadowy,
unrealistic lighting and visual distortions in the set.
A characteristic use of pause and silence, carefully
placed in counterpoint with speech and held for an
abnormal length of time, also contributed to the
dream effect.
2. Settings avoided reproducing the detail of
naturalistic drama, and created only those
starkly simplified images the theme of the play called
for. The decor was often made up of bizarre shapes
and sensational colours.
3. The plot and structure of the play tended to be

disjointed and broken into episodes, incidents and
tableaux, each making a point of its own. Instead of
the dramatic conflict of the well made play, the
emphasis was on a sequence of dramatic
statements made by the dreamer, usually the author
himself. From this structure, grew Brecht’s epic
theatre…
4. Characters lost their individuality and were merely

identified by nameless designations, like The Man,
The Father, The Son … such characteristics were
stereotypes and caricatures rather than individual
personalities, and represented social groups rather
than particular people … they could
appear grotesque and unreal…
5. The dialogue, unlike conversation, was poetical,

febrile, rhapsodic. At one time it might take the form
of a long lyrical monologue, and at another, of
staccato telegraphese – made up of phrases of one or
two words or expletives.
6. The style of acting was a deliberate departure from
the realism of Stanislavsky. Moreover, in avoiding
the detail of human behaviour, a player might
appear to be overacting, and adopting the broad,
mechanical movements of a puppet.
Characteristics associated with German expressionism

in its mature phase:
1. Settings are virtually abstract and unlocalized, and

the scene frequently appears angular and distorted,
suggesting a bad dream. The properties are few and
symbolic.
2. The action of the play is still broken into episodes,

and these may represent stages in the hero’s life or a
sequence of visions as seen through his subconscious
mind, as in a dream play.
3. The characters for the most part remain nameless

and impersonal, often moving grotesquely … They
always represent some general class or attitude,
their characteristics being emphasized by costume,
masks or make-up …
4. Crowds are also impersonalized, and move with

mass rhythmic movements, often mechanically.
5. The dialogue is increasingly clipped, fragmented and
unreal. It became known as ‘telegram style’.
6. The style of acting is hard to reconstruct from the

text, but expressionist films have established its
general characteristics. Known as the ‘ecstatic’
style, it was intense and violent, and expressed
tormented emotions. Actors might erupt in sudden
passion and attack each other physically. Speech was
rapid, breathless and staccato, with gesture and
movement urgent and energetic–eyes rolling, teetch
bared, fingers and hands clutching like talons and
claws.
Source: J. L. Styan Modern Drama in Theory and
Practice 3: Expressionism and Epic Theatre

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• GENRES AND STYLES / SENIOR DRAMA

Expressionism In The Theatre

Expressionism sometimes means many things to different people, so I thought I’d

Particular characteristics and techniques became

1. Its atmosphere was often vivdly dreamlike and

3. The plot and structure of the play tended to be

4. Characters lost their individuality and were merely

5. The dialogue, unlike conversation, was poetical,

Characteristics associated with German expressionism

1. Settings are virtually abstract and unlocalized, and

2. The action of the play is still broken into episodes,

3. The characters for the most part remain nameless

4. Crowds are also impersonalized, and move with

6. The style of acting is hard to reconstruct from the

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