Topic Exploration Pack
Practitioners: Artaud
Introduction .....................................................................................................................................2
Artistic intentions .............................................................................................................................3
Innovative nature of Artaud’s work – questioning the audience .......................................................3
Working methods and theatrical style ..............................................................................................4
Artaud’s influence ...........................................................................................................................4
Preparing to teach Artaud ...............................................................................................................4
Suitable texts ..................................................................................................................................5
Student activity section ................................................................................................................ 6
1. Harnessing nature ....................................................................................................................... 6
2. Soundscape ................................................................................................................................ 7
3. Choral repetition .......................................................................................................................... 8
4. Sequencing ................................................................................................................................. 9
5. Seven Deadly Sins .................................................................................................................... 10
6. On breath .................................................................................................................................. 11
Student homework sheet .............................................................................................................. 12
Instructions and answers for teachers
These instructions cover the student activity section which can be found on page 6. This Topic
Exploration Pack supports OCR AS and A Level Drama and Theatre.
When distributing the activity section to the students either as a printed copy or as a Word
file you will need to remove the teacher instructions section.
Version 1
1
Copyright © OCR 2016
Introduction
Antonin Artaud lived from 1896 to 1948. He was born in
Marseilles, France. He was a writer, actor and theatre director.
Artaud was one of the great visionaries of his time; he longed
for a change in theatre and saw theatre as a means to liberate
the audience and truly explain the reason behind our very
existence. Artaud was plagued by mental and physical illness
throughout his life, stemming from episodes of childhood
sickness.
Artaud wrote The Theatre and its Double, published in 1938
and this is arguably his best known written work, laying out an
idealistic vision for how theatre should be. Artaud wrote about
what he thought should be the result of theatre and the
purpose of theatre; his ideas offer us a style of theatre rather
than a methodical approach to creating theatre. Artaud wrote about what he thought theatre should
be like but unlike Stanislavski and Lecoq, he didn’t leave a way of working that can be used by
actors to create the kind of theatre he wanted.
This exploration pack will explore Artaud and his desire to create a ‘cruel’ theatre, with the
exercises towards the end of this resource exploring how Artaud’s ideas can be used to create
theatre and to devise.
‘The Theatre of Cruelty unravels conflicts, liberates powers, releases potential and if these and the
powers are dark, this is not the fault of the plague or theatre, but life.’
Artaud.A (1974) Collected Works V4. Calder Publications Ltd: London . Page 20
Artaud’s purpose and practice
Artaud wanted us to create theatre from the soul, guided by our spiritual compass. He wanted a
truly liberated theatre not one held back by the constraints of script and text. Artaud didn’t perceive
characterisation in the same way as Stanislavski or Lecoq; he saw it as a means of harnessing
energy around the actor to create and explore the soul. The exercises you will find in this topic
pack are designed to help you, as actors, to create and explore freely in an Artaudian style.
For Artaud the actor is like an athlete, whose body is all important and it is through breath that an
actor can summon feelings. For the actor, breath sparks off physical movement that creates
abstract shapes that then form the basis for theatre.
‘The more inward and restrained the expression, the more ample, concentrated and substantial
breathing becomes, full of resonances. Whereas breathing is compressed in short waves for
ample fiery externalized acting.’
Artaud, A. (2013) The Theatre and it’s Double. Alma Classics (London). Page 71.
So for Artaud, differences in the way the actor uses breath grounds them in the spiritual world and
then transports them into physical movement thus creating theatre.
Version 1
2
Copyright © OCR 2016
Artistic intentions
Artaud saw theatre as a means of restoring the link between events in the world and dreams. By
acting on breath and movement, harnessing the forces of nature, we can as actors build the bridge
to the world of dreams. The actor and director move away from naturalism to explore theatre that
challenges the way we are and makes the audience question their existence. ‘Cruel’ theatre
shakes the world of the audience and the actors allowing the natural world to tell its theatrical
story. In Artaud’s work there is also a real sense of humour; theatre can challenge and be comedic
at the same time.
Innovative nature of Artaud’s work – questioning the audience
Artaud wanted to break away from what he saw as ‘bourgeoisie’ theatre - the idea that theatre is
staged in a cosy room dominated by
dialogue. He wanted to break down the
boundaries and explore the reality of our
existence through theatre. Theatre for Artaud
lay in the physical and spiritual universe; its
role in society was to help us to understand
ourselves and to know who we are.
For every piece of theatre Artaud asked:
• Did the Theatre affect the audience?
• How did it affect the audience?
• What did the drama communicate to
the audience?
• Did the drama show the audience what it means to be alive?
• Do all the elements of movement, sound and lighting work in harmony throughout the
drama?
Version 1
3
Copyright © OCR 2016
Working methods and theatrical style
Artaud wanted a theatre that was cruel and threatened the
audience. When Artaud wrote about threatening the audience,
he was interested in creating a theatre that challenged and
broke with tradition, a theatre that took the audience on a
spiritual journey of discovery about the natural world around
us. Artaud wanted actors to harness the power of body, voice,
mind and spirit combined with the power of the sounds and
sights of the world around us to create theatre. This theatre
that is highly personal and should come from the performer
and the natural world combined.
Artaud’s influence
A generation of playwrights and directors have been
influenced by the ideas of Artaud, with the Theatre of the
Absurd movement influenced greatly by him. Practitioners
such as Peter Brook and Steven Berkoff have been heavily influenced by the ideas that Artaud
sought for theatre. Today in many devising companies that create new and innovative theatre you
can see Artaud’s ideas at work.
Preparing to teach Artaud
Some resources to use when exploring Artaud as a practitioner would be the re-publication of his
1938 text The Theatre and its Double and Theatre in Practice.
Artaud, A. (2013) The Theatre and its Double. Alma Classics (London). ISBN 978-1847493323
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Theatre-Double-Artaud-AntoninPaperback/dp/B00NPOEVF8/ref=sr_1_35?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457946227&sr=1-35
O’Brien, N & Sutton, A. (2012) Theatre in Practice: A Student’s Handbook, Routledge. London.
ISBN 978-0415508537
https://www.routledge.com/products/9780415508537
Version 1
4
Copyright © OCR 2016
Suitable texts
Using Artaud as a practitioner lends itself to devising work and creating unique, challenging and a
deeply spiritual kind of theatre. When using Artaud with text you can take any text and give it the
Artaud treatment, stripping away the words and using the exercises below as a springboard for
creating theatre. Artaud used art work as a great way into exploring theatre, for Artaud the more
chaotic and abstract the better to spark ideas in the actor. Playwrights such as Sarah Kane,
Bryony Lavery or Martin Crimp can be effective when using Artaud as a practitioner.
.
We’d like to know your view on the resources we produce. By clicking on ‘Like’ or ‘Dislike’ you can help us to ensure that our resources
work for you. When the email template pops up please add additional comments if you wish and then just click ‘Send’. Thank you.
If you do not currently offer this OCR qualification but would like to do so, please complete the Expression of Interest Form which can
be found here: www.ocr.org.uk/expression-of-interest
OCR Resources: the small print
OCR’s resources are provided to support the teaching of OCR specifications, but in no way constitute an endorsed teaching method that is required by the Board, and the decision
to use them lies with the individual teacher. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the content, OCR cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions within
these resources.
© OCR 2016 - This resource may be freely copied and distributed, as long as the OCR logo and this message remain intact and OCR is acknowledged as the originator of this work.
OCR acknowledges the use of the following content: Page 2: Anton Artaud - Universal Images Group/Britannica.com, Page 3: Anton Artaud - Henry Guttmann/Hulton Archive/Getty
Images/Universal Images Group/Britannica.com, Page 4: Masks – Lovingyou2911/Shutterstock.com, Page 10: Tabletop of the seven deadly sins and the last four things Hieronymus Bosch/Bridgeman Art Library/Universal Images Group/Britannica.com
Please get in touch if you want to discuss the accessibility of resources we offer to support delivery of our qualifications: resources.feedback@ocr.org.uk
Version 1
5
Copyright © OCR 2016
Topic Exploration Pack
Practitioners: Artaud
Student Activity
In this section are six examples of exercises to use with your students when exploring Artaud.
There is a devising homework for you to set your devising students to create their own vision of
their piece
1. Harnessing nature

Imagine as a group you are standing in a gale.

Imagine the gale buffeting your bodies and start to move in time with the gale as it crashes
through the space.

The gale changes direction and you have to adapt to the change.

Now stand still and imagine the gale has died and there is just a gentle breeze blowing
onto you.

In your group using movement and your breath to support your movement move from the
breeze back to the gale.

Work in time with each other reacting to the wind and each other so you start to all work in
harmony.

Now as a group follow the same process with fire building towards working as a group
going from the feeling of a raging forest fire to the flame of a candle.

Within your piece create a movement sequence that reacts and responds to the physical
elements as you did in this exercise.

Think about using the energy from this exercise and filtering it into your piece.
You can use this exercise as a starting point for your devising work, allowing yourselves as actors
to explore the physicality of the world around you.
Version 1
6
Copyright © OCR 2016
2. Soundscape
• Take a scene that you have improvised, keeping the actions of your character in mind go
through the scene using percussion instruments to replace the dialogue.
• Run the scene using the instruments to create a rhythm in the scene.
• Aim to create a sound scape that reflects the subtext of the scene.
• Then once you have a clear rhythm add the dialogue back to the scene in harmony with the
sound scape.
Student follow-on exercise – movement scape
• Now run the scene but without sound and speech you will use movement to replace the
sounds from the previous exercise.
• Your movements can be abstract and you can start to work together as an ensemble within
the piece.
• Keep in mind your actions and allow them to drive the movement within the scene.
This exercise can create some fascinating movement that organically has come from the
improvisations. If you end up moving as an ensemble or all freezing at a given point then mark
these down as you can along so you can build on it when you come to work on this scene again.
Always keep in mind how you are using the space and the message this communicates to the
audience.
Version 1
7
Copyright © OCR 2016
3. Choral repetition
 Take a short piece of dialogue from a scene, a poem or lyrics from a song that fit with your
devised piece.
 Stand with one person in front of the group, the person at the front then says the first line.
 The next two people behind the front person repeat the line varying the volume and texture
of the words.
 The next two people repeat the line again but in an opposite way to the two before them.
 Then all repeat the line again as a group, as an ensemble.
 Move onto the next line working either form the back to the front with the rest of the group
echoing the line.
 Once you have a chorus of a few lines then use the same process to add movement and
use pace to build to a climax.
Student follow-on exercise

Try breaking the text up so different people have different lines from the poem and as you
move together you as one you use your voices in contrast to the movement.

You can then vary the movement while keeping the vocal part in time.
This kind of exercise can allow you as a group to play with voice and working as a chorus. It will
help you to transform a scene and help to build in tension and climax to your piece. I recently
worked with a group who took the lines from Blake’s The Tiger and in a large extended triangle
covering the whole space started in a whisper repeating the chorus as they moved and froze,
moved and froze, the sequence build up to a powerful crescendo exploding into an ensemble
scream. As the lights went down a solitary figure whispered the first two lines of the poem and the
group moved eerily onto the next scene.
Version 1
8
Copyright © OCR 2016
4. Sequencing

Choose one character in the play /devised piece you are working on and find a physical
action that character does in daily life.

Rehearse the action several times.

Take the action and using freezes split it up into four key movements.

The rest of the group find a space and you will repeat the sequence that is done by the first
person.

Rehearse the sequence until you are all in time.

Then think about where you will position yourselves.

You can then add voice and sound to the scene, building text into the scene.

Work on building tension through the pace at which you deliver the sequence.

Repeat the sequence building to a crescendo as you go through the four movements.
Example
I was working with a group looking at the theme of war and how it destroys
lives. The central character did this exercise and used cleaning her rifle as the
action. She then exaggerated each of the four movements so they were much
more vivid and expressive of how she felt being in a war zone. The rest of the
group were all stationed around the stage on different levels mirroring her
sequence. They all started slowly building up each time they repeated the four
movements in time. As they went they added text ‘pain’ ‘fear’ ‘mother’
‘daughter’ and used their voices and musical instruments to heighten the
tension as they went. The scene became quite harrowing; the group played
footage of a child victim during the Vietnam War on a loop during the scene
and used extracts from John Cage’s A Flower to give the scene a very eerie
and ultimately Artaudian effect.
Version 1
9
Copyright © OCR 2016
5. Seven Deadly Sins

Sitting in a circle, in a group pass around the painting by Hieronymus Bosch – The Seven
Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things.

Individually choose a section of the painting and getting up on your feet create an abstract
image that represents the bit of the painting you have chosen.

As a group put together the images as an ensemble moving into position one by one.

Now as a group add sound / music to the sequence.

Take one of the abstract images and use that as a springboard for a devised scene
focussing on using movement within the piece.
This is a great way to start your devising work; in a very short amount of time you will have a
sequence of images and several journeys to explore physically that can form the basis of your
piece.
Version 1
10
Copyright © OCR 2016
6. On breath
Version 1

Stand in a group and slowly become aware of your breathing.

Take a series of five shallow breaths and observe how this changes your state of mind,
then take another five shallow breaths using the breaths to act as a springboard for
movement.

Now take three deep breaths and observe how this changes your state of mind, take
another three deep breaths allowing the breaths to act as a springboard for movement.

Add both sets of physical movements together to form a sequence.

As a group add a narrative or story that fits the rhythm of the sequence and improvise a
short 30 second scene.

Allow the breath work and the movement to ignite your imaginations to decide on the
narrative as you start to allow the natural world to shape the drama.
11
Copyright © OCR 2016
Student homework sheet
When devising…
Work through the following points to create ideas and refine your devised work.
•
For your piece think about how you can alter the staging and use of space to challenge the
audience and question their perceptions of your piece.
•
Work on using alternative lighting states that will help to communicate directly with the
audience. Try lighting states that are in stark contrast to the action of a given scene.
•
Work on your vocal projection and how you are using your voice to threaten and challenge the
audience.
•
Think about how to represent your views on mankind and the society we live in.
•
Think about breaking down the conventions of typical theatre, change the space, staging, use
levels and movement all to create a different and spiritual experience.
•
Contrast the emotions used with the action of the play to create an unnerving effect for the
audience.
•
Create a specific rhythm and tempo to your piece and use it to link and develop the scenes
within your piece.
•
Work in to your piece the relationship between dreams and reality and how they affect our
journeys through life.
Version 1
12
Copyright © OCR 2016