2019 Year 12 IB Extended Essays

Introduction The Surrealist Movement was one of the most influential and pervasive artistic movements of the twentieth century. The ideas and works it produced have had and continue to have a significant and tangible impact on the artistic, historical, and philosophical dialogue of the last hundred years. Even with Surrealism’s broad significance, the theatre was one place where it was never able to establish itself as a distinct genre. Certainly there have been and continue to be productions and dramatic texts embodying the spirit and conventions of surrealist theory but no practitioner has ever set out to create or describe an explicitly surrealist theatre. Antonin Artaud’s “Theatre of Cruelty” is considered by many to be an expression of Surrealism, especially considering his early involvement with the movement. Throughout, the question around which this essay will centre will be “ to what extent was the Theatre of Cruelty the most complete expression of Surrealism in theatre ”. This investigation will argue that although Artaud’s work is not technically a product of the movement, the Theatre of Cruelty is a definite expression of Surrealism’s ethos, and the most comprehensive manifestation of that ethos in the theatre. This will be achieved by investigating the work, theories, and history of both Artaud and the Surrealists, and considering the relationships and conflicts between the two. The role of theatre within the Surrealist movement is also of significance, as is Artaud’s personal relationship with the group.

For the purposes of this investigation, the intention is not to explore the ‘most complete expression of Surrealism in the theatre’ with respect to the extent to which it followed the principles set out in the movement’s manifestos. ‘Most complete’ in this sense refers to the

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