The Dynamics of Directing for the Stage and the Screen

Abstract

Using historical-analytic method, this article examines the dynamics of directing for the stage and the screen. It argues that even though the process of directing is a tough one both on the stage and the screen, it can be very interesting and rewarding for the strong-willed, creative director (artist). It further posits that contemporary theatre is so sophisticated and highly technologically driven that a stage director must of necessity be artistically and technically savvy to be effective in play production in the theatre. As creative and interpretive artists, post-modern, multicultural and globalized directors constantly seek new means of creative exploration through a shared experience of experiments in multimedia, visual arts and cultural expressions of the performance theatrical traditions existing all over the world. This is the key link in the works of creative high concept directors such as Jerzy Grotowski, Peter Brook, Eugenio Barba, Robert Lepage, Simon Mcburney, Lev Dodin, Elizabeth LeCompte and those of textinterpreters and author-centred directors such as Max Stafford-Clark, Katie Mitchell and Declan Donnellan. Contemporary directors are seeking new ways of developing strong 'physically embodied theatre' and must continuously strive to work across the theatre/film/television divides, and feel be at home in the different media to bring their visions to bear on creative works beyond the confines of any single medium for the gratification of the ever 'hungry' audience.

Keywords: Directing, Stage, Screen, Multimedia, Contemporary directors, Theatrical traditions