
Theatre and Boxing
The Actor who Flies
Franco Ruffini(Author)
Routledge (Publisher)
1st Edition
Will be published approx. on 19. June 2014
Book
Paperback/Softback
183 pages
978-0-415-71927-8 (ISBN)
Description
Theatre and Boxing focuses on a problem which is of paramount importance for any theatre practitioner and researcher: the actor's believable body. This problem has been taken up by Stanislavski, Meyerhold, Artaud, Brecht, Decroux, Copeau, Grotowski, and many others. It is an essential hurdle for all who practice the theatrical craft or want to study it theoretically. This hurdle can be considered one of the foundations of theatre science and of the relationship between technique, politics and ethics.
This book tells the story of a revolution in the work of the actor in the early- and mid-20th century, a period in which the focus of theatrical interest shifted from the emotions to the body. The actor's body became a tool for purveying a dynamic set of actions which often transformed the very actor himself. This new centrality of the body also drew attention to those places in which the body is central: the gym, the boxing ring and the circus with its trapezes and tightropes became, together with the stage, laboratories for the theatre. Thus, in addition to the reformers of the theatre the pages of this book are filled with boxers, acrobats, gymnasts and wrestlers, pursuers of an utopia: the "actor who flies".
This book tells the story of a revolution in the work of the actor in the early- and mid-20th century, a period in which the focus of theatrical interest shifted from the emotions to the body. The actor's body became a tool for purveying a dynamic set of actions which often transformed the very actor himself. This new centrality of the body also drew attention to those places in which the body is central: the gym, the boxing ring and the circus with its trapezes and tightropes became, together with the stage, laboratories for the theatre. Thus, in addition to the reformers of the theatre the pages of this book are filled with boxers, acrobats, gymnasts and wrestlers, pursuers of an utopia: the "actor who flies".
Reviews / Votes
"A must for anyone who really wants to understand the factors which influence change in theatre practice." - The StageMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 138 mm
Weight
226 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-415-71927-8 (9780415719278)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
08/2023
1st Edition
Routledge
€36.99
Available for download

E-Book
08/2023
1st Edition
Routledge
€36.99
Available for download

Book
06/2014
1st Edition
Routledge
€136.66
Shipment within 15-20 days
Person
Franco Ruffini teaches at the Rome Tre University. He is a member of the scientific staff of ISTA, the International School of Theatre Anthropology, of which he is one of the founders together with Eugenio Barba. He sits on the Board of Editors of the journal Teatro e Storia.
Content
Foreword, Boxing, Gymnasiums and bals musette, Boxers and acrobats, The actor who flies, Envoi, Index