Research

Facts and ideas of Brecht:
(knowledge taken from http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zwmvd2p/revision/2)
- The playwright Bertolt Brecht was born in 1898 in the German town of Augsburg. 
- During the First World War he served as a medical orderly 
- The war affected Brecht hugely and so he traveled in pursuit of his career in theatre.
- Brecht had his citizenship removed from him in 1933 by Nazi's and so became an outcast. He was a stateless citizen. 
- Brecht's experiences during both Wold Wars meant that he had seen brutal things hat affected him throughout later life.
- Brecht died in 1956, and was regarded as one of the greatest theatrical practitioners.
- During his life he was influenced by Chinese theatre and Karl Marx.
- A lot of Brecht's work was political and featured his own voice in one way or another.
- His ideas were influential. He wanted to make the audience think and use a range of devices to remind them that they were watching a show that conveyed a message and not real life in which a character relationships would be formed.
- He also experienced homosexuality
- He was a big fan of Charlie Chaplin
- Brecht's writing rarely included intervals
- Brecht wasn't only a talented playwright, he was also a good poet and director
- He attended drama schol"
- 'Naturalistic' and 'dramatic' theatre involves the audience experiencing moments of catharsis. Brecht created 'Epic theatre' which goes against the two popular methods of acting. He wanted the audience “hang up their brains with their hats in the cloakroom” -meaning that they wouldn't experience he emotional connection and therefore could judge a character without being bias.
- He called the distancing of emotions the 'verfremdungseffekt' effect aka the 'V' effect.
- His work had a political, social or moral message.
- Brechtian theatre breaks the forth wall


The devices Brecht used to create epic theatre included:
   - The 'V' effect
   - Narration
   - Coming out of role/third person narration
   - Speaking the stage directions
   - Direct address
   - Using playing cards
  - Mulitiroling
  - Split-role
  - Minimal set/costume/props
  - Symbolic props
  - Simple white lighting because it 'illuminates he truth' (lighting crew shouldn't purposely be hidden either.
 - Song and dance hat aren't in rhythm
 - Montage (he was influenced by silent film director 'Sergei Eisenstein'
 - Spass (fun) and Gestus (social comment)
 - Scenes are episodic
 - Fractured narrative
 - Gestus is what an actor does to capture a moment physically so that it registers with the audience
 - Brecht created a theatre company called 'Berliner Ensemble'

Some of Brecht's Plays:
- 'The Threepenny Opera' (1955)
- 'The Mother' (1931)
- 'The Caucasian Chalk Circle' (1948)
- 'Happy End' (1929)
- 'Drums in the Night' (1922)

Who he collaborated with and some associates:
- Karl von Appen
- Walter Benjamin
- Eric Bentley
- Ruth Berghaus
- Ruth Berlau
- Berliner Ensemble
- Benno Besson
- Arnolt Bronnen
- Emil Burri
- Ernst Busch
- Paul Dessau
- Slatan Dudow
- Hanns Eisler
- Erich Engel
- Erwin Faber
- Lion Feuchtwanger
- Therese Giehse
- Alexander Granach
- Elisabeth Hauptmann
- Paul Hindemith
- Oskar Homolka
- Angelika Hurwicz
- Herbert Ihering (de)
- Fritz Kortner
- Fritz Lang
- Wolfgang Langhoff
- Charles Laughton
- Lotte Lenya
(Sourced from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertolt_Brecht)