1st Edition

Actors and Audiences Conversations in the Electric Air

By Caroline Heim Copyright 2020
212 Pages
by Routledge

212 Pages
by Routledge

212 Pages
by Routledge

Actors and Audiences explores the exchanges between those on and off the stage that fill the atmosphere with energy and vitality. Caroline Heim utilises the concept of "electric air" to describe this phenomenon and discuss the charge of emotional electricity that heightens the audience’s senses in the theatre. In order to understand this electric air, Heim draws from in-depth interviews with... Read more

Acknowledgements; Introduction; PART I: ELECTRIC AIR; CHAPTER ONE The Electric Air of Theatre; CHAPTER TWO The View from the Stage; CHAPTER THREE The View from the Audience; PART II: CONVERSATIONS; CHAPTER FOUR Heisenberg’s Psychological Conversations; CHAPTER FIVE Encounters with The Encounter; CHAPTER SIX Hunger. Peer Gynt: a Thirst for Conversations; Conclusion; Appendix: Actor Biographies; Index

Biography

Caroline Heim is a senior lecturer in Theatre at Queensland University of Technology, Australia.

"This is rigorously planned research where author breaks new ground in studying the emotional electricity between actors and audiences in performance. The book genuinely respects and values the experiences of the actor, and gives theoretical insights gleaned from a valuable collection of focussed actor interviews that took some initiative to obtain. The emphasis on audience interviews and reactions is equally valuable. The study focuses on productions of conceptual significance and wide appeal, situating the interviews in a thematic framework of ideas on presence and energetics."

- Commendation for the Rob Jordan Prize for Best Book (Australasian Drama Association)