The Uncapturable: The Fleeting Art of Theatre

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The Uncapturable is a wide-ranging reflection on the art of the mise en scne from the perspective of leading Argentinian theatre director Rubn Szuchmacher. It offers a timely and concise, though comprehensive, survey of the role and responsibility of the theatre director from the earliest times to the twenty-first century. Szuchmacher defines theatre as the confluence of four art forms - architecture, visual art, sound and literature - whose works only truly exist in the moment of encounter with an audience. He argues that, by taking full account of these four art forms, analysing them in detail and engaging thoughtfully with the many specialists who come together to bring a mise en scne into being, the director of today can still create work that innovates and inspires. The Uncapturable is as valuable to the apprentice director emerging from their training as it is to the veteran in need of fresh reflection. Szuchmacher draws on the unique learnings gleaned from working in Argentina, be it the impact on theatre of politics, the need for inventiveness in times of hardship, the phenomenon of Argentine 'circus theatre' or the adaptation of literary giants such as Borges, affording the Anglophone reader an alternative perspective on the ideas of theatre we often take for granted. Szuchmacher offers a unique blend of global knowledge, historical awareness and a pragmatic, resourceful and creative approach from a theatre artist working in Latin American through decades of change. The book is translated from the Spanish by William Gregory.

Reviews

For over fifty years actor-director Rubn Szuchmacher has been one of the best kept secrets in Latin American theatre. Here, in his acclaimed first book, he provides a series of shrewd reflections on theatre and the ways in which its mysteries come into being in the presence of the audience. The poetics of space, the logic of time and the relationship between mise en scne and direction are all explored with clarity and vigour. The Uncapturable is an erudite, lively and highly readable book about the hows and the whys of theatre-making, drawing on Szuchmachers lived experience of training generations of actors, directors, teachers and programmers in Argentina. * Professor Maria Delgado, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama *

Author Bio

Rubn Szuchmacher is one of Argentina's leading theatre and opera directors, who has directed in his country's major institutions and toured worldwide. He is also a stage and screen actor and choreographer, has managed theatre buildings and has taught theatre direction in universities in Argentina, Spain, Mexico, Chile and Uruguay. In 2016, he was awarded a Premio de la Trayectoria (lifetime achievement award) by the Argentine Instituto Nacional de Teatro (National Theatre Institute). William Gregory is a translator whose translations of leading Spanish and Latin American dramatists have been produced by the Royal Court Theatre, Gate Theatre and the BBC. He is a regular translator and script advisor for the international department at the Royal Court Theatre, translation editor for the online theatre journal The Theatre Times and a Visiting Research Associate at King's College London.