MANIFESTATIONS OF THE GERMAN EXPRESSIONIST AESTHETIC AS PRESENTED IN DRAMA AND ART IN THE DANCE AND WRITINGS OF MARY WIGMAN.

摘要

The purpose of this investigation is the clarification of the relationship between Mary Wigman and German Expressionism by examining the similarities of Wigman's work and philosophy as explained by her writings, evidenced by descriptions of selected choreographies and reviews of her work, and as observed in film, to the German expressionist aesthetic in drama and art.;It has been found that there are no major discrepancies between Wigman's theories and works and those of the German expressionists. Speaking generally, dance can deal with the major themes of Expressionism, and is particularly able to present the essence, to make visible the invisible, to make manifest the emotional state, the inner truth. Dance can also fulfill the notion that art is a direct communication, soul to soul. Five constituents--Ich, Unio Mystica, Directness, Flung into Space and Stationen--can be translated directly to the dance medium. So too can the 'abstraction' portion of Abstraction and Empathy be applied directly to dance. However, the 'empathy' portion is most often seen as human empathy rather than non-human empathy. Der Schrei is manifested slightly differently in dance through the force, shape, and time elements of movement. The second constituent, Duality of Reality, poses the most difficulty for dance. It can be seen in the juxtaposition of 'real' movement to unreal, dancerly movement or in the juxtaposition of the reality of the physical body to the unreality of the image portrayed by the dancer. Finally, comparing dance to expressionist theatre, the production elements can be applied to the dance performance.;This investigation is divided into six parts: (1) introduction; (2) background information including the social and scientific changes in German, 1900-1933, the precursors to Expressionism, and a brief history of the German expressionist movement, (3) biographical sketch focusing on the influences on Wigman's career and her personal contacts with other artists associated with the German expressionist movement, (4) the construct of the German expressionist aesthetic--definitions of Expressionism, the goals, themes, constituents and characteristics, (5) an examination of the works and writing of Mary Wigman within the construct, (6) summary and conclusions.