RICHARD WAGNER (1813-83)

The famous composer of the Ring Cycle also wrote two theoretical works of great importance to the history of the theatre and the rise of realism and the regisseur. Both Opera and Drama (1852) and The Purpose of Opera (1871) were largely reactions to Italianate opera and both reflected the rise of German nationalism. (The German states were united into a federation in 1871.)

Wagner believed the success of a production is determined by its ability to engage the emotions of the audience and to draw his audience into the world of the play (a major contrast with Brecht's notion of verfremdungseffekt.). Wagner's preoccupation with the experience of the audience, led him to a quest for total illusionism. Key elements were a darkened auditorium and the establishment of aesthetic distance across what he termed a "mystic chasm." He also eliminated the distinction between recitative and aria and used elaborate songs for dramatic effect rather than as a showcase for a star's virtuosity, which would, Wagner's view, take the audience out of the play and back into the auditorium. Ultimately, he hoped to create an atmosphere so seductive and overwhelming that it would induce in the audience "that spiritualized state of clairvoyance wherein the scenic representation becomes the perfect image of real life." This meant that the Walkyries were real Walkyries, Fafner, a real dragon, etc. It is not that Walkyries are "real," but that we are really seeing Walkyries, not representations of Walkyries.

But, Wagner had an intense distaste for dramatic realism per se. He felt that a poet was to be a "mythmaker not a retailer of domestic intrigues." He therefore believed that opera was the best vehicle for this mythmaking purpose since the sung lyrics could create and preserve an ideality lacking in mere realism.

He conceived the notion of a Gesamtkunstwerk (usually translated as a "unified work of art") which could be achieved best in opera where the composer could dictate intonation, tempo, variations in intensity, etc. Corallary to the notion of Gesamtkunstwerk is the all-powerful director or Regisseur, a role Wagner happily attempted to fill.

Despite his patronage by the eccentric Ludwig II of Bavaria, Wagner built his own "classless" theatre at Bayreuth (left) which is still in use today. In theory each of the seats would be equally good. There are no center aisle, for example, nor any special boxes. His most enduring legacy in terms of architecture was the "Wagnerian pit," which was beneath the stage and placed in such a way that the conductor could see and control both the orchestra and the singers.