Quick questions on Brecht and epic theatre explained: H2 Theatre Studies and Drama

Brecht, working in Germany and in exile through the mid-twentieth century, wanted theatre to serve social change. He distrusted theatre that swept audiences into emotion, because an absorbed, weeping spectator does not analyse why a character suffers. His "epic theatre" keeps the audience at a thinking distance so they treat the events on stage as a social problem to be understood and acted upon.

The alienation or distancing effect makes the familiar look strange so the audience sees it freshly and critically. The actor shows the character rather than fully becoming them, narrating or commenting on the role; the illusion is deliberately broken by visible lighting rigs, harsh even light, on-stage scene changes, placards and projected captions that announce what will happen so suspense gives way to reflection. The point is never to let the audience forget they are in a theatre watching an argument.

A gestus is a clear physical and vocal attitude that captures the social relationship in a moment, the worker's stoop before the manager, the beggar's outstretched hand, a banker's complacent ease. The gestus makes a social truth visible in the body, so the audience reads the power relations rather than just the private feelings. Finding the right gestus for a moment is central to staging Brecht.

A gestus is a specific physical and vocal attitude that shows a social relationship, not just any gesture; name the posture and what it reveals.

Define the alienation effect and give one practical staging device that produces it. [3 marks]

Explain what a gestus is and how it differs from an ordinary gesture. [3 marks]

Why does Brecht use episodic structure rather than a continuous causal plot? [4 marks]