Reviews

The Theater and Its Double by Antonin Artaud

alvarito145's review against another edition

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informative

3.75

casparb's review against another edition

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4.0

Even more explosive on the reread. Wonderful work, highly recommend the -curious- notes at the end too.
I read a little essay from Derrida about this text in prep, which I feel opened it up a good deal.
Basically, a welcome refresher :)

lanidanie's review against another edition

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3.0

he really was schizophrenic

growskull's review against another edition

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inspiring fast-paced

4.25

melancoil's review

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dark informative inspiring mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.75

veia_z's review against another edition

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slow-paced

3.0

jasperbeckmen's review against another edition

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3.0

Hard to review….like Artaud I seem to lack the vernacular necessary to articulate my…complicated feelings. On one had his impassioned and affecting poetry is easy to love, but he’s so relentlessly rude, morose, and disconcerting that I find it impossible to really attach to his ideas.

No more masterpieces!!!

corvuscorax's review

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informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

3.75

I found this to be a lovely book to read while on the road! I am guessing that it would hold more value to someone interested in literary criticism, but I nonetheless consider it to be a great look into contemporary theatre and it's origins. Artaud combines mysticism, scenography and the great themes of life to produce a dizzying cocktail that certainly won't work for everyone, but which fascinated me. The only downside is that the ideas themselves are terribly repetitive, and near the end you get a feeling that everything could have been said in a much shorter book. Worth reading if you're curious about Artaud.

virtualmima's review

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3.0

Though taking a step in the right direction, Artaud fails to elaborate well enough on his ideas and it gets to the point that he repeats himself too often and it shows that he didn't have a clear enough vision of what he was trying to express. He also tried to create a new method based on his confused and vague ideas that is almost as limiting as the old method. Still a must-read for anyone interested in film or theater, and you should already understand what he's reacting against and working towards if you're thinking of pursuing these long-term whether as creator or critic. If you don't have similar complaints you may wish to get yourself into a different industry. Just keep in mind that in 1938 when this was first published, music and film hadn't achieved anything nearly as advanced or surrealistic as some of the stuff we have today. We can still benefit from taking a few more steps in the direction that Artaud encourages us to go.