Customer Reviews

The Empty Space: A Book About the Theatre: Deadly, Holy, Rough, Immediate

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Building upon the earlier work of Aristotle, Brecht, Artaud and others, Brook confronts the living organism of the theatre on four levels: Deadly, Holy, Rough and Immediate. In each level, Brook makes the case that the theatre is not only a necessary component to the human creature, but a being that despite its constant wounds and ills, manages to bounce up from the death bed and find a way to survive.

Interestingly when Brook was writing (1968) there were many cynical critics who complained that the theatre was dying in the wake of television and film. Brook confronts the issue that theatre attendance was reacing all time lows. Today, over thirty years later, it is daunting to consider that there are even more distractions (the internet, home video, etc.) and attendance is even lower still. Yet despite these imposing knives thrusting into the communal body that is the Theatre, the world's oldest art form manages to forge ahead, survive and, the rare cases, thrive all the while maintaining its cultural importance.

Brook believes the theatre is unique is that it requires a community of artists and audiences alike to exist. That very sense of humanity and awe is what allows it to flourish in many instances.

Brook's writing is admittedly erudite and sometimes pretentious. And perhaps when one takes the positions that he does, such lofty language and posings may indeed be impossible. I hate to say it, but Brook's book may be hard going for the theatre lay person- God knows I'm aware of how elitist that sounds, but I think it is true. Because of his thick verbage, it may take a couple of stabs for the reader to unlock Brook's fevered soapboxing. But the journey is well worth the price.

This is a book of theatre theory and therefore it may appear quite barren of practical solutions. However when read in conjunction with not only life experience in the theatre as well as the many great acting, directing and play wrighting texts, it does provide the theatre artist with the basis for forging a true political manifesto. To quote Brook himself, "To play needs much work. But when we experience the work as play, then it is not work any more. A play is a play."

Yes: Brook is a genius.
Yes: This work is of great value to any theatre artist.
BUT!!! This book is rather dense, and those who are unfamiliar with major movements and theories in the last century of theater may find themselves a bit lost when Brook begins to talk about Artaud and the "Holy Theater" or Brecht and "Rough Theater."

Brook's ideas, through his sometimes dense writing, are meant to inspire and invigorate. This is not a manual or even a reference to create good theatre, as a major argument of Brook's is that good theater is far to complex and ever-changing to be explained by any book/manual/dogma/etc.

Read this book and know that it will not help you to create good theatre- if anything, it will raise the bar for "good" theatre so much higher that one's task becomes infinitely more difficult. This is the agony and the ecstasy of reading Peter Brook.

What is great about the empty space is that Peter Brook's theory is relevant to all art forms. The four theatres he describes are basically categories in which all art falls into. This seems odd at first until you see what he is describing. What turns most people off is the idea of over-categorizing art. But Brook's theatres tend to be more or less critiques of individual performances, or what the effect of that performance is on the audience. This is also easy to read. Too much theatre philosophy gets bogged down by either melodramatic thespian writers, or rambling philosophies from those who have not trained themselves to ge good writers. With Brook, it is pretty straightforawrd, not always easy to understand mind you, but straightforward. If you are at all interested in the arts then this is a must read.

This book, along with Uta Hagen's "Respect for Acting" and any Stanaslavski, is the motherload of theater expertise.

Peter Brook packs an incredible amount into this terse little gem of an essay. More than a discussion of his view of theater and some personal recollections, this book contains a how-to manual for every director, actor, designer, and producer. It is written in Brooks' unique style and is meant to be reread many times. With every reading, I find new insights as to how to bring real theatrical moments to my productions. As an essential part of my preparation for directing a particular project, I reread this classic. If it isn't on your bookshelf and isn't dog-eared from use, you aren't a complete professional in theater.

In case you fell into empty space, you'll be able to find yourself. Not just on the stage, or live performing, but also in your real life. The book's words are frends to all readers, and to those who hate theater or don't understand it; everyone will get a brand new view to this matter. To all who'll read this book: "While reading this book, be patient and the fortune of new knowledge will appear! It's easy to understand the mistery of new world - theater! You'll be able to find the secrets of acting and performing forever!" Everybody sholud read this book, because it must be known to all!

Have you ever noticed that several of the worlds truly Great Books are very short? Reading this book, along with The Dramatic Imagination by Robert Edmond Jones, Acting: the first 6 lessons by Boleshavsky and Aristotles Poetics are (to my less than humble opinion) all one really needs to have a degree in Theater/re.

The Amazon editorial review by John Longenbaugh says that Peter Brook is a co-founder of the RSC. Uh, no. That would be Peter Hall. Peter Brook became a resident director at the RSC in 1962.

Brooks is a brilliant director and writer. His short book on the state of the theatre is a must-read for any serious theatre student.

Although I generally find the theatre rather deadly, and haven't been to one for longer than I've been to a doctor (except for forced innoculation), Brook's films - which generally adapt his theatre to the screen - the best of their kind - to an extent DEFINE their respective eras (and I saw them in each): the vastly superior original Lord of the Flies (1963); Marat/Sade (1967); King Lear (1971 - best screen Shakespeare bar none including Olivier's Richard III, Hamlet - et al); Meetings with Remarkable Men (1979) and - the Mahabharata - well, forever! These comprise an ouvre which stands to invest this requisite analysis of the whys and wherefores of drama with unmatched credibility. Brook, the artist, has never failed to stir my soul. In this book, he delineates the ideology of why that is. In brief, he shares with us the fruits of a definitive education in drama. A work that stands on my shelf with McKee, Egri, Artaud, and very few others.