1. THEATRE OFTHEATRE OF CRUELTYCRUELTY 2. Was a French playwright, poet, actor and theatre director. Antoine Marie Joseph Artaud 3. Antonin Artaud He was one of nineHe was one of nine children with only himchildren with only him and his sister survivingand his sister surviving after an Early birth.after an Early birth. Died March 4Died March 4thth 19481948 Born September 4Born September 4thth 18961896 4. Antonins lifeAntonins life before his famebefore his fame 5. When Artaud what only 4 years old he was diagnosed with meningitis it was such a severe case that it resulted to him having miserable temperament throughout his teen years. Who also suffered from stuttering and severe cases off depression In his teen years he started using Opium for his depression which resulted in an addiction When Artaud was 15 his parents put him through several sanitarium stays to deal with his extreme temperamentThese stays were very long and expensive which lasted 5 years with a 2month break in-between each one. 6. In the June of 1916, when Artaud was 20 years old, he attempted to join the French army. However he was allegedly discharged because of his self-induced sleep walking. after this he was taken back to the institution, where he began writing short books, and also reading the works of Edgar Allen Poe. in march of 1920, Artaud moved to Paris to pursue his career as a writer. while living in Paris, he soon realised that he had a great talent for avant-garde theatre. he soon started performing and training with some very talented actors at the time (Charles Dulling and George Pitoeff). 7. In 1931, the First Manifesto for a Theater Of Cruelty was published in la Nouvelle Revue Francaise 8. So what isSo what is Theatre ofTheatre of CrueltyCruelty exactly?exactly? 9. Antonin Artaud believed that theatre should affect the audience as much as possible. So, he would use strange and disturbing forms of lighting , sound and performance. Artaud also believed that the theatres main role was to rid the audience of civilized thought and free their natural energy. 10. He did this by shocking them with mythic spectacles which included, groans, screams, flashing lights and oversized stage puppets. The play, Les Cenci was the only one of his plays ever produced according to his theory. Theatre of cruelty was meant to show a more physical and primitive performance intended to shock the spectators. He wanted the spectators to be aware of the cruelty of life and violence so he would have them go through a relieving of emotions 11. When Artaud spoke about cruelty he didnt mean violence, instead he meant the cruelty it takes the actors to tear away their masks and show the audience the truth that isnt at all what they want to see. Basically he was trying to change theatre completely, trying to connect people with emotions that had been long lost. 12. Antonins theory was never really accepted and he was institutionalized for a long time as he was declared a lunatic. In 1948 Antonin Artaud died at the age of 52 of intestinal cancer. He was in a psychiatric ward when he died.