Lecture：“Word-ism and Theatre of Materials”by Famous Director Zhang Guangtian 10/06/2009

At 13:30 on the afternoon of June 10, Zhang Guangtian, the famous drama director, playwright, lyric poet and musician delivered his lecture Word-ism and Theatre of Materials in Room 208 of the Red Building.

Mr. Zhang has wonderful experience and original ideas about theatre. He concludes himself as a sentimental and complicated man. After creating excellent works such as Rhinoceros in love and Che Guevara, he still kept to his own style. He believes that diligence and action lead to success.

Word-ism is a theory concluded by Mr. Zhang. In traditional Chinese theatre, playwrights tend to use images to replace direct depiction. According to Mr. Zhang, theatre is always a system of poetry in terms of text. The emphasis is on how to express a story rather than how to tell or act out a story.

The second topic in his lecture was Theatre of Materials. According to Mr. Zhang, space(stage), text(script), and person(actors) are the major three elements, or the three materials. These materials are in the hands of playwrights.

"If you do not understand poetry, you can not produce good drama." Mr. Zhang Guangtian finally sang a song written himself "the Willow Branch". It was a song calling for world peace. His voice and the masterful skill of guitar moved the teachers and students deeply.

The lecture

Mr. Zhang Guangtian singing

Mr. Zhang Guangtian communicating with students of STA