Daria S. Nielsen
Zarządzanie w Kulturze, Tom 21, Numer 2, 2020, s. 123 - 134
https://doi.org/10.4467/20843976ZK.20.011.12164In 2019, a call for a new director for Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium – Odin Teatret was published. This, however, did not mean that the artistic leader of the group theatre Odin Teatret, Eugenio Barba, was to be replaced completely – there is a distinction between the laboratory and the theatre. In this article, we explore the problem of the passing on legacy and tradition from one generation to another in group theatres such as Odin Teatret. We ask: (1) How would it have been possible to continue after such a visionary director retired? (2) Would the next step be continuation or something new? In search for the answers we discuss the history, method, and dramaturgy of Odin Teatret and Barba, as well as the process of generational change in the laboratory, using documents which assess the situation of the organization and analyzing Barba’s theoretical writings. We consider them in terms of transformational leadership theory. In conclusion, we deliberate on possible scenarios of the generational change in group theatres that could provide a balance between keeping the tradition and implementing the new vision.
Daria S. Nielsen
Zarządzanie w Kulturze, Tom 20, Numer 3, 2019, s. 397 - 409
https://doi.org/10.4467/20843976ZK.19.023.11129Theatre Talks emerged as an audience reception research method in Sweden. In this article I describe the evolution of the method and put it into practical perspectives. At first, Theatre Talks provided extensive insights into the experiences of Stockholm theatre audiences in the 1980s. Those results inspired the inventor of the method, Willmar Sauter, to develop a theatre communications model, which changed the academic discourse on the theatrical communication process. In Australia, Rebecca Scollen successfully applied the method for an audience development projects aimed at non-attenders. In Denmark, Louise Ejgod Hansen noticed that Theatre Talks might access a democratic potential of theatre. All of these effective applications of the method inspired me to look at Theatre Talks as an audience development tool from three combinatory perspectives: (1) marketing – its potential for increased ticket sales and changing the behaviour of the customers, (2) cultural policy – for higher diversity and participation in theatre, and (3) theatrical communication – for improved understanding and better satisfaction from participation in the performance.