Avstånd - Närhet. Ingmar Bergmans Vintersagan
Author
Summary, in English
This dissertation investigates the directorial changes brought about in Vintersagan, Ingmar Bergman's 1994 production of William Shakespeare's late play The Winter's Tale (1610-11) at Dramaten in Stockholm, and put forth a contribution to a more nuanced understanding of Bergman as a theatre director. Foreignness and familiarity, remoteness and proximity are the dichotomies with which his theatrical work is best described. The dissertation attempts to show how Bergman goes about domesticating and putting in an appropriate Swedish context the culturally and historically foreign material in Shakespeare's play so as to make remote and strange things appear familiar and close.
In the first chapter examples from English language theatrical history are presented for the purp'ose of showing how The Winter's Tale has been adapted to changing fashions and conventions. In the second chapter the Swedish translation of Shakespeare's text is examined. The framing of Shakespeares play is described in chapter three. Chapter four is intended to show how Bergman deals with the problem of Leontes? unfounded jealousy. Chapter five shows that Bergman paid as much attention to Hermione as to Leontes. In Vintersagan Hermione eventually appeared as a kind of Nora, a wife confined in a suffocating marriage. The ending was slightly skewed so as to be in better correspondence with the morality of the play: the love of people diminishes the chaos of the world and the lack of love spreads new chaos. This notion recurs in chapter six, in which is dealt with the creation of prince Mamillius, a minor character in The Winter's Tale but whose presence marked the first half of Vintersagan and whose absence characterised the second half. Mamillius was put forth as the person who conjured up the story the audience saw enacted on the stage. To all appearances Bergman wanted to express that Mamillius experiences were copied on his own childhood memories and his personal mythology.
The critical response to the performance is the subject of the last chapter of the dissertation, the emphasis of the text being put especially on the response to the creation of the play's pastoral scenes. Bergman's position, in his work with the theatre classics, is that he strives to be true to the original. In the last chapter of the dissertation this notion is questioned by opposing Bergman's aesthetical ideals in this respect with the theatrical praxis that is to be seen in Vintersagan. In reality Bergman deconstructs Shakespeare's play, locates its gaps and exploits its contradictions.
In the first chapter examples from English language theatrical history are presented for the purp'ose of showing how The Winter's Tale has been adapted to changing fashions and conventions. In the second chapter the Swedish translation of Shakespeare's text is examined. The framing of Shakespeares play is described in chapter three. Chapter four is intended to show how Bergman deals with the problem of Leontes? unfounded jealousy. Chapter five shows that Bergman paid as much attention to Hermione as to Leontes. In Vintersagan Hermione eventually appeared as a kind of Nora, a wife confined in a suffocating marriage. The ending was slightly skewed so as to be in better correspondence with the morality of the play: the love of people diminishes the chaos of the world and the lack of love spreads new chaos. This notion recurs in chapter six, in which is dealt with the creation of prince Mamillius, a minor character in The Winter's Tale but whose presence marked the first half of Vintersagan and whose absence characterised the second half. Mamillius was put forth as the person who conjured up the story the audience saw enacted on the stage. To all appearances Bergman wanted to express that Mamillius experiences were copied on his own childhood memories and his personal mythology.
The critical response to the performance is the subject of the last chapter of the dissertation, the emphasis of the text being put especially on the response to the creation of the play's pastoral scenes. Bergman's position, in his work with the theatre classics, is that he strives to be true to the original. In the last chapter of the dissertation this notion is questioned by opposing Bergman's aesthetical ideals in this respect with the theatrical praxis that is to be seen in Vintersagan. In reality Bergman deconstructs Shakespeare's play, locates its gaps and exploits its contradictions.
Department/s
Publishing year
2005
Language
Swedish
Document type
Dissertation
Publisher
Carlsson Bokförlag
Topic
- Languages and Literature
Keywords
- Theater theory and history
- Directors theatre
- Performance analysis
- International Shakespeare
- Carl Jonas Love Almqvist
- William Shakespeare
- Swedish 20th century theatre
- Ingmar Bergman
- Teatervetenskap
Status
Published
Supervisor
- Margareta Wirmark
- Johan Stenström
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISBN: 91-7203-718-0
Defence date
1 October 2005
Defence time
10:15
Defence place
Humanisthusets hörsal, Språk- och litteraturcentrum, Helgonabacken 12, Lund
Opponent
- Freddie Rokem