The Art of Assembly surveys theatre today to demonstrate its political potential in both form and content. Drawing on numerous examples from around the world in performance, visual art, and activist art, curator and author Florian Malzacher examines works that draw on the particular possibilities of theatre to navigate the space between representation and participation, at once playfully and with sincerity.
In a time of wide-ranging crisis, The Art of Assembly is a plea for a strong definition of the political and for a theatre that is not content merely to reflect the world’s ills, but instead acts to change them.
A knowledgeable foray through the landscape of political theatre. die tageszeitung (taz)
A very good overview of current postdramatic events, bringing together a great deal of empirical material. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ)
Rarely have the pitfalls of representation as the cornerstone of theatre been explained so elegantly. Berliner Zeitung
A stimulating book that brings you up to date with the latest discursive thinking without overwhelming you with theory. An ideal side effect. profil
Malzacher’s analysis is clever, enjoyable and accessible even for the theory-shy. A briefing on the state of the discourse and a declaration of love for theatre. Die Wochenzeitung (WOZ)
Table of Content
Prologue
Representation
Crises of Representation
Regietheater and Early Postdramatic Theatre
Politics and the Political
Anthropocene, Animism, and Posthumanism
Trembling Androids, Sweating Avatars
Identity Politics
Infiltrated Terms and Special Interests
Privileges and Unproductive Silences
Offended Offenders
Stumbling and Stuttering
Participation
Care and Confrontation
Safer Spaces, Braver Spaces
Participation Behind the Scenes
Immersion: Participation as Submission
Art and Activism
Means and Ends
Fake News
Forced Positionings
Theatre as Assembly
Performative Assemblies
Parliaments, Summits, Courtrooms
Pre-enactments
Assembling Knowledge
When Realism Becomes Reality
Epilogue
Notes
List of Names
Image Credits
Acknowledgments
About the author
Florian Malzacher is a curator, author, and dramaturg as well as the host of The Art of Assembly, a series of talks and conversations about the potential of gathering in art, activism, and politics. From 2006–2012 he was festival programmer of the interdisciplinary festival steirischer herbst in Graz; from 2013–2017 the artistic director of the Impulse Theater Festival. He is the editor of numerous publications on theatre, on the relationship between art, activism, and politics, and on performance curation. These include (co)edited books on the work of theatre companies Forced Entertainment, Rimini Protokoll, and Nature Theater of Oklahoma, as well as Truth is Concrete: A Handbook for Artistic Strategies in Real Politics (2014), Not Just a Mirror: Looking for the Political Theatre of Today (2015) and Empty Stages, Crowded Flats: Performativity as Curatorial Strategy (2017). His books and essays have been translated into fifteen languages.
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