CANTO, FALA E EFEITO DE ESTRANHAMENTO NOS ESCRITOS SOBRE TEATRO DE BERTOLT BRECHT

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Bertolt Brecht is one of the authors responsible for developing a theoretical foundation of what is known as epic theater, which involves all aspects of staging and, in particular, acting. One of the central concepts for the performance in epic theater is the Verfremdungseffekt known as the "estrangement effect" which aims, according to the author, "to give the viewer an analytical and critical attitude towards the unfolding of events". Refusing to engage in catharsis, Brecht establishes means to employ  the estrangement effect and one of them is through songs. For the author, the act of singing establishes an atmosphere of absurdity in the scene which is accentuated when the transition from speech to singing is abrupt. Considering  the importance of singing in Brecht's work, the central objective of this article is to contribute to the understanding of how the conception and use of songs are related to the development of the principles of acting in the context of the epic theater, especially the estrangement effect. For this purpose, we have made a systematic reading of Brecht's writings translated into Portuguese seeking to identify all the author's quotations referring to singing. Then, we analyzed the quotations from the point of view of the estrangement effect, comparing them with the concept as it appears in other theoretical writings, seeking to make explicit the correlations and possible contradictions that the references may contain.

Keywords: Sing and speech. Estrangement effect. Epic theater