Woyzeck Introduction

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Georg Büchner was a politically radical playwright whose unfinished play Woyzeck (1836)

Georg Büchner was a politically radical playwright whose unfinished play Woyzeck (1836)

exposes the suffering and dehumanisation of the working class under oppressive systems of power.

exposes the suffering and dehumanisation of the working class under oppressive systems of power.

In his earlier pamphlet The Hessian Messenger (1834), he described the bourgeoisie as living 'their life like one long Sunday,'

In his earlier pamphlet The Hessian Messenger (1834), he described the bourgeoisie as living 'their life like one long Sunday,'

while the lower classes endured endless cycles of exploitation and violence.

while the lower classes endured endless cycles of exploitation and violence.

In Woyzeck, this inequality is made visceral through the protagonist

In Woyzeck, this inequality is made visceral through the protagonist

- a low-ranking soldier whose poverty, low status, and deteriorating mental state drive him to murder.

- a low-ranking soldier whose poverty, low status, and deteriorating mental state drive him to murder.

My concept explores the themes of madness and illusion by presenting soldiers as both fighters and performers,

My concept explores the themes of madness and illusion by presenting soldiers as both fighters and performers,

collapsing the boundaries between military garrison and theatrical stage.

collapsing the boundaries between military garrison and theatrical stage.

The production is set in a disused warehouse in Woolwich, chosen not only because Punchdrunk have previously transformed this site,

The production is set in a disused warehouse in Woolwich, chosen not only because Punchdrunk have previously transformed this site,

but also because its rich military history allows for a site-sympathetic exploration of Woyzeck’s world.

but also because its rich military history allows for a site-sympathetic exploration of Woyzeck’s world.

Within this space, hyper-real barracks blur with distorted backstage corridors, costumes spill into medical equipment,

Within this space, hyper-real barracks blur with distorted backstage corridors, costumes spill into medical equipment,

and the audience is left questioning which world - military or theatrical - is real.

and the audience is left questioning which world - military or theatrical - is real.

This approach draws directly on Punchdrunk’s methodologies: non-linear promenade structures where the audience builds their own narrative,

This approach draws directly on Punchdrunk’s methodologies: non-linear promenade structures where the audience builds their own narrative,

sensory environments that engage touch, scent, and temperature to make sets hyper-real,

sensory environments that engage touch, scent, and temperature to make sets hyper-real,

and intimate one-to-one encounters that collapse the distance between performer and spectator.

and intimate one-to-one encounters that collapse the distance between performer and spectator.

Felix Barrett, Punchdrunk’s Artistic Director, insists theatre should 'place the audience at the centre of the experience

Felix Barrett, Punchdrunk’s Artistic Director, insists theatre should 'place the audience at the centre of the experience

- and here, they are plunged directly into Woyzeck’s fractured psyche.

- and here, they are plunged directly into Woyzeck’s fractured psyche.

This radically immersive approach contrasts with the original performance conditions of Woyzeck, first staged in 1913

This radically immersive approach contrasts with the original performance conditions of Woyzeck, first staged in 1913

at the Residenz Theatre in Munich in a proscenium arch space, where the audience remained passive and distanced.

at the Residenz Theatre in Munich in a proscenium arch space, where the audience remained passive and distanced.

By contrast, my concept demands active engagement, making the audience complicit in the instability, status, and madness that drive Woyzeck’s tragedy

By contrast, my concept demands active engagement, making the audience complicit in the instability, status, and madness that drive Woyzeck’s tragedy

- fulfilling Büchner’s own radical aim to provoke and unsettle.