1. Realist Era Theater

2. Background In general, the Realism period was a reaction to (against) the Romantic period. –Realists sought the truth Beauty was not found in the extraordinary, but in the ordinary, commonplace things and people. –The individual worker in a factory was, therefore, a reasonable theme for a Realist painter or author. Seeks the truth Beauty in the commonplace Focus on Industrial Revolution Focus on conditions of working class

3. Realism Defined Depiction of subjects as they appear in everyday life, without embellishment or interpretation. Also, works of art which, in revealing a truth, may emphasize the ugly or sordid.

4. Theater in the Realism Era Continued to be popular Realistic portrayal of characters and problems found within society –Happy endings no longer –“Serious drama” Focused on social problems, specifically: –Women’s rights –The role of class in society

5. Henrik Ibsen “Father of Modern Drama” Examined the realities that lay behind many social facades, most often gender inequality Hedda Gabler The Doll’s House

6. A Doll’s House Ibsen’s most famous play First truly feminist play Nora leaves husband, Torvald, after he accuses her of bringing shame to his family name.

7. Quote from play, A Doll’s House NORA: "I was simply your little songbird, your doll, and from now on you would handle it more gently than ever because it was so delicate and fragile… I realized that for eight years I'd been living with a strange man and that I'd borne him three children. Oh, I can't bear to think of it - I could tear myself to little pieces!" Act III

8. George Benard Shaw Nobel Prize winner (1925) Playwright of Pygmalion Shaw’s work –Before WW I, light and clever –After WW I, dark and clever

9. Pygmalion Protagonists—Eliza Doolittle and Dr. Henry Higgins "I have to live for others and not for myself: that's middle class morality." "I sold flowers. I didn't sell myself. Now you've made a lady of me I'm not fit to sell anything else." "... the difference between a lady and a flower girl is not how she behaves, but how she's treated."