The resurrection of the spectacle

One major topic of the European performance/avant-garde scene of the last century was 'reality', mostly accompanied by the contentious catchword 'post-dramatic' and work with lay people or 'experts'. However, productions that seemed political or revolutionary often revealed themselves to be nothing more than part of a marketing strategy by theatres aimed at unlocking new spaces of spectatorship. However, alongside these attempts, an alternative practice has emerged amongst young artists, who once again emphasise the artistic, subjective and ritual character of theatre, in order to bring it back to its origins. Using the example of three current productions, this article aims to show the means these artists work with and why this theatre is in its own way significantly more political than many alleged 'reality' productions.