Variaţiuni metateatrale: Shakespeare, Gozzi, Tieck.De la feerie la distopie
Metatheatrical Variations: Shakespeare, Gozzi, Tieck. From Faerie to Dystopia

Summary/Abstract: William Shakespeare, Carlo Gozzi and Ludwig Tieck are three of the world's greatest playwrights who are obviously attracted to metatheatricality – a textual strategy fundamental for the conscious constructing of the show and, at the same time, for the elaboration of its vital ingredient: the spectator's belief in the truth (and not necessarily in the reality) of the world onstage. However, self-referentiality is articulated differently in the vision of each author. We have considered for analysis one play of each author, which, in view of our intentions, can be regarded as emblematic for the above-mentioned playwrights: The Tempest by Shakespeare, The Love of Three Oranges by Gozzi, Puss in Boots by Tieck. Then we proceeded in search of what they share in common and, especially, of what sets them apart. Our miniature case studies have shown an evolving direction (or rather involving, to be more accurate) of the scenic tale, from faerie (and complete confidence in the magic of theatre) to dystopia (and general disbelief of any convention, any stage norm). With Shakespeare, meta-theatricality is a stimulative magical “trick”, bringing hope and faith in the ideal of un-limitation; with Gozzi, it signals an escape way from the attack of the mundane; and with Tieck, it is self-dissolving and functions not only as a signal, but as an agent of deconstruction as well.

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