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Books on Art/Theatre

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Dave
Feb 16 2004
04:08 pm

OK, so I’m very ignorant when it comes to fine arts. Recently I’ve had similar conversations with two friends who are art students. Both are Christians studying at Arizona State. One is a painter/drawer/sculpturer/ etc. He has very little framework from which to approach art from the perspective of a Christian. Concepts of Creation/Fall/Redemption are not part of his thinking at all. He might consider artwork done by a Christian as paintings of the cross, etc and it seems compartmentalizes his faith from his studies.

So I gave him my copy of “Rainbows for a Fallen World”
what other books could I recommend to him?

The other friend is a Theatre major. Recommendations for books laying out a Christian Worldview for theatre arts???

HELP!!

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Norbert
Feb 16 2004
07:22 pm

That’s a great question and I feel sadly incapable of providing you with an adequate response. Maybe Jason or Bill might be of assistance. Is Simon still floating around? I haven’t heard from him for a while. Henry maybe?

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Henry
Feb 16 2004
11:19 pm

“Rainbows…” may be a little heavy going for someone who is that much of a beginner when it come to issues of faith and aesthetics. I’d start with something a little more accessible, like L’Engle’s “Walking on Water”. I’ve always thought Annie Dillard’s essay, “Holy the Firm” provides a wonderful metaphor for the artistic vocation. Flannery O’Connor’s “Mystery and Manners”, especially the essay ‘The Church and the Fiction Writer’ is essential reading for anyone interested in being a Christian in the arts. And Seerveld’s “Christian Critique of Art and Literature” is a better introduction to his thinking than “Rainbows”, especially for someone who is a visual artist.

On a Christian Worldview and Theatre, there is precious little quality material available, because this has been one area of cultural activity that has been particularly woefully neglected by Christians, although Simon, Jason, Amanda and a few others are working to change that. Most Christians don’t have the vaguest notion about what constitutes theatre arts beyond church drama or (Lord help us) mega-musicals. There’s an English fellow named Murray Schaeffer who put together an essay that was pretty good, but I don’t think you’ll be able to find it. Peter Senkbeil did a Ph.d. thesis on Biblical Worldview professional theatre companies, which was going to be published, it should be out by now.

Some of the best books on this topic, in my opinion, are either not by professed Christians, or are not specifically about theatre. Peter Brook’s “The Empty Space” is a good introduction to theatre and sympathetic to Christian values, while also being critical of the naive assumptions about theatre many Christians, and others, have. David Lyle Jeffrey wrote a great book called “People of the Book: Christian Identity and Literary Culture”. While it is specifically about a Biblical approach to literature, many of Jeffrey’s insights about the transformational power of the Word incarnate are very applicable to an understanding of theatre. One of my favourites is Northrop Frye’s book “The Educated Imagination”; which, while being mostly about the role of literature and language in culture as a whole, is ultimately a celebration of the fundamental importance of the imagination, and therefore of all the arts, to transforming culture.

I think the best way to develop a Christian perspective on any field of cultural activity is to read the work of the best people in that field and then evaluate whether you agree or disagree with them and why. I’ve learned a lot about what I believe through conversations with intelligent people who don’t happen to believe the same things, or in the same way, that I do.

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Jasonvb
Feb 17 2004
04:57 am

Like Henry, I’ve found that books about thinking about and doing art Christianly, even if they aren’t specifically directed toward theatre, are helpful in developing an obedient approach to theatre. Art is art is art, really. Sure, there are some qualitative differences, but I’ve been able to apply most everything I’ve read in Seerveld, O’Connor, etc. to my theatre work.

In addition to Seerveld’s “Christian Critique…” I’d also recommend “Bearing Fresh Olive Leaves,” which has been mentioned on this board before. It’s much more accessible than “Rainbows,” as strangely wonderful as Seerveld’s meandering, nuanced style in “Rainbows” is.

A few of my favorite books on theatre are:

Peter Brook’s big three: The Empty Space, The Open Door, The Shifting Point
“American Avant Garde Theatre: A History” by Arnold Aronson
“Three Uses of the Knife” by David Mamet (no, I don’t agree with everything Mamet suggests, but his provocative style is great to get you thinking)
“Impro” by Keith Johnstone
“Unbalancing Acts” by Richard Foreman (probably my favorite)

I also think that every theatre and non-theatre artist in the world should read “The Theatre and its Double” by Antonin Artaud.

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Henry
Feb 17 2004
10:15 am

Jason, I notice you didn’t mention Mamet’s “Heresy and Common Sense for the Actor”. Ever notice the way his wife, Rebecca Pidgeon, acts as though she actually bought into his theories?

I forgot to mention “The Gift” by Lewis Hyde, which talks about how art and “the commerce of the creative spirit” can work to counter the destructive effects of consumer pressures in culture. Also interesting, depending on how serious you want to get about this, is the work of anthropologist Victor Turner in his book “The Ritual Process”, and his discussion of “liminality” in ritual (applies directly to art) and its relationship to community.

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Henry
Feb 17 2004
10:30 am

I can’t believe I forgot this. The best book for your friends’ purposes, Dave (and it sounds like you might want to read it too), is probably “Art and Soul” by Hillary Brand and Adrienne Dengerink-Chaplin. It too has been mentioned on this board before, but it’s worth mentioning again. This is a pretty solid, textbook-style overview of issues facing Christians in the arts. It draws heavily on the work of Seerveld, Schaeffer, etc. but also uses many specific examples of work done by contemporary Christians in a variety of mediums. It would serve as a good starting place to begin exploring these questions.

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Jasonvb
Feb 17 2004
11:30 am

Ah, yes. I thought that “True or False” was gospel for a while. Now I can hardly watch “State and Main” because of it. You just have to sit there and watch Rebecca Pidgeon stifle every impulse. Just like Mamet instructs, she just SAYS every line. Apparently William H. Macy and Mamet developed a a whole acting method (“Practical Aesthetics”) together. I don’t know too much about it, but hopefully there’s more to it than Mamet outlines in his book.