| CODE | BST5018 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | The Baroque Theatre | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | History of Architecture | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Theatre was perhaps one of the highest form of expression of the Baroque age, associated with a rich diversity of colourful spectacles that incorporated plays, operas, ballet, festive occasions, religious rituals, street theatre and pyrotechnics. Supporting this forgotten world of awe and magic were the ingenious scenographic and lighting equipment, the elaborate machines, the costumes, the fireworks and other integral aspects without which the Baroque theatre could not exist. It will be shown that during the period under study, theatrical buildings evolved at rapid pace, setting the typology for theatres that survive to the present day, almost untouched. Yet the theatre of the Baroque age was not just about theatre building. It will also be shown that theatrical practices were omnipresent at festivals and diverse ceremonies, even in the luxurious court banquets and etiquette of the time. Theatrical practices indeed permeated every area of everyday courtly life and, more often than not, dominated every aspect of the Baroque mind so that one can say that at no other time in European history was life in general so obsessed with spectacle. It will be argued that the notion of the Baroque theatre developed from the preceding Renaissance interpretation of humanist notions, where the genres were mixed indiscriminately, but now evolved into more structured concepts, fixed and distinct, with an increasing accent on dramatic spectacle. In this context, this course will look at the origins and development of court and public Baroque theatres, the spectacles and the ingenious scenographic deus ex machine devices that generated them, the popularity of the effimero as well as the dissemination of theatrical forms in Baroque Europe and their impact on contemporary urban life. Lecture Themes 1. The origins and development of the Baroque Theatre 1 2. The origins and development of the Baroque Theatre 2 3. The concept of Baroque Theatrical Space 4. Baroque theatrical scenography 5. The Court and Public Theatres of the Baroque world 6. Theatrical performances in Hospitaller Malta 7. Plays 8. Ephemeral manifestations and Catholic rituals 1 9. Ephemeral manifestations and Catholic rituals 2 10. The Baroque Feast 1 11. The Baroque Feast 2 12. The Impact of Baroque spectacle across Europe |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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