Roland Barthes and Theatricality
The article looks at Roland Barthes’ ambiguous relationship with theater and the multiple ways by which he has tried to clarify it. The idea of theatricality represents the outcome of his efforts. As a “density of signs”, this idea allows for a better dialogue with the human sciences and, through such dialogue, permits a rethinking of popular culture. First, the article analyzes contemporary discussions regarding theatricality – by Josette Feral, among others – to demonstrate that the concept primarily deals with visibility, mediation and metaphors of the public space where individuals encounter each other. Second, the article goes back in time in order to address Barthes’ discovery of Brechtian theater. The Berliner Ensemble’s 1954 performance in Paris was a shock for Barthes, an incendiary event that proposed something profoundly different, both immanent and critical. Third, the article continues such effort to rethink criticism by dealing with vernacular examples like wrestling, the Palace, or stars. In turn, these myths of modern culture, because they intertwine the profane and the sacred, should require intellectuals and critics to adapt to an ever-changing environment and to question their own assumptions and beliefs.