Max Reinhardt, orig. Max Goldmann, (born Sept. 9, 1873, Baden, near Vienna, Austria—died Oct. 31, 1943, New York, N.Y., U.S.), German theatrical director. After studying drama in Vienna and acting in Salzburg, he joined Otto Brahm’s company in Berlin in 1894. Reinhardt directed his first play in 1902 and managed a small theatre from 1903. He had directed more than 40 plays by 1905, when he became famous for his creative staging of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He bought Berlin’s Deutsches Theater and remodeled it with the latest innovations in scenic design and lighting. Known for the extravagant theatricality and stunning visual effects of his productions, he won much praise for his staging of the religious spectacle The Miracle (1911). In 1920 he cofounded the Salzburg Festival, where he staged Jedermann (an adaptation of Everyman) in the cathedral square. He left Germany in 1933 and eventually settled in the U.S. A major influence on 20th-century drama, he helped increase the creative authority of the director.
Max Reinhardt summary
Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Max Reinhardt.
directing Summary
Directing, the craft of controlling the evolution of a performance out of material composed or assembled by an author. The performance may be live, as in a theatre and in some broadcasts, or it may be recorded, as in motion pictures and the majority of broadcast material. The term is also used in
opera Summary
Opera, a staged drama set to music in its entirety, made up of vocal pieces with instrumental accompaniment and usually with orchestral overtures and interludes. In some operas the music is continuous throughout an act; in others it is broken up into discrete pieces, or “numbers,” separated either
Related Summaries
directing summary
Below is the article summary. For the full article, see directing.
directing, Art of coordinating and controlling all elements in the staging of a play or making of a film. Until the late 19th century, a theatrical director was usually the play’s leading actor or the company’s actor-manager. Today’s stage director combines elements such as actors, decor, costumes, and lighting to shape an imaginative interpretation of the playwright’s script. The director must understand the art of acting and provide guidance for the actors. The director also composes the “stage pictures,” the shifting arrangements of the actors and other elements on the stage. The film director combines the theatrical director’s responsibilities with the technical functions of cinematography, editing, and sound recording. See also actor-manager system; auteur theory.
David Lynch Summary
David Lynch was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who is known for his uniquely disturbing and mind-bending visual work. His films juxtapose the cheerfully mundane with the shockingly macabre and often defy explanation. Lynch’s father was a research scientist with the U.S. Forest Service, and
Ken Burns Summary
Ken Burns is an American documentary director who is known for the epic historical scope of his films and miniseries. Perhaps his best-known docuseries is The Civil War (1990). Burns spent his youth in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where his father was a professor at the University of Michigan. He received
Rudolf Nureyev Summary
Rudolf Nureyev was a Soviet-born ballet dancer whose suspended leaps and fast turns were often compared to Vaslav Nijinsky’s legendary feats. He was a flamboyant performer and a charismatic celebrity who revived the prominence of male ballet roles and significantly widened the audience for ballet.
Éric Rohmer Summary
Éric Rohmer was a French motion-picture director and writer who was noted for his sensitively observed studies of romantic passion. Rohmer was an intensely private man who provided conflicting information about his early life. He offered different given names and gave several dates of birth,
