Henrik Ibsen and the Theatre Conventions

Through his work, which mainly focuses on theatre aesthetics and practices, the author aims at establishing that Ibsen has perfected his poetic visions by means of the conventions and mechanisms of the stage - the plot, the general character of decorations, changes in lighting, colour variations in costumes and the use of stage requisites. On the basis of extensive material, the author demonstrates how Ibsen, supported by an increasingly growing mastering of the techniques and the finesse of the theatre machine, succeeds in applying new and poetically decisive dimensions to his plays by the use of what may be referred to as staging. Pursuing the instructions and intentions of Ibsen, the practitioner, Svend Christiansen, uncovers both the details and the unity of a spiritual pattern, a choreography, that renders Ibsen's world of symbols and ideas virtually tangible.