Academic literature on the topic 'Salome (Biblical figure) – Drama'

The author considers the relevance of the appeal to the Salome image in the realities of the new wave of expressionism at the beginning of the 21st century. The research was carried out with a comprehensive analysis of the dramaturgical, musical, plastic and choreographic, scenography components of the stage incarnations of Jewish princess image in Richard Strauss's opera "Salome". The author determined the methodology of the key aspects of the study: the interpretation of the image of Salome by O. Wilde and Richard Strauss, that provides a basis for conducting a comparative and analytical examinations. The study of musical dramaturgy peculiarities in this opera leads to a genre-stylistic analysis. The most significant stage incarnations of the 21st century relate to interpretive investigation. Two concepts of the justification of the main conflict that led to the death of the Prophet are outlined. The first concept is political, since the Herodians' expectation of a Messiah from their dynasty was hindered by the prophecies of John the Baptist; the second concept is biblical, it is the rejection of Herodias's image of the Prophet for accusing her of incest and vices. The author proved the similarity of the text of Richard Strauss's opera libretto and O. Wilde's play on the theme of Salome, but he found stylistic differences between the two works: O. Wilde's is a drama of a symbolic direction, Richard Strauss's is an expressive and psychological musical poem. As a result of the analysis, the author proves that the dramaturgical structure of the opera is built on the Wagnerian principle of subordinating musical, poetic and scenic elements to the development of the storyline and reinterpreting leitmotif in terms of its individualization. Three versions of the opera performance "Salome" staged by Norwegian, German and Ukrainian directors are described, they are solved in the aesthetics of postmodernism with the extrapolation of the time and place of action to the present, an ironic attitude to the operatic images of the characters, and the synthesis of traditional and innovative means of expression. It was established that the Norwegian version is more characterized by the use of the latest art technologies in the formation of the artistic image of the performance; German production gravitates to the creation of a psychological drama with Freudian undertones; the Ukrainian performance based on Richard Strauss's opera "Salome" has a hi-tech solution. Prospects for further research in the aspect of integration of traditional theater and modern multimedia technologies are outlined.

In the tenth century, a sung dialogue, the 'Quem queritis' trope, appeared as a ceremonial addition to the paschal vigil and morning liturgy of Easter Sunday. It is often appraised as the bridge between liturgical chant and the later full-cast liturgical dramas of the Middle Ages, but what has generally not been considered, is that Franco-Romano (Gregorian) chant, compiled at least a century earlier, already contained the seeds of liturgical drama from which this dialogue naturally grew. This paper shows that some ideomelic chants from the twelfth-century 'Graduale Sarisburiense' from England, a minor variant of earlier graduals from the Continent, enact a vocal drama utilising the words of the biblical personages found in the chant text. Specifically, two types of dramatic representations are examined: the monologue and the dialogue. In the former, the text is spoken by one biblical figure whose ethos is expressed musically. In the latter, more than one voice conveys the words of the biblical text, and these are delineated musically. Employing examples for each type, I discuss the different ways that chant melody makes representational drama possible. Monologues studied are the introits 'Resurrexi, Ad te levavi, Gaudete', and the offertories 'Dextera Domini and Ave Maria'. Of the dialogues studied are the communions, 'Dominus Jesus, Fili, quid fecisti, Dicit Dominus: Implete, and the offertory Precatus est Moyses' which is examined in greater detail.

The paper explores the ground of the ideas, plots, and schemes of conflicts in ideological dramas by P. Kulish. The two of them are conditionally symbolic while the other three are based on real historical material. The libretto of the musical performance “A Woman from the Farmstead, or Singing Praise to the Bride in front of the Wedding Guests” and multifaceted drama “Herod’s Trouble” show combination of biblical, i. e. international, elements, while the latter also contains traditional folklore features of the Ukrainian Nativity Play. The other group of works makes up the trilogy, although P. Kulish interprets the selected topics in different ways and every time uses special literary techniques. The tragedy “Baida, Prince Vyshnevetskyi” depicts the conflict between the real historical figure, who was the founder of the regular Cossack army and folklore character, and representative of the Cossack poor, therefore between the knightly and lumpen forces. The heroes of the drama “Petro Sahaidachnyi” are prominent figures of the Ukrainian authorities, church, and culture of the 17th century, so the main conflict is determined by the concern for the development of cultural life; it unfolds in intellectual and philosophical sphere. The characters reflect on the problems of confrontation, combination of faith and science, possibility of spiritual or political struggle, etc. The ‘Old Ruthenian’ drama “Tsar Nalyvai” (the action takes place in the hot 1596) is the most dynamic; it has the most elaborate intrigue, but here the focus is rather on the deep symbolic language than on revealing the emotional or intellectual world of the characters. There are also some common features in all the dramas by Kulish. The author interpreted historical events estimated as the most important in a way of ideological conflict, combining historical phenomena and figures with symbolic (biblical and folklore) images and details.

<p>When assessing the previous experience in the research of intertextuality as problematical should be acknowledged the choice of terms being used, definition of units subject to analysis and systematization according to certain criteria. For solution of problematic issues recognition of intertexteme is offered as the lowest representation of intertextuality. When the mechanism of intertextuality is reviewed structurally, it reveals in correlation of the form and semantics. In order to the text unit, taken from the source text and entered into another text, to become a intertexteme, it should meet two essential conditions: various forms of modification must not destroy the recognition of form, it is an external sign; but semantics of the intertexteme is never identical with its semantics in the source text.</p><p>In the intertextuality studies the difficulties are caused by determination of the form and the modification of it. Intertexteme may be represented by a single word (Eve, Samson, Katre, etc.), the expression (I have lost my son, Judas has hung himself, red Marx shepherds calves, etc.), longer text or a fragment, such as folk song. In order to all the intertextemes to be analyzed as one-level elements, form of intertexteme should represent a generalized model - the frame, which was introduced into linguistics to designate the human cognitive experience reflected in the language at the 70ties of 20th century by American linguist Charles Fillmore (Fillmore 2006).</p><p>Components of situation covered by the source and intertexteme frames are selected in the same way as for the semantic theory of syntax on proposition or situation reflected in the sentence (Ceplītis, Rozenbergs, Valdmanis 1989: 93). In the frame of source and intertexteme three types of components have to be acknowledged as essential: subject, function, object. The analysis of the term “function” introduced in analysis of fairy-tales by Vladimir Prop (Пропп 1998: 19) is more accurate than "predicate" of the theory of syntax.</p><p>For accurate determination of intertextemes an original typology model of intertextemes developed by a structural approach is offered. It is based on the combination of the attitudes of form and semantics. For its description the principle of analogy is used - consistency of the model and the object to be displayed in a certain proportion. For intertextuality expressions of the Latgalian original plays six types have been found. Four basic types of intertextemes include:</p><p>componentary intertexteme – such an intertexteme, where variables of the source form (subject and object) can be replaced by appropriate equivalents, while keeping the same semantics, the fixed component is a function, for example, the red Marx (source (Lk 15: 15) frame subject – The Prodigal Son), shepherds (function) calves (source frame object – swine) in the play "At the Photographer” written by Pīters Apšinīks (1935);</p><p>componentary commutative intertexteme – an intertexteme in which the corresponding variable components of the source and intertexteme are mutually changing places (source and intertexteme frames have at least two subjects each), but the intertexteme retains basic semantics of the source, such as the biblical text (Mk 6: 17–28, Mt 14: 3–11), also known as the Salome motif, the ruler Herod at the request of Herodias’ daughter Salome cuts down John the Baptist's head, but in drama "Sunken Palace" by Francis Trasuns (1928) Herodias’ daughter counterpart Dzylna according to order from Commissioner Viļaks leaves to kill the hero Bolvs and to bring his head;</p><p>semantically modified intertexteme – an intertexteme, which, while preserving the source frame subject component, yet the semantics or the source subject function in the intertexteme is supplemented, modified, but not destroyed, for example, in the drama "Fire" by Konstance Daugule (1914) the nature of group of women's characters of three generations Eve (past ) → Katre (present) → Ane (future): Eve represents the older generation and to her name of the first woman's of humanity (Gen 3: 20) makes her within the women's trio of drama to be founder of the wedding policy implemented by Katre (supplement of the function). Katre resembles the domineering Russian Empress Catherine II and is the current master of situation in the family, but like as Eve has married into a wealthy house not due to love. Nature and name of Anis character as an intertexteme points to several sources. In Russian literature, the best-known Anna, who was unable to resolve the problem of realization of her femininity, which leads to disaster, is Anna Karenina (Tolstoy 1985), as the most outstanding child avatar image of women is recognized Anya Ranevskaya of Anton Chekhov's comedy "The Cherry Orchard" (Chekhov 2005), similarly indecisive is also heroine Hannah Reis of the Izhok- Leibush Perez’s one-act play "Burns” (Perez 1972);</p><p>semantically polar intertexteme – an intertexteme, where the intertexteme semantics is in polar opposition to the source semantics, but the components remain the same, for example, in the drama "Vocation" (1930) by Naaizmērstule selfish father calls his son prodigal for chosing the Catholic priest vocation, while in the Christian perception his son's choice is appraised as the highest fulfillment of Holy Spirit, and the father in this case has to be considered prodigal; in comedy "Native Land" by Ontons Rupainis (1936), Anna annoys her sweetheart Gabris with a folksong distich "I would not follow the path where boyard’s son is going ", forcing him to guess subtext of the game that everything should be understood the other way.</p><p>Defective intertextemes have to be divided into two auxiliary types:</p><p>formal intertexteme – defective intertexteme in the form that creates an inkling of intertextuality and connotations, but intertextual semantics is not detectable, for example name of one-act play "Eve’s Mistake" by Pīters Apšinīks (1937) creates a connotation of the Old Testament Eve, wherewith the main promulgator of the semantics is a function-naming component “mistake” creating connotations of the relationship sphere with Adam, her man, with the devil, in form of the paradise garden tempter serpent, or other forms of femininity; contents of the play destroys the a line of possible associations, Eve turns out to be rural woman confused in a modern city bank;</p><p>sourceless intertexteme – defective intertexteme, form of which has nothing to do with the source text, but it raises intertextual connotations of specific source, such as play "Prodigal Son" by Jezups Kazlas for creation of background from Scriptures is using fictional succession of person’s names, such as Digs, Barzacs, Romars, Rogaļs, Janyrs, but the reader/spectator can believe them to be authentic Biblical characters.</p><p>When assessing the results of the study, conclusion should be made that, first, the very fact of intertextuality in texts written in Latgalian at the first-half of the 20th century is indicative of creative ideas and extensive searches of the Latgalian dramatists; second, experience and open typology model gained in research of the phenomenon of intertextuality as an effective methodological tool is usable also in subsequent studies, and may be offered to others.</p>

Belarusian poet Feliks Batorin is the author of many poems on philosophical and civic topics. A characteristic feature of these poems is that they draw inspiration from religious thought founded on the Judeo-Christian tradition. They contain numerous Old Testament allusions and evangelical reminiscences. Batorin’s poems are also characterized by their allegoric quality, and their parabolic, metaphorical, and creative synthesis of biblical themes and folkloristic motifs. Biblical motifs began to appear in Felix Batorin’s poetry in the 1980s, during a period of social and political transformation in Belarus. Reflecting on the reality, the poet often turns to the motif of prophetism and the figure of the prophet, which might prove conducive to trying to find answers to important questions - both universal and resulting from Belarusian historical and cultural specificity. The drama of being a prophet results from the overwhelming feeling of loneliness arising from opposing the society in order to fulfil the mission which has been entrusted to a prophet. The tragedy of the poet-prophet lies in the fact that he is aware of his weakness and helplessness in the struggle against the individual for the individual, in his attempts to reach the morose society. The destructive activities of the oppressive communist system against the culture, language and identity of Belarusians turned out to have serious consequences for the society of the post-Soviet Belarus. That is why it cannot be surprising that pessimism resounds in prophetic works of Felix Batorin. However, despite pessimism, there is still hope in his poetry – the hope to reverse the fate of the nation and homeland.

The article considers and describes the marks on the pages of the Bible, preserved in the home library of A. Blok. The greatest number of marginalia is found in the Pentateuch, Ecclesiastes, the Book of Wisdom of Solomon, the Gospel of John, the 1st Epistle of John, and the Revelation of John the Theologian. A number of quotations are reflected in Blok’s poems, dramas, and articles. The influence of the text of the Apocalypse is particularly evident in the early lyrics of 1901–1904, and then, in the period of “antithesis” (1905–1908), not only in poetry, but also in drama. The analysis of markings in the Gospel makes it clear that the Other, about whom Blok spoke in connection with the figure of Christ in the poem “The Twelve”, is the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. As a source of biblical reminiscences the author considers the text of the “Service of the Church of St. John”, created by D.S. Merezhkovsky and Z.N. Gippius and used by them in home services. Quotations from that source in Blok’s poems allow the author to question the extent of Blok’s knowledge with the practice preached by D.S. Merezhkovsky “The Church of the Third Testament”

AbstractThe Byzantine passion play Christus Patiens (Christ Suffering) is a cento: composed of quotations and borrowings from other sources, it takes Euripides’ tragedies as its main source for reworking the passion narrative. The genre, popular with Christian authors who usually transformed classical epics, enacts cultural exchange between canonical pagan literature and biblical narrative. Traditionally transmitted as the work of Gregory of Nazianzus, this drama showcases the tensions inherent in this reuse of Greek tragedy which threaten to collapse the original texts under the weight of their new meaning – or vice versa. While the afterlives of Classical texts, especially Greek tragedy, have been increasingly well explored, the scant attention afforded Christus Patiens has largely consisted of debating the disputed date and authorship. At the same time, scrutiny lavished on Virgilian centonic technique provides a helpful spring-board. This article focuses on the four tragedies most plundered in Christus Patiens: Rhesus, Medea, Hippolytus and Bacchae. It concentrates on interpreting the protagonist, Mary the Mother of God, through key passages which borrow most heavily from these plays. These stretch centonic conventions by almost exclusively reworking contiguous lines featuring the tragic mothers Medea, Agave and Musa; yet Mary is otherwise created from multiple conflicting voices. Analysis of these passages as frames for the cento author's own compositions and in the context of the prologue's invitation to identify specific Euripidean reworkings suggests that the author playfully flirts with creating a narrative of fragmentation through clashes between centonic form, tragic sources and Christian subject.

AbstractIt is not known where Jean Bellegambe, born circa 1470 in Douai, where he probably died in 1535/36, received his training. Artists in this region were exposed to influences from both Flanders and France. Bellegambe's stylistic development falls into two phases: the first (circa 1508 - circa 1 5 2 5) is rather archaistic, drawing on the school of Valenciennes (Marmion et al. and Provost); the second displays the more marked influence of Antwerp mannerism. The triptych discussed here, the Mystical Bath in Lille, made for the monastery at Anchin in view of the arms of the abbey and its abbot, Charles Coguin, on the wings, was only discovered in 1877. Comparison with Bellegambe's principal work, the polyptych The Holy Trinity, and the wings of the Immaculate Conception, both in Douai, has established it as his work. An examination of various published datings leads to the conclusion that this triptych is an example of the artist's second stylistic phase, which began in circa 1525, and was problably painted around that date. The association of the representation of 'Tons Pietatis' with the Office of the Holy Blood was based on the assumpion that the texts on Jean Bellegambe's Mystical Bath (a `Fons Pietatis' with bathing worshippers) derive from the Office ritual in Anchin. The texts however are literal quotations from the bible, the Office of the Holy Blood not being fixed in Bellgambe's day; the Anchin Office merits closer study. The idea that the cult of a relic of the Holy Blood in Anchin abbey may have influenced the iconography of at least the Mystical Bath is not supported by historical facts. Mâle's observation of a relationship between the Holy Blood cult and the representation of the 'Fons Pietatis' is thus reduced to a theologically underpinned assumption. Old and New Testament quotations with reference to the bible passages-not a new phenomenon as such may be connected with the renewed interest for the literal biblical text in the early sixteenth century. This suggests circa 1520 as the earliest date of the triptych. With his female figure of a repentant Mary Magdalene divesting herself of her garments and jewellery, Bellegambe introduces this theme into art. The motif and its combination with the `Fons Pietatis' motif seem to derive from religious drama, notably Jean Michel's Mystère de la Passion, performed in Mons in 1501. Although, in connection with the early sixteenth-century cult of Mary Magdalene, a revived interest in literal bible texts can be observed, it can not be demonstrated in Bellegambe's triptych. The fact that it was dccadcs before the jewellery-removing theme returned to art as an interior scene, may be due to Bellegambe's isolated position. The theological virtues and their attributes derive from a type developed in illuminated manuscripts of literary and philosophical texts, and may also have been inspired by the tableaux vivants enacted in Rouen and Amiens in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century. Coguin's contacts with the 'Clercs Parisiens' in Douai seem to be reflected in these iconographic details of the Mystical Bath. The representation is addressed to both the inmates of the abbey, who according to the rule of the order are speeding towards salvation, and the lay people, who could identify with the pseudo Mary Magdalene on the steps in front of the bath and a few non-clerical male figures. Owing to the lack of archive sources, the precise context of the piece cannot be ascertained.

Abstract The first section of this review, ‘Staging Reality’, reads two monographs that grapple with large-scale thinking about how theatre and performance engage with various ideas of ‘reality’: Lindsay Brandon Hunter’s exploration of performing ‘the real’ in theatre, television, and alternative-reality gaming in Playing Real: Mimesis, Media, and Mischief, and Bess Rowen’s theorizing of ‘affective stage directions’ in The Lines Between the Lines: How Stage Directions Affect Embodiment. The second section, ‘Politics and/of Performance’, reviews two books with an explicit interest in the political as well as aesthetic dimensions of performance: Tiziana Morosetti and Osita Okagbue’s edited volume The Palgrave Handbook of Theatre and Race, and Jon Venn’s Madness in Contemporary British Theatre: Resistances and Representations. The final section shifts to monographs that structure their enquiry around a specific figure: the playwright Jez Butterworth, in the case of Sean McEvoy’s Class, Culture and Tragedy in the Plays of Jez Butterworth, and the biblical figure of Salomé, in the case of Megan Girdwood’s Modernism and the Choreographic Imagination: Salome’s Dance after 1890.

The article is dedicated to the musical and choreographic interpretation of the biblical plot in the ballet "The Legend of Joseph" by R. Strauss, with libretto by H. Hofmannsthal and H. Kessler, created in 1914 for the Diaghilev seasons. The events of the Holy Scripture, representing endless possibilities of interpretation, allow to highlight the important cultural problem: the biblical plot and modernity. In this regard, the music and choreography of the ballet attract attention not only with their originality, but also as a vivid example of a work in which different trends of its time are interwoven. From the perspective of musical dramaturgy, this primarily involves the emphasis on the role of the psychological element in character development and revelation of the plot — a significant role in this process is played by Strauss’s leitmotif writing, as well as quotes (including self-quotes) and allusions. From a non-musical context perspective, there is undeniable influence of Freud’s psychoanalytic theory — as evidenced by the interpretation of the heroine’s role, reminiscent of Salome from the eponymous opera (pathological infatuation with Joseph brings her to irrational actions, leading to madness). The article analyzes the influence of Hofmannsthal’s poetry, the obvious connection of the heroine with the female images of Gustav Klimt, as well as the scientific direction "Philosophy of Life". The rich context that has emerged represents an intertext that is not confined within purely musical boundaries, but includes multicultural interactions. The main conclusion is that R. Strauss, long before Thomas Mann’s novel, created a work that defined the characteristic features of the modern era, such as a tendency towards myth, the East, and biblical themes. R. Strauss also deserves credit for creating the genre of choreographic drama, successfully continued by S. Prokofiev.

In modern times German authors have made ample use of the Job-theme. The study examines the transformations that the story of Job has undergone in German narrative and dramatic works from Leopold von Sacher-Masoch's Der neue Hiob (1878) to Fritz Zorn's Mars (1977). The most striking feature of these works lies in their diverse characterization of the Job-figure. As a mythical figure he remains synonymous with the sufferer, but he may be characterized as patient or impatient, humble or arrogant, innocent or guilty, rich or poor, courageous or cowardly; he may be a Jew or a Christian, a Nazi or an anti-Nazi, a believer or an agnostic. The authors have retained most of the characters included in the Old Testament story. The Job-figure usually has a wife (who doubts and despises God), a number of children (who die in an impending disaster), and several friends (who accuse him of wrong-doing). Concerning the plot, most writers have excluded any prologue in heaven. The suffering of the Job-figure (usually brought on by the loss of loved ones, by physical pain and by mental agony) is always central to the story. More often than not, however, the modern Job-figure exhibits a form of impatience and impiety once misfortune has struck. A theophany (literal confrontation with God) does not occur, but a divine agent may be provided in the form of a dream or a vision, or indirectly by nature. An epilogue (the restoration of Job's health, possessions and children) is usually omitted, but some authors imply a renewal of Job, so as to suggest a purpose for and a hope after his arduous trials.
Arts, Faculty of
Central Eastern Northern European Studies, Department of
Graduate

The article deals with the gender analysis of the cross-cultural phenomenon called the “Dance of the Seven Veils,” which arose due to O. Wilde’s drama Salome. The article solves two research tasks: on the one hand, to summarize and complement the observations made before us concerning the new femininity of the modern era, embodied in the “Dance of the Seven Veils,” and on the other hand, to consider the parodic reception of the new femininity and the figure of Salome, so far overlooked by the researchers. It is important to trace the evolution of the image of Salome and the concept of her dance from admiration and horror to ironic denial and the creation of the antithetic image. We consider the sources of the famous dance, its semantics, psychological, social and cultural interpretations. It is concluded that the “Dance of the Seven Veils” in various productions and interpretations, as well as the image of Salome itself, turned into a quintessence of the new femininity: sensual, vicious, hysterical, frightening, deadly, but doomed and tragic. Through secondary metaphorization this destructive and erotically attractive femininity became the symbol of the Art Nouveau era. However, the tragic image of infernal femininity prevailed for only two decades, and in the early 1910s fatigue from it began to be felt, although it did not completely leave the culture. The image of Salome as a femme fatale became the object of voluntary or involuntary parody, and the dance itself vulgarized. The one-act play Queen Tair by Teffi with the subtitle “Assyrian Adventure” (1912, published in 1913) can be considered as parody of Salome and her hypnotic dance.

Abstract In a drama imbued with symbolism at every turn, it can hardly be an accident that Balazs chose as the name of Bluebeard’s newest wife the name of the well-known biblical woman who kills a man to save her people. In the early twentieth century, at the time Bart6k and Balazs were writing BLue- 6earJ’.J C{l,jtle, the name Judith was strongly identified in artistic circles with the image of a fatally seductive woman. Like Salome, whose popularity as the subject of artistic representations far surpassed that of Judith’s, Judith was often depicted as a young woman of considerable sexual allure.

Abstract In any discussion of the Bible as literature, the Book of Job is apt to figure prominently. Although rabbinic commentators were not much interested in the literary qualities of this (or any other) biblical book, the Church Fathers, developing approaches of Hellenistic Jews like Philo and Josephus, were appreciative of its artistic dimensions. Jerome believed that the bulk of the book was com­ posed in Hebrew poetic meters analogous to Greek meters, and Theodore of Mopsuestia introduced the idea, still occasionally proposed today, that Job was modeled on Greek drama. the Renaissance, with the renewed appreciation of biblical and classical models and the deliberate merging of biblical and classical traditions with one another, it became commonplace to include the Book of Job among the great works of Western literature: as epic, as drama, or as lyric poetry. Job was not the only book of the Bible whose poetic qualities were highly esteemed. Sidney mentions “David in his Psalms; Solomon in his Song of Songs, in his Ecclesiastes, and Proverbs; Moses and Deborah in their Hymns; and the writer of Job.”