Bertolt Brecht and Epic Theatre

Bertolt Brecht was a highly influential figure in the theatrical world. He opposed the aesthetic theatre, believing that the audience must take on a critical and intelligent role, making judgement upon the issues raised in the performance. To achieve this he introduced the "Alienation Effect" where he detaches the audience from feeling identification towards the characters. Many of his ideas were maintained and are now commonly used in modern theatre. Brecht uncovered "Epic Theatre", a …

…Contrary, Epic theatre confronted the audience with issues arousing the capacity for action. Epic theatre assumed that the audience are a group of individuals with own opinions capable of reasoning upon the injustice or discrimination being presented in the performance. Soon, theatres through out many western countries were being influences by the concept of Brecht's "Epic Theatre". And the confronting didactic theatre remained to this day with many contemporary issues being raised using Brecht's techniques.