tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post5823915009841415908..comments2023-06-09T09:41:14.971-04:00Comments on Balkans via Bohemia: Švejk vs. Schweyk: Encounters with BrechtRichard Byrnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14503034147282566996noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post-90461352989303864372009-08-14T18:11:21.504-04:002009-08-14T18:11:21.504-04:00"My own theory is that Švejk is neither idiot..."My own theory is that Švejk is neither idiot nor savant ..." I dutifully report you are not alone. :-)<br /><br />". . . the profound mystery of its protagonist's character." - I believe there is no mystery, but mythology created over many decades by the "engineers of human souls" and "livingers". ""Unlike K., fellow Czech Franz Kafka's Zenny K. Sadlonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03044305400942549253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post-88170209817775937392009-05-26T07:43:29.588-04:002009-05-26T07:43:29.588-04:00Thanks for your comment, Stefan! I really wish I c...Thanks for your comment, Stefan! I really wish I could have seen your Schweyk!Richard Byrnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14503034147282566996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post-28102798146911752242009-05-26T06:28:46.776-04:002009-05-26T06:28:46.776-04:00Having just appeared in Schweyk in the Second Worl...Having just appeared in Schweyk in the Second World War (at the South London Theatre directed by James Hough) it was interesting to read your thoughts. With Brecht's scathing views on parasitic bourgeois theatre-goers and their alleged failure of class consciousness (forgive my thumbnail sketch of his views!) I was curious how the audience would respond. They seemed to appreciate it as satire andAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post-6429288018373638542008-12-29T12:30:00.000-05:002008-12-29T12:30:00.000-05:00Hi, DJ: Thanks for the comment! You're so lucky to...Hi, DJ: Thanks for the comment! You're so lucky to live in a city where people do Horvath. I've tried to bait the hook here a couple times with no luck. (I guess that's why people start their own theatre companies, eh?)<BR/><BR/>As for Brecht, I think your thought that the recession may make him (and Horvath) more relevant again is correct. Unless you elide some of the more difficult passages, Richard Byrnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14503034147282566996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3696582191304631995.post-74159580818083169032008-12-29T05:06:00.000-05:002008-12-29T05:06:00.000-05:00Really interesting comparision, and I particularly...Really interesting comparision, and I particularly enjoyed your ambiguous response to Brecht. I feel we're not sure how to tackle Brecht now, at least in the west. Do we treat him as a theatre poet, rather like Beckett, and highlight his harsh truths and glinting humour? Do we exploit the way he plays off speech, song, image, slogans and farce? Will the politics of Weimar and wartime seem Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com