The Shadow Side of Our History of Theatre: University Theatres in the Second Half of the Republic

History is, in most instances, not a progressing accumulation of successively emerging narrations within a chain of cause and effect, as historians wish to believe or make believe. It is rather a single narration, which the historian constructs by taking certain preferred historic sections and putting other narrations in the shades with the endeavour to construct or conduct the collective memory. The actions of “great persons” shape this singular narration; names that are not great enough have no place in this narration. With “their absence in our official history of theatre”, “the university theatres” epitomise this situation. Having become effective in the second half of the republican period and brought up many writers, directors, performers, and critics, besides having set a precedent for the first international theatre festivals and brought a qualified amount of audience in our theatres, university theatres are usually not included in historical studies. This study aims to provide an alternative reading of the Turkish Theatre history through the experiences of university theatres. Accordingly, each having created a tradition of university theatre in our country with their roots reaching the 1950s, the theatre companies “ÖKM” (Istanbul University), “BÜO” (Bosphorus University), “ODTÜ Players” (METU), and “EÜTT” (Ege University), will be examined under the four mutual topics “Origin”, “Identity”, “Mise-en-scene”, and “Solidarity”.

Keywords: Turkish theatre, university theatres, history making, grotesk, Istanbul University Youth Theatre

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(Re)considering Turkish Theatre in the Republic’s Centenary

CHAPTER

The Shadow Side of Our History of Theatre: University Theatres in the Second Half of the Republic

References

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