On the Mise en scene in the Crowd Scenes in the Theatrical Performances : Chiefly on Julius Caesar

Abstract

The function of crowd scenes in theatrical performances was examined through many performances. The theatre today owes a great deal especially to some innovative methods undertaken by the naturalism movement. In the 19th century, performances by Saxe-Meinigen Company in Germany conquered the European theatres, partly because its realistic crowd scenes were appreciated everywhere. Julius Caesar was one of their most popular repertoires because the crowd was presented effectively. At the beginning of this century, Moscow Art Theatre produced Caesar under the strong influence of Meiningen Company. Nemirovic-Dancenko, the director, thought that Meiningen Caesar gave priority to the crowd scenes over the inner emotions of the main characters and that their feelings were sacrificed. He himself focused the citizens of Rome and made them the central figures in the play. As a result, the feelings of the main characters were sacrificed as in the Meiningen performances. It can be said that both Meiningen and Moscow Caesar had a common defect. Royal Shakespeare Company produced Julius Caesar in 1993 and treated the audience as a part of the crowd in the performance. This experiment itself failed, though it showed some possibility of making the crowd scene with the participation of the audience. Credit could be given to this attempt for they acknowledged the importance of the inner feelings of the main characters more than anything. We must not forget that they are the most important elements in the play, but were neglected in the two past productions I have mentioned above. Striking success of the crowd scene in Julius Caesar remains to be challenged by the future directors.