Abstract
This chapter explores the development of the English playwright Howard Barker’s theatre practice in the context of its production histories and the wider sociocultural impact of the work through writing on, about and by him—from theatre critics, academics and Barker’s own prolific output of theoretical essays, notes and autobiographical writing. In particular, the chapter explores Barker’s creation of two alter egos—stage designer Tomas Leipzig and costume designer Billie Kaiser—and argues that Barker’s construction of these fictional identities are a screen and survival mechanism through which to articulate a heterodoxical theatre form that has been routinely marginalised by the British theatre establishment, drawing upon primary research composed of interviews and correspondence with Howard Barker and programme notes from The Wrestling School productions.
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Bibliography
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Smith, A.W. (2020). Writing Catastrophe: Howard Barker’s Theatre. In: Wiley, C., Pace, I. (eds) Researching and Writing on Contemporary Art and Artists. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39233-8_7
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