The Postmodern World of Muller and Wilson, or How Hamletmachine Completed a Brechtian Dream

Abstract

The official use of Bertolt Brecht as an adjective illustrates just how much of a seminal figure he has been to the theatre over the past century. Brecht and his theories have been cited as the influence on countless theatrical artists. However none may be as important as the German playwright, Heiner Muller, and the American director, Robert Wilson. These two men were at the forefront of the Avant-Garde movement commonly referred to as Postmodernism. Both created strikingly imaginative works that pushed the theatre in innovative and stimulating directions. The thrust of this paper will show how Postmodernism, in particular the works of Muller and Wilson, became the actualization of Brecht’s theories on the Epic Theatre.