Epic theater - Definition and Overview

Epic theater, also known as theater of alienation, is a theater movement arising in the early to mid-20th century, inextricably linked to Bertolt Brecht. Though many of the concepts involved in epic theater had been around for years, even centuries, Brecht unified them, developed the style, and popularized it.

Epic theater works off the concept of Verfremdungseffekt, or alienation effect, in which the audience is alienated from the characters and constantly reminded that what they are seeing is not real. Brecht felt that most theater's intent was to make the audience forget that the play was not real; however, he hoped to prevent this suspension of disbelief. By keeping the audience from identifying with the characters, Brecht hoped instead to cause them to think about the issues raised in the play. The alienation effect was achieved through such methods as actors directly addressing the audience out of character, set pieces and props being replaced by large labels ("TREE"), and the playing of harsh, discordant music intended to jar the audience out of complacency.