The Actor “Comes to Live”. Dialogue between Lessing and Diderot

Abstract

The actor is a man who can give the impression of a life which is not his. Such as in a painting, where colors make it live, the actor through his own body seems to be animated as well. Starting from Denis Diderot's and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's work, I will discuss the nature of this “anima”: the way between flying ideas and concrete body on stage. The main objective for understanding this particular move will be to know the following aspects : In which spatio-temporal framework does it exist? Does it require an expert to understand drama? Can it be linked to a space and/or time research? Does this particular control of his senses owned by the actor involve a singular link to time and space?

Keywords

• theater
• aesthetic philosophy
• performance space
• temporality
• subjectivity
• criticism
• Enlightenment philosophy
• art