French Literature Reviews - 2026
Theatre and New Technologies.
Theatre and Performance
Lucile Garbagnati and Pierre Morelli
Thé@tre et nouvelles technologies
Éditions Universitaires de Dijon, coll. "Écritures", 2006
ISBN 2-915552-42-8
ISSN 1630-0858
EUR: 20
As soon as they are no longer viewed merely as simple tools, "new" technologies drive a shift in theatrical methodology as well as in textual and/or staged writing, because their interactive dimension challenges the relationship between the actor and the audience. The stage and the actors are multiplied within a dynamic that dissolves the concepts of space, closed time, and personal uniqueness in favor of ubiquity, to the point where reality merges with the virtual. Through identification or detachment, the spectator is thus confronted with their own identity: as a unique, desiring individual or as a mechanized human, infinitely reproducible.
The theatrical use of "new" technologies, with their incalculable combinations, questions the relationship between man and machine while probing the nature of humanity. The computer can thus become the very subject of artistic creation, giving rise to new relationships not only with the machine, but with the world itself.
Thus, far from serving as a mere technical aid in the theater, "new" technologies raise fundamental questions about the boundaries of humanity.
Contributors to this volume: Yannick Bressan, Clyde Chabot, Serge Chaumier, Jean-Claude Chirollet, Mari-Mai Corbel, Chantal Hébert, Pierre Morelli, Bertrand Munin, Irène Perelli-Contos, Plínio Walder Prado Jr, Daniel Raichvarg, Katia Roquais-Bielak, Frédérique Toudoire-Surlapierre, Jean-Pierre Triffaux, Valentine Verhaegue, and Alain Vuillemin.
BOOK AWAITING REVIEWER FOR ACTA Fabula.
The integration of digital media into live performance has long challenged traditional boundaries between the auditorium and the stage, altering how practitioners conceive of space, time, and narrative continuity. This collective volume, edited by Lucile Garbagnati and Pierre Morelli in Thé@tre et nouvelles technologies, reflects upon these shifts, examining how interactive devices and computational systems modify the actor-audience dynamic and reshape theatrical expression beyond mere technical support.
Readers interested in the intersection of digital media, performance studies, and contemporary aesthetic theory may find this volume a relevant contribution to ongoing discussions. The essays collected here address the ways in which technological integration prompts a reconsideration of human identity, mechanization, and the boundaries of artistic creation on stage.