GERMAN 588: European Literary-Political Cabaraet

German 588: European Literary-Political Cabaret

Detail of a poster by Steinlein advertising
a performance of Le Chat Noir

European Literary-political cabaret is an art form closely connected with major trends in society and the arts in Europe since the end of the nineteenth and throughout the twentieth century. Early twentieth century cabaret, particularly in Germany but also in other countries, viewed itself as part of a wider movement to improve the quality of popular entertainment and to attract new and broader audiences. This course explores performance texts as well as theoretical and practical discussions of cabaret by writers, directors and critics which appeared in journals, newspapers and other venues. Detailed attention to texts which were actually read or sung in cabarets will be accompanied by an exploration of the relationships between cabaret and modernism, and of the cabaret’s role in the movement toward emancipation from traditional and conventional modes of thought and behavior during the twentieth century. We will also discuss various perceptions of the social and political functions of cabaret during the Weimar Republic.

Aristide Bruant

Otto Dix: Großstadt-Triptych

COURSE OVERVIEW

The Blue Angel.
Marlene Dietrich as Lola-Lola with the famous cabaret singer Rosa Valetti.

This course explores the development of European literary-political cabaret from its origins in France in the 1880's to its most recent developments in Western and Eastern Europe since the end of the Cold War and the reunification of Germany. We will pay particular attention to the role played by cabaret in discussions of “high” and “low” art at the beginning of the twentieth century, its later development as a medium for political protest, social commentary and literary satire, and its connections with and influences on Modernism, the Avantgarde, Expressionism, the Epic Theatre of Bertolt Brecht and Agitprop Theater. The course will also explore the musical aspects of cabaret, including the Cabaret Chanson in France, Germany and other countries, and the connections between cabarets, café-concerts, and musical revues in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By its very nature, cabaret brings together diverse elements of European culture including politics, society, literature, theater, music, art and dance. You are encouraged to explore these interconnections among cultural, historical, literary, and socio-political developments in Europe in the twentieth century.

Marlene Dietrich

This course touches upon different areas of knowledge and expertise, and I see it as a cooperative enterprise involving the active participation of all participants. There will be a considerable amount of reading as a prerequisite for class discussions, some listening (to cabaret songs), and viewing (of cabaret art, posters, film excerpts, etc.). If there is interest, we will also perform some short cabaret texts.

TEXTS

Required: Harold Segel, Turn-of-the-Century Cabaret. Columbia Univ. Press, 1987.Peter Jelavich, Berlin Cabaret. Harvard Univ. Press, 1993.Lawrence Senelick, Ed. Cabaret Performance. 2 Vols. Johns Hopkins Press, 1993.Lisa Appignanesi, The Cabaret. Studio Vista, 1975 (in Classnotes, book is out-of-print).Selections from: Volker Kühn, Ed. Kleinkunststücke Vols. 1 and 2 (Classnotes)Selections from: Volker Kühn, Ed. Kleinkunststücke Vols. 3,4,5 (Classnotes)

Optional:Alan Lareau, The Wild Stage: Literary Cabarets of the Weimar Republic. Camden House, 1995.Harold Segel, The Vienna Coffeehouse Wits 1890-1938. Purdue Univ. Press, 1993.Klaus Budzinski, Das Kabarett, ECON, 1985 (Classnotes)Sigrid Bauschinger, Ed. Literarisches und Politisches Kabarett. Francke, 2000. (Classnotes)Gisela Oechelhäuser, Ed. Von der Wende bis yum Ende. Hentrich, 1990. (Classnotes)

SYLLABUS

Time	Topic	Reading
First Week	The beginnings and development of cabaret in France (Montmartre, Paris), Le Chat Noir and Le Mirliton, 1881-1900. Influence on other European countries.	Segel, Turn-of-the-Century Cabaret (TCC), Chap. 1: pp 1-83. Appignanesi, The Cabaret, pp. 9-30.
Second Week	Cabaret in Spain. Barcelona: Els Quatre Gats. Pablo Picasso and cabaret.	Segel, TCC, Chap. 2: pp .85-118. McCully, El Quatre Gats, pp. 3-58.
Third Week	Cabaret in Germany during the Wilhelminian Empire. Ernst von Wolzogen’s Überbrettl. Modernist parodies of Wilhelminian society in German cabarets. Cabaret and political censorship.	Chisholm, “Early Literary Cabaret and Modernism in Berlin,” In: Politics in German Literature, 117-131. Segel, TCC, Chap. 3: pp.119-182.
Fourth Week	Related forms of European cabaret at the turn of the century: Musical Revue, Variete, Tingeltangel.	Jelavich, Berlin Cabaret, pp. 1-61. Lareau, The Wild Stage, pp. 1-22
Fifth Week	Cabaret in Austria (Die Fledermaus, Das Nachtlicht) and Switzerland (Cabaret Voltaire)	Segel, TCC, Chap. 4: pp. 183-219
Sixth Week	Cabaret in Russia and Poland	Senelick, Cabaret Performance, Chap. 3 (The Artistic Cabaret in Eastern Europe): pp. 136-184. Segel, TCC, Chapters 5 and 6: pp. 221-320
Seventh Week	Cabaret after 1918: Sound and Smoke, The Wild Stage, Cabaret Megalomania. Major authors, composers and performers	Lareau, pp. 23-125; Jelevich, pp. 62-84
Eighth Week	Music in the Cabaret. The cabaret chanson: themes, forms and types. Cabarets, Café-concerts and musical revues	Chisholm, “German Cabaret Songs in the Weimar Republic,” In: Dimensions, 258-268 Hippen, Das Kabarett-Chanson, selected chanson texts Appignanesi, Chap. 6: pp. 91-144 Rösler, Das Chanson im deutschen Kabarett (selected passages)
Ninth Week	Cabaret in Germany during the Third Reich.	Hippen, Kabarett im Dritten Reich, pp. 61-118 Lareau, pp. 152-179. Appignanesi, pp. 153-160. Jelevich, pp. 228-257.
Tenth Week	Cabaret in German concentration camps	Jelevich, pp. 258-282 Hippen, Kabarett im Dritten Reich, pp. 152-185.
Eleventh Week	German cabaret in exile: Switzerland, Holland, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, Luxemburg, England, United States. Satire against Hitler. Erika Mann’s Pfeffermühle and other cabarets.	Segel, TCC, Chap. 7: pp. 321-365. Appignanesi, pp. 161-170.
Twelfth Week	Postwar cabaret in West Germany	Appignanesi, pp. 171-187. Budzinski, Pfeffer ins Getriebe (selected passages translated by D. Chisholm)
Thirteenth Week	Postwar cabaret in East Germany	Hösch, Kabarett von Gestern und Heute (selected passages translated by D. Chisholm) (handout)
Fourteenth Week	European cabaret since the end of the cold war. Old and new cabarets in Germany since reunification. Cabaret on television: Medienkabarett.	Gisela Oechelhäuser, Ed. Von der Wende bis zum Ende – die Distel im scharfen Kanal (selected passages) Selected newspaper reviews of cabaret performances in Germany
Fifteenth Week	Summary and Outlook: Common themes and forms. Relationship of cabaret to social and political developments. What does the future hold for literary-political cabaret in Europe?

The Dance of the Eleven Executioners

EVALUATION

1. Two oral presentations on specific topics from the syllabus
2. Midterm and Final Exam
3. Major research paper on a specific aspect of German cabaret (15-20 pages).

Final Grade

Oral presentations and class participation:
Midterm Exam:
Research Paper:
Final Exam:

25%
25%
25%
25%

University of Arizona Policy on Plagiarism:
Definition and Explanation in the University of Arizona On-line Catalog:
“What is Plagiarism?: http://www.gened.arizona.edu/eslweb/whatis.htm
Code of Academic Integrity: http://catalog.arizona.edu/policies/994/acacode.htm
It is defined there as “intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of
another as one's own in any academic exercise.” See website for more details.

Special Needs:
Students with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations to fully participate in course activities or meet course requirements must register with the Disability Resource Center. ( http://drc.arizona.edu/ ). If you qualify for services through DRC, bring your letter of accommodations to me as soon as possible.

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