The Space Behind the Face: Life Stories - Couverture rigide

Wilson, Robert

Couverture rigide

ISBN 13 : 9798217061273

Editeur : Penguin Press, 2026

Synopsis

The long-awaited memoir by the late, much-lauded theater and visual artist Robert Wilson

Robert Wilson was a driving force in the avant-garde art and theater worlds for half a century: He was the creative mind behind the seminal Einstein on the Beach (1976), among dozens of other original works and pioneering productions; his collaborators included Philip Glass, Lou Reed, Allen Ginsberg, John Cage, Tom Waits, Lady Gaga, and Jessye Norman; and he was honored with a Pulitzer Prize nomination, the Golden Lion for Sculpture of the Venice Biennale, an Olivier Award, the Praemium Imperiale, and many more. The story of Wilson’s life and career is the story of the past fifty years of experimental art and theater—indeed, this history could hardly be approached through a better lens than an oeuvre about which Susan Sontag once said, “I can’t think of any body of work as large or as influential.”

The Space Behind the Face, written in collaboration with his friend, actor and writer Keith McDermott, charts Wilson’s life through a series of vignettes, from growing up in small-town Texas to developing his unmistakable voice in New York’s downtown scene to gaining international renown. Wilson’s unapologetic idiosyncrasy shines throughout, whether he’s creating a children’s theater set of 368 fire hydrants or directing a twelve-hour silent opera about Joseph Stalin.

Part intimate remembrance, part cultural history, part road map for living an artistic life, The Space Behind the Face is a vital text for anyone who believes in the boundless value of creativity—and a stunningly beautiful memorial to the inimitable Robert Wilson.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

Since the late 1960s, Robert Wilson’s productions have decisively shaped the look of theater and opera. Through his signature use of light, his investigations into the structure of a simple movement, and the classical rigor of his scenic and furniture design, Wilson continuously articulated the force and originality of his vision. Wilson’s close ties and collaborations with leading artists, writers, and musicians fascinated audiences worldwide.

Keith McDermott is an actor and writer. He made his Broadway debut in Equus starring opposite Richard Burton. He has performed in works by Robert Wilson in New York City and around the world. McDermott has often used his life in the theater as inspiration for his writing. His 2005 novel, Acqua Calda, was based on his experience with Wilson and was included in
the New York Times list of 25 recent works that have shaped the L.G.B.T.Q. literary genre over the last two decades. McDermott lives in New York City with his partner, painter Eric Amouyal.

Extrait. © Reproduit sur autorisation. Tous droits réservés.

Contradictions

My life is filled with contradictions. I like being alone, yet I'm always surrounded by people. Except for a two-week Christmas break in Bali every year, I'm constantly at work on multiple projects, which entail countless meetings with designers, theater staff, performers, assistants, benefactors, and board members. My evenings, if I'm not rehearsing, are occupied with dinners or other social events that are key to raising funds to support Watermill, the international arts center I founded on Long Island in 1993. I just oversaw the openings of five of my productions in three countries in a little over four weeks. My schedule is booked years in advance.

At the end of the day, coming out of work mode is difficult if not impossible for me. Drinking helps. For years, it's been Absolut vodka with Ocean Spray cranberry juice, but I recently switched to gin because I was told it has fewer calories.

I am eighty-three years old, and after spending the better part of sixty years sitting in a dark theater or on a plane, my body is a wreck. I am always in some sort of physical pain. Recent back surgery has made it difficult to walk without a cane or the arm of an assistant. Still, I get out of bed at seven thirty a.m. every day to begin again. An hour later, when my assistant arrives with coffee, I'm up, showered, and shaved. The TV is turned on to CNN without the sound, and we begin to answer emails.

Once, when I went to visit the great modern dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham, he was sitting at a desk in front of stacks of papers. I asked him what he was doing.

"I'm doing my 'PP,'" he said.

"PP?"

"Paper processing. Everyone thinks I just choreograph pretty dances all day, but seventy-five percent of my time is taken up with PPing."

PPing takes up most of my time, too.

Between all the PP, I've directed Shakespeare, Goethe, Ibsen, Albee, two productions of Wagner's Ring cycle. I've worked in most of the major theaters and opera houses throughout the world. I have a long-running production of Pushkin's Fairy Tales in Moscow. I've worked throughout Asia, in Japan and Indonesia and Australia, and I've done more theatrical work in Germany, France, and throughout Europe than any other American director. I won the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 1993, the Europe Theatre Prize in 1997, an Olivier Award for best new opera in 2013, and I'm about to receive the Praemium Imperiale, a top international art prize given by the imperial family of Japan.

Yet-another contradiction-I have not had a work of mine produced in the United States for ten years. They say my work is too expensive to produce here. Unions and lack of state support are determining factors in how much money it takes to put on a play, but our country is also culturally and artistically isolated. A provincialism dominates the American theater. When I tried to get support from the New York Council on the Arts to bring Einstein on the Beach, which had been produced in France, to the city, I was told, "This sort of work should be done in a loft."

Instead, I rented the Metropolitan Opera House.

And one final contradiction: I think visually. I like to look at pictures more than I like to read. I'm probably the worst person to write about myself, but like my father, who opened every dinner conversation with "Did I tell you about the time . . . ?" I like to tell stories.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Penguin Press
• Date d'édition: 2026
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 13: 9798217061273
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 320
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible