Epic Theatre/Verfremdungseffekt

Epic Theatre uses a mode of theatre that utilises gestus. One of the main features of epic theatre was for the audince to always be aware that they were always watching a play, a technique that was called the alienation effect (Verfremdungseffekt) Which as quoted: "Prevents the audience from losing itself passivley and completely created by the actor, and which consequently leads the audience to be a consciously critical observer". Brechts overall idea was to make sure the audience fet detatched from the play so they would become immersed within the fictionality of the play or feel emotionally attached to any of the characters. Brecht would highlight the idea of not becoming drawn into the fictional reality of the play by doing things like having the entire theatre lit up with normal lighting and having the soundmen and background people visible on stage. Brecht would also have the people wearing their own choice of clothes instead of having the dressed in black, making them even more visible. The V effect is achieved by the way the actor "never acts as if there were a fourth wall besides the 3 that surround him." This way the audience can no longer have the illusion of being an unseen spectator at an event that is really taking place. In other words the direct use of the audience in epic theatre is a way of shattering a stage "illusion" and generating the V effect. Brecht's use of the V effect is to make sure the audience are not fully immersed within the world of the play, due to the idea that Brecht wanted the audience to ask questions and become critical of themselves.