T. Kowzan's table showing the 13 sign systems at work in theatrical performance
|
1. word 2. tone |
spoken text |
actor |
auditive signs |
time |
auditive signs-
(actor) |
|
3. mime 4. gesture 5. movement |
expression of
the body |
visual signs |
space and time |
visual signs -
(actor) |
|
|
6. make-up 7. hairstyle 8. costume |
actor's
external appearance |
space |
visual signs -
(actor) |
||
|
9. props 10. decor 11. lighting |
appearance of
the stage |
outside the
actor |
space and time |
visual signs -
(outside the actor) |
|
|
12. music 13. sound
effects |
inarticulate
sounds |
auditive signs |
time |
auditive signs-
(outisde the actor |
Original source
(French):
Kowzan,
Tadeusz. 1968a. "Le signe au thtre: introduction la smiologie de
l'art du spectacle." Diogne
61. 59-90.
---.
1968b. "The Sign in the Theater: An Introduction to the Semiology of the
Art of the Spectacle." Trans. Simon Pleasance. Diogenes 61. 52-80.
---.
1975. Littrature et spectacle. The Hague:
Mouton.
"The
implications of this systematic analysis and codification of the sign system
are of great importance for the language in which a theater text is written,
for it indicates that language as such is only one sign in the network of auditive and visual signs
that unfold in time and space. Furthermore, Kowzan's analysis shows that any
written theater text contains within it a set of extralinguistic
systems (i.e., pitch, intonation, accent, etc.) as well as an undertext (or
gestural text), which are determined by the movements an actor makes while
speaking that text." From: Nikolarea, Ekaterini
"Performability versus Readability: A Historical Overview of a Theoretical
Polarization in Theater Translation" Translation Journal 6.4 (2002) < http://accurapid.com/journal/22theater.htm>