Abstract
A Dream Like A Dream (Rumeng zhi Meng), directed by Stan Lai, was given the première at National Institute of the Arts on May 18 and May 19, 2000 in Taipei. This thesis aims to examine the structure of mandalian life journey by exploring the collective repetition in life patterns, the repetitive traumatic recollections, and the representation of historical trajectory through the form of metatheatre used in A Dream Like A Dream. Chapter Two explores how Stan Lai adopts the religious symbol of mandala in the plot and on the stage and how he uses the encircling stage to produce the effect of historical juxtapositions. Besides, Strindberg’s A Dream Play, which is very similar to A Dream Like A Dream in terms of the structure and the themes, will be compared. Chapter Three analyzes the collective repetition in A Dream Like A Dream. In this stage work, both collective history and personal love story are reproduced in a fixed form. The repetition of universal issues demonstrates through the persecution of sociopolitical victims and the function of collective unconscious. The repetition of personal life form centers on the complicated love relationship caused by samsara. Chapter Four deals with the traumatic recollections, analyzing how the characters in this spectacle reminisce about and represent their traumas. The characters “act out” the past historical events while their doubles are recalling the past. The characters’ gazing at the lake and their repeating nightmares both unveil their traumatic memory. Chapter Five examines personal and collective history through the discussions of cultural identity and collective memory. The diasporic consciousness of the Chinese characters will be analyzed through exploring the issue of identity crisis. In addition, the contemporary Chinese historical contexts set in this work will be examined in chronological order. Chapter Six looks into the metatheatricality from three aspects: structure of a play-within-a-play, self-conscious role-playing, and a ceremonial spectacle. Placing the audiences at the center of the theatre hall, breaking the difference between reality and illusion, and exposing theatrical artificiality oblige them to be aware of participating in a performance. The final chapter concludes that A Dream Like A Dream is the culmination of Stan Lai’s previous creative works. This work, which comprises of various subjects including religion, life, politics, traumatic memories, cultural issues and historical trajectory, obviously sets a milestone in Stan Lai’s theatrical career. The repeated image of circle implies that this performance symbolizes an endless mandalian life journey.