Rock theatre and the Grand Guignol

[Wrathchild]

The Theatre du Grand Guignol ("Theatre of the Big Puppets") opened in a converted chapel in Paris in 1897. It survived until 1962, though it never quite recovered from the stigma of being a major tourist attraction for Nazis during the thirties.

Anyway, it was the first venue that specialised in plays of a horrific nature, with all sorts of wonderful gory things being depicted on stage in sumptuous detail .

It paved the way for horror movies as we know them today, and lately I've been wondering if some of our fave musos with a reputation for over-the-top stage shows (eg Alice Cooper, KISS, Maiden, Ozzy and Dio to name a few) might have been indirectly influenced by it as well. There's a research paper in this, if I could only find someone to pay me for it...

W

 

[spawn]

What kind of thing was depicted on stage?

 

[phlogiston]

I'm currently reading "Infinite Dreams - the Biography of Iron Maiden" and in a few spots Bruce mentions the Grand Guignol as having done all the stuff that Maiden were accused of a hundred years before they were even around. I'll chase up the quotes later, if I can be bothered.

 

[Spiff]

Wrathy, I'll give you $5 per 100 pages.

 

[Wrathchild]

Spiff, you're on! That's more money than I make from writing now .

Spawny, just think rapes, murders, executions, beheadings and eye gougings and you'd be in the ball park .

Phloggy, Bring on the quotes .

W

 

[spawn]

Originally posted by Wrathchild

Spawny, just think rapes, murders, executions, beheadings and eye gougings and you'd be in the ball park .

Oooh! How positively grotesque!

 

[phlogiston]

Bruce sometime around '82:

"Eddie's not to be taken seriously...there's no way that it's anything other than a good laugh...gory imagery for sensationalism's sake as been around for a long time, back as far as Grand Guignol theatre and stuff like that"


Bruce sometime around '88:

"Steve's songs tend to be about dreams, nightmares and obsessions 'cos he has a lot of those. He's a terrible sleeper. He writes a lot of songs about out-of-the-body experiences which he has more of than he likes to admit. I think he has a bit of a problem with that, hes quite frightened of it. Even when I first joined Iron Maiden, it was already locked into a Grand Guignol style which mainly comes form Steve and these traumatic nighmares he had."

 

[mattt]

thats pretty interesting
how along was this book released?

 

[phlogiston]

1996.

 

[Spiff]

Tis a good book too!

 

[TRrEiTxIxRiE DTrash]

I know that Herschell Gordon-Lewis' films were specifically influenced by the Grand Guignol. I'm also pretty sure that Alice Cooper was influenced by it.... I know for a fact that Herschell Gordon-Lewis' films were a big influence on him so already that means the Grand Guignol was as well even indirectly, but I wouldn't be surprised with Alice if he directly influenced by it also. Lizzy Borden as well, although Lizzy's stageshow has always pretty much been a blatant rip off of Alice Cooper...

I think I may have heard Blackie mention the Grand Guignol being an influence on WASP's early stage show too....