The structure of a theatrical production and Mikhail Bakhtin's concept of dialogue

M.M. Bakhtin's works on dialogue, his theory of the novel, is adapted for the analysis of a theatrical production. From a narratological perspective, Bakhtin reveals textual levels, which are subsequently elaborated in the model of narrative communication. From an aesthetic perspective, Bakhtin regards dialogue as “pivotal to the text” and therefore as an artistic value. The paper pursues both approaches on the material of P.N. Fomenko's plays. The categories adapted to the theory of drama permit a systematisation of Fomenko's theatrical devices and underline the symbiosis between formal innovation and aesthetic properties.