Dramaturgy and UK Theatre

I continue to be puzzled by the mystification of 'dramaturgy' and the 'dramaturg' as a professional practice that existst in almost any country apart from the UK. Latest evidence: the dissertations of my MA Dramaturgy students on their work experiences in the profession, with Paines Plough, the NT Educational mobile, and other companies and/or venues. As one student clever challenged, all of the companies and theatre people she had contact with this year unanimously said they would not employ a dramaturg because they don't have the money for that - whereas the tasks these same people were doing are precisely 'dramaturgy', yet they call themselves Literary Managers, Assistant Directors, Education officers, even Rehearsal Diarists. The funny thing, from my own German perspective is, that especially small, hardly funded companies in Germany would use someone as a Dramaturg who is then the jack of all trades - from assistant director to marketing officer to coffee machine operator. So many young people start their career in these barely paid positions. By no means is a dramaturg in German (and European) Theatre 'the God', as Paines Plough's Roxana Silbert suggested to us - the key thing about a dramaturg is that they would be part of the company, therefore guaranteeing some sort of artistic coherence and integrity, liasing with virtually everybody from actors to artistic to technical to administrative staff (if there are any...), whereas e.g. directors, actors, others, would be brought in on a freelance, contract basis for the production.

Recent books like 'Dramaturgy: A Revolution in Theatre' also rather fail to capture the everyday reality of working as a dramaturg elsewhere. Best literature, should anyone be interested: - on dramaturgy: Eugenio Barba's entry in the 'Dictionary of Theatre Anthropology'; - on the dramaturg and his/her day-to-day job: 'Dramaturgy in American Theater: A Source Book' (Harcourt Brace 1997)

Thoughts TBC...