Methods of Working with Documentary Material in Elena Gremina’s Documentary Drama

Abstract

This article examines the documentary dramaturgy of Elena Gremina (1956‑2018) – a playwright, screenwriter, director, and co‑founder of the Moscow‑based Teatr.doc. Its aim is to answer two questions: how did E. Gremina use and modify existing methods of working with documentary material, and what distinguished her artistic approach to the documentary sources in her plays? The research material consists of documentary dramas on social and political themes: Сентябрь.doc (2004), Час восемнадцать (2010), Двое в твоем доме (2011), 150 причин не защищать Родину (2013), Помолвка (2016), 67/871 (Документальная пьеса о 871 дне блокады in 67 историях) (2017). A review confirmed that the plays follow three main artistic strategies and can be divided into “orthodox verbatim”, courtroom dramas, and fictionalised documents. Although verbatim serves as the starting point for all of them, Gremina freely incorporated other documentary techniques drawn from theatrical reenactment, the German documentary drama of the 1960s, and epic theatre. She actively engaged her audience, inviting empathy toward difficult experiences and involving the audience within the performances, which allows her brand of political documentary drama to be understood as both engaged and engaging literature.