Einstein on the Beach: A study in temporality

Abstract

In this paper I seek to examine and analyse the sense of duration induced by performances of Einstein on the Beach, and the entailed sense of time which its internal structure creates. I initially sketch out the stylistic context and artistic intentions of this work's creators, Glass and Wilson, and I briefly describe the process of its creation. Certain features of this process indicate how the work may be interpreted. Having cited the creators' thoughts on structure and temporality, I address directly aspects of Einstein's temporal effects, comparing it to works of similar lengths. I give the briefest synopsis of its staging and motifs. I then outline three kinds of devices which seem to inform our temporal sense of this work as spectators. In the final section I invoke two ideas which serve as analogies to help characterise this work's overall effect on us: Heidegger's notion of the ‘hermeneutic circle’ and, more speculatively, Nietzsche's ‘theory’ of Eternal Recurrence.

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