Theoretical and Methodological Basis of Researching the Problems of Establishment and Development of Theatrical Biography

The purpose of the article is to carry out a comprehensive analysis and generalize the theoretical and methodological foundations of the study of the problem of the formation and development of theatrical biography. The research methodology is based on the application of a complex of theoretical and empirical methods, in particular, analysis and synthesis, comparative-historical, structural-functional, etc., which made it possible to comprehensively consider the given problem and formulate reasonable conclusions. Important for the study is the art critic's approach to the definition of the concept of "theatrical biography". The scientific novelty of the study consists in a comprehensive art historical study of theatrical biography. On the basis of a thorough analysis and systematization of scientific work on the outlined issues, the author's vision of the phenomenon of the concept of "theatrical biography" is represented, and its criteria are determined. Conclusions. As a result of the conducted research, it was established that the scientific and methodological development of the problem of theater biography is at the initial stage and requires detailed justification and public coverage in works of various formats. The conducted substantiation of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the study allowed us to determine the essence of the concept of "theatre biography". We associate this term with the process of creating biographical and illustrated material about a well-known personality, whose life became the subject of dramaturgical development within the framework of the work, or a part of the work, and which found an original embodiment within the framework of a theatrical production, performance, performative event, etc. There are no clear criteria for the formation of theatrical biography. The variability of the author's approaches to the representation of the biographical-personal and creative-life achievements of famous people, the heroes of theatrical productions leads to an imbalance of a significant mass of information in the field of theatrical art. It is concluded that in the context of theater art research, the number of works devoted to the biographies of famous Ukrainian directors, playwrights, and theater managers is very limited. The works of scientists, the subject of which were the works of Ukrainian dramatists, mostly concern the classics of domestic drama and, accordingly, well-known historical figures of Ukrainian culture and art. Most of the material about productions, performers, main characters of plays is placed in anthologies of plays, which are not popularized at a sufficient level.