Concept
Twentieth-century theatre
Related concepts (11)
Theatre of the Absurd
The Theatre of the Absurd (théâtre de l'absurde teɑtʁ(ə) də lapsyʁd) is a post–World War II designation for particular plays of absurdist fiction written by a number of primarily European playwrights in the late 1950s. It is also a term for the style of theatre the plays represent. The plays focus largely on ideas of existentialism and express what happens when human existence lacks meaning or purpose and communication breaks down. The structure of the plays is typically a round shape, with the finishing point the same as the starting point.