From Text to Embodiment The Ontology and Performance of Dramatic Character

This article investigates the ontology of dramatic characters and their transformation from textual conception to embodied performance. By examining both the theoretical foundations and practical applications of character construction, it argues that dramatic characters are dynamic entities situated between fiction and presence—between the script and the stage. Drawing on key thinkers such as Aristotle, Stanislavski, Brecht, Barthes, and contemporary performance theorists, the study situates “character” within evolving conceptions of theatre from classical dramaturgy to postdramatic performance. Through detailed readings of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler, and comparative reflections on non-Western performative traditions, the paper develops a model describing four interdependent layers of character formation: textual, performative, actorly, and receptive. The analysis highlights how the ontology of the dramatic character oscillates between authorial intention and audience perception, and how performance actualises the potentialities inscribed within text. Ultimately, it contends that characters in theatre exist not as static psychological portraits but as processes of embodiment— hybrid formations that reveal the interdependence of writing, acting, and spectating. Keywords: Dramatic character; ontology; embodiment; performance; theatre studies; semiotics; Shakespeare; Ibsen