Let’s see what I come up with in thinking about the characters in terms of the set of primary character archetypes: Protagonist, Nemesis, Attractor, Mentor, Trickster.
Protagonist: Lydia. See the Plot response for a detailed analysis of her disintegration journey.
Nemesis: There are characters who provide opposition, which is the root function of nemesis figures (e.g., Andris leading the symphony committee to fire Lydia; Eliot taking over as conductor of the symphony), those are temporary “masks” they wear – see below notes). But I would say that the Nemesis is an internal driver in Lydia’s own psyche: Her obsession with being a Great Conductor. If control is such a huge aspect of her persona, then being a conductor is a perfect professional outlet. For the conductor controls the behavior of hundreds of orchestra musicians … controls the interpretation of the music they are conducting … controls the way in which they present themselves in public. The question is: What is she trying to control? It is, I think, shadow dynamics which loom deep in her psyche. It’s never entirely clear what those are, but we get hints and allusions through her behavior in the latter half of the story (e.g., fear of failure, self-loathing, rage).
Attractor: There are several figures who are connected to Lydia’s emotional life: her husband Sharon; her assistant Francesca; her adopted daughter Petra. But none of them connect with her at a raw, passionate level as did Krista and as does Olga. It suggests Lydia is looking for someone whose erotic feelings for her translate into an wholehearted acceptance of who Lydia is beyond rationality and the convention of love. It is interesting that neither of those relationships end well: Krista commits suicide; Olga, who as it turns out is heterosexual, inadvertently “spurns” Lydia. Bottom line, Lydia never finds the love and acceptance she yearns.
Mentor: Again, there are several characters who provide – or more appropriately *try* to provide – wisdom and insight to Lydia. Andris, the former conductor of the Berlin Symphony; Knut, trusted symphony member; Britta, board member of the Accordion group. But perhaps the character who provides the most insight into Lydia is a chance encounter with her brother Tony. It’s a scene that’s only a couple of pages long, but their exchange goes like this (88):
TONY
Oh, hi Linda -- sorry, Lydia. Ma
said you’d be over. You must be
hiding out.
She’s silent. Wondering how much he knows. Probably a lot.
TÁR
Why would I be hiding out?
TONY
Beats the hell outta me. None of my
business anyhow.
(back to sorting mail)
Lotta loose ends. You gotta admit.
TÁR
Whatta you mean?
TONY
Well, like I said, it ain’t my
business... but you don’t seem to
know where the hell you came from, or
where you’re going.
And what is Lydia’s response to Tony’s observation:
Tár must admit to herself that Tony does have a point.
Trickster: Clearly, Eliot plays this role, seemingly an ally (11-15), who ends up stealing her conductor’s score for Mahler’s 5th symphony, then replacing Lydia as conductor. Francesca, of course. But I’m also thinking that none other than Leonard Bernstein slots into this narrative function as well. He is incredibly inspirational to Lydia, but there is a key scene late in the script (86-87) where after Lydia has destroyed her own professional career through her public antics, she goes to her childhood home and watches a videotape of Leonard Bernstein teaching a group of children in an episode of the CBS series Young People’s Concert. His message to the youths is inspirational, how music provides the deepest of connections to the human experience. As Lydia watches the video, tears stream down her face. The moment recalls Lydia’s interaction with a Juilliard student Max in which she humiliates the young man. The two interactions offer a clear distinction in their respective “souls”: Bernstein encouraging and positive; Lydia dismissive and negative. So yes, Lydia finds an “ally” in Bernstein, someone who serves as an ideal she aspires to, but because of the specific construction of her psyche and the darkness of her shadow, she could never truly emulate.
Next: Themes
