It was the German theorist Hans-Thies Lehmann who proposed the concept of postdramatic theatre. A common feature of all"post"terms is the rejection of certain elements in the established traditions. "Drama"refers to the text and its history,while "theater"is defined as the presentation of the text on stage. Therefore,"postdramatic theater"means to transcend the drama,emancipating performance from the shackles of text. By reviewing Edward Gordon Craig and the German"Director’s Theatre"in the beginning of the 20 th century and the recent works of several major international directors—Ivo van Hove,Katie Mitchell,Punchdrunk and Signa,the paper argues that what they have in common is a challenge to the traditional theatre and its concept of mimesis so as to subvert its fictional system,which is completely separated from daily life and its surroundings.