Theatre Exam 2

Medieval cycle plays were known to go on for as long as?

...

To prevent events as heroic

...

Story

A full event of an event or series of events, usually told in chronological order

Plot

A selection and arrangement of scenes from a story

Obstacle

An impediment that is put in a character's way

Complication

An outside force or new twist in the plot introduced at an opportune moment

If playwrights are writing about a historical event, it is inappropriate for them to change the order of events to suit their purpose.

False

If two or more playwrights create a play based on the same story, it is important that the facts of that story remain consistent from one play to the next.

False

One technique that works effectively is to structure most of the play with a looser organization that allows the playwright to create a tightly structured ending in order to make the viewpoint clear.

False

Samuel Taylor Coleridge coined this statement regarding a playwright's point of view: "The world is a comedy to those that think and a tragedy to those that feel."

False

The subject of drama varies greatly, and at certain times throughout theatre history, drama has focused on human beings, but more often than not the subjects of drama are quite different.

False

The word genre means "an ability to generalize about all human beings by observing a small portion of their actions."

False

Two periods that were particularly conducive to the creation of tragic drama were the eighteenth century (the age of enlightenment) and the nineteenth century (the century of progress).

False

Limited conflict

Not a convention of dramatic structure

To entertain royalty

Purpose

To escape

Purpose

To make a political statement

Purpose

To reinforce religious beliefs

Purpose

The events of a Holocaust

Subject

The story of Electra

Subject

Climax

The final and most significant crisis

Although it is an aspect of basic human nature that people like to categorize all things, it is often not best to try place all plays into distinct categories, as that is a practice that does not recognize those plays that are unique and original in their point of view or style.

True

An example of point of view in film might be the various angles of vision and perspectives that the camera selects for us.

True

Another danger of categorizing dramatic works is that this diverts our focus from the single most important aspect of theatrical production: to experience the play live and to react to it in the moment.

True

Dramatic action is the essence of drama, and even the word drama derives from the word dran, which means "to act" or "to do."

True

In our contemporary world it is important to recognize a feminist or woman's point of view in analyzing and understanding dramatic works as that viewpoint has not always been considered or respected throughout history but it is essential to the future development of dramatic works.

True

Politicians and advertisers often hide their point of view, whereas a playwright's imposition of their point of view is direct and deliberate.

True

The fact that Euripides was writing tragedies at the same time that Aristophanes was writing satirical farces serves as an example that it is possible for a multiplicity of individual viewpoints to be expressed in drama regardless of the prevailing societal viewpoint.

True

The first task of the dramatist is to decide what aspect of people and their concerns to write about in order to give the play a purpose.

True

The viewpoint of a theatre artist actually provides the audience with a key to understanding the actions and words of the characters on stage.

True

"The world is a comedy to those who think, a tragedy to those who feel."

Viewpoint

A love story

Viewpoint

To portray a story in a comic manner

Viewpoint