Theatre Midterm

Which type of Japanese theatre was created by a woman named Okuni to entertain the men at her brothel?

kabuki

What are the two traits that most scholars agree separate pure ritual from theatre (drama)? Choose two.

- Theatre usually has a story with conflict - theatre has an actor who plays a character

The word "art" appears in everyday conversations and is generally used to convey which three (3) main ideas? (Choose three.)

-beauty - meaning - skill

One of the first known universities, located in Egypt, was a repository of knowledge that had entire wings devoted to poetry, astronomy, mathematics, and theatre. Its library stacks held 400,000 papyrus scrolls. Who founded this ancient institution?

Alexander the Great

There are several qualities that help us define art. Which of the following is NOT one of those defining qualities?

Art costs money.

Match the following Greek playwrights with their descriptions:

Euripides - Known as a playwright unafraid to speak his mind; wrote stinging indictments against war; denounced the oracles. Aeschylus - Often called the father of tragedy; wrote about profound spiritual and moral issues; considered the most "theatrical" of the ancient playwrights. Sophocles - Name means "the wise and honored one;" concentrated on a few critical moments within a character's life; depicted humans as beings trapped by fate.

There are several exceptions to the free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment. Which of the following is NOT one of the exceptions?

Expression that causes "spiritual injury"

Which German playwright proposed a set of three questions that we can use to analyze a play (or other work of art) and arrive at a well-structured, intelligent assessment of that work?

Goethe

Theatre is unique because:

It is the only art form for which the medium and subject are the same: human beings and human acts.

The "opposer of action," who stands in the way of the central character's goals, is called the:

antagonist

One purpose of Greek tragedies was to allow the audience to experience a emotional release -- an intense, two-fold feeling of pity and fear. This experience is called:

catharsis

What is the term in Kabuki theatre for male actors who specialize in playing women's roles?

onnagata

Which of the following is NOT one of the universal stage areas to which a director might refer during blocking rehearsals?

down corner left

Which person is responsible for the financial support of the production?

producer

What is the most important want, or the driving force, that governs a character's actions throughout the entire play?

superobjective

To understand a character, we must discover that character's motivations and the actions the character takes to achieve his or her goals. These actions are also known as intentions or _______.

tactics

Which type of "theatre of the people" promotes a particular people's awareness of themselves and their experiences, traditions, and culture?

theatre of identity

Which type of "theatre of the people" promotes change or a social agenda, and vents hostility toward the ruling class, race, or culture?

theatre of protest

Who is believed to have stepped out from the dithyramb chorus to play an individual role, thereby "creating" theatre?

thespis

Match the following terms related to the audience experience with their respective definitions:

group dynamic - The tendency of humans to act and react differently when they are in a group than when they are alone. Willing suspension of disbelief - The process by which we as audience members put aside our concerns about everyday reality and agree to accept the play's particular quasi-reality. aesthetic distance - The audience's ability to "remove themselves" from a work of art just far enough so that they can contemplate it -- or even judge it. Fourth Wall - The imaginary barrier between the actors and audience that was brought on by the advent of realism in theatre.

Finish this "equation" for conflict: desire + obstacle x ________ = conflict

lack of compromise

Which ancient Greek "special effect" was a crane that could fly an actor over the skene like a god, and led to a term we use today, "deus ex machina?"

mechane

One of the most popular forms of entertainment in Rome included jugglers, acrobats, comic skits, vulgar language, indecent songs, nudity, and often, satire. As the Roman population grew more diverse with many native tongues, this form of entertainment became wordless and depended more on music, action, dance, gesture, and mimicry. This form of entertainment was:

mime

Match the following writers with their respective descriptions.

playwrights - Retain copyright and receive royalty payments; have more artistic power but make less money; typically write alone. Screenwriters - Do not retain copyright; "writers for hire" who don't have as much artistic power but make more money; often write in groups.

Which of the following is TRUE about dramatic criticism? Choose all that apply

- Dramatic criticism can be applied whether you enjoy a theatrical experience or not. - Dramatic criticism offers a discriminating, often scholarly interpretation and analysis of a play or a performance of a play. - Dramatic criticism offers more than an opinion.

Based on your reading, our class discussion, and our viewing of the video, "Blackface: History of a Controversy," what statements are TRUE about the practice known as "blackface" and other related practices or casting issues in the theatre? Choose all that apply.

- For most of U.S. theatre and film history, blacks, Native Americans, and Asians were discriminated against and even banned from appearing on stage or in films. - Although whites playing blacks fell out of favor in the 1950s, the tradition of whites playing Asians and Native Americans continued into the 1970s, and has remained an issue to some extent in recent years. - The practice of casting actors regardless of their race is called color-blind casting. - Blackface dates back to the "minstrel show," a historically popular form of entertainment in which white people perpetuated stereotypes of black people by wearing black makeup and performing in ways that made fun of black people.

Based on your reading and our class discussion, which of the following statements are TRUE about the differences between stage productions and film or TV? Choose all that apply.

- Movies and TV only require passive participation, whereas stage requires active participation by the audience (in the sense that a live audience's energy and responses directly affect the actors in a stage play). - Actor training as well as acting techniques and styles for screen are different than what is required for stage. - In film, the director usually has the "power position," or creative control, and the ability to change the script, scenes shot, etc. In theatre, the process tends to be more collaborative, with the director having no control over changing copyrighted scripts or over the actors' live performances once the rehearsal process has passed. - In TV and film, scenes can be shot multiple times and edited to get just the right final result. Theatre performances are live, and so there are no do-overs!

The most common theory is that theatre grew out of religious ritual and myth. A ritual is a ceremonial act connected with human life and all that sustains it. Choose from below the purposes for which people used rituals thousands of years ago and still use today. Choose any and all that apply.

- To commemorate religious, legal, and historical events - To pass on traditions and knowledge of a society's history and heroes. - To teach and entertain. - To honor deities, affirm group identities, and foster the continuation of a particular way of life. - To help them understand and deal with environmental issues, such as plagues, floods, and earthquakes.

Select each of the seven basic elements of design that make up the "designer's toolkit." Choose all that apply.

- balance - line - dimension - color - movement - harmony - texture

Match the following styles of Non-Western theatre with their country of origin, as discussed in our textbook:

- kabuki theatre - japan - precolonial, colonia, and "total" theatre - Africa - Sanskrit drama - India - Peking opera - China - Ta'ziyeh plays - Iran - Noh theatre - Japan - Bunraku - Japan - Kathakali - India

Which of the following were main features of the typical Greek theatre space? Select all that apply.

- orchestra - skene - theatron

Which of the following theatre personnel might one find in the rehearsal hall assisting the director and actors in some way? Check all that apply.

- stage manager - musical director - vocal coach - movement coach - fight director - choregrapher

When a stage director is blocking a scene, he or she can use which of the following methods to achieve focus? (Select all that apply.)

- triangulation - stage area - level - contrast - body position

A copyright last the lifetime of the creator plus ____ years. After that, it is considered to be in the public domain.

70

Many activities we experience can be considered a basic form of "theatre" (for example, weddings, church services, awards shows, sporting events). What defining factor differentiates "drama"(or a play being performed on stage) from these types of general theatrical experiences?

Drama contains story and conflict.

When this theatrical design style is used, the audience sees the story through the mind of one character. Settings may be distorted by the character's conscious or subconscious phobias, prejudices, or psychoses. Instead of photographic reality, the audience sees the character's inner reality. This style is called

Expressionism

Who is known as the "father of modern acting?"

Konstantin Stanislavsky

Which person is responsible for the overall creative vision of a theatre ensemble and its season of plays?

artistic director

Greek philosopher Aristotle deconstructed plays into six elements. Which of the following is not one of those elements?

artistry

Which type of "theatre of the people" borrows contrasting ideas from diverse cultures and joins them into a single work?

cross-cultural theatre

Match the following terms related to cultural diversity with their respective definitions.

pop culture- The fads, fashions, and trends that dominate mainstream media for a limited time. ethnocentrism - The phenomenon by which we see the world through our own point of view and think that our take on it, as seen through our culture, is the correct view. culture - The values, standards, and patterns of behavior of a particular group of people. stereotypes - Shortcuts in thinking that attribute a generalized identity to people who are not like us. enculturation - The process by which we learn our culture. multiculturalism - The endeavor to overcome all forms of discrimination so that people coexist peacefully in a pluralistic society The endeavor to overcome all forms of discrimination so that people coexist peacefully in a pluralistic society dominant culture - Those in power in a particular group (e.g., upper class, government, religious institutions, men)

Match the following descriptions of types of theatre spaces with their respective names.

proscenium arch - This theatre space originated in Italy in the 1500s. The audience is separated from the actors, looking through a "picture frame" to the actors on the other side. thrust , or three-quarter- round - This theatre space has a lip or apron that protrudes far into the audience space like a peninsula or runway. The audience sits on three sides of the stage. This theatre space has a lip or apron that protrudes far into the audience space like a peninsula or runway. The audience sits on three sides of the stage. arena, or theatre-in-the-round - In this theatre space, the stage is in the center like an island, and the audience sits on all sides. Black Box - This theatre space is small, flexible, and can be set up in various configurations. It has movable seating, and the audience sits close to the actors.

When this theatrical design style is used, stylization is taken to an extreme; no attempt is made to re-create reality; instead, oversized symbols and dreamlike or nightmarish images that emphasize the subconscious of the characters are used. This style is called:

surrealism

Choose from below the five most common broad categories of theatre:

- historical - political - experimental - cultural - commercial

Which of the following items are things that an actor might explore to understand and build a character? Choose any and all that apply.

- inner conflicts - motivations - given circumstances - character flaws - public and personal images

Playwriting is a limited form of storytelling because a play script is limited to three (3) main parts or "ingredients" to impart the story. Choose these three items from the list below:

- parentheticals - dialogue - stage directions

Choose the five elements of ancient Greek plays from the list below:

- prologue - episode - exodos - parados - stasimon

Which of the following is NOT one of the primary functions of a stage manager?

Decides the artistic vision of the production

A dramaturg may have different duties, depending upon the theatre in which he or she works. Which of the following is likely NOT to be a duty of a dramaturg?

Manages the ushers and deals with issues having to do with audience members, seating, and starting the show on time

This government agency has been at the center of many debates over arts funding. Its primary mission is "to foster the excellence, diversity, and vitality of the arts in the United States, and to broaden public access to the arts."

National Endowment for the Arts

Who is often credited as the first modern director?

The Duke of Saxe-Meningen

A small section of dialogue about a particular subject or idea, sometimes signaled by a change in subject, is known as a

beat

The Romans practiced a political diversionary tactic, which had the underlying idea that if you give the general population enough food and entertainment, they will not question the government and will do pretty much as they are told. This tactic is still known today as:

bread and circus

The ability to understand and identify with another's situation, feelings, and motives so completely that you feel you are experiencing that situation and those emotions is called:

empathy

Parody is a a loophole around copyright laws that allows for alteration of copyrighted material. Satire can be similar in style, but it is not the same thing. Match the terms below with the correct definitions. (This information is not spelled out fully in the textbook; we discussed this in the lecture and watched the video, "Satire vs. Parody.")

parody - An imitation or copy of a previously existing work, in which the work is altered for comic effect, political criticism, to ridicule its style and subject, etc. satire - An original work, in a style that is used to poke fun at, attack, or ridicule an idea, vice, foible (character flaw), etc., often for the purpose of inducing change.

Chapter 6 discusses many of the tools used by playwrights to create a script. One of those tools is language. We discussed several "sub-tools," or types, of language tools. Which of the following are types of language tools used by playwrights when crafting dialogue? Select all that apply.

- subtext (hidden meaning under what is said) - "Musical" tools (rhythm, tempo, sound) - imagery - listening (interpreting how characters listen and respond to each other

Theatrical designers' jobs are multi-faceted and involve many steps. Which of the following items describe job aspects of theatrical designers? Choose all that apply.

- Complete preparatory and planning steps that in include making drawings, renderings, thumbnail sketches, models, etc. - Work with the director to come up with a production concept and the style of the play (e.g., realism, expressionism, etc.). - Take into account the budget for the production and the type of theatrical physical space that will be used (e.g., thrust, arena, etc.). - Research and analyze the play's dramatic structure, period, history, location, mood, characters, and theme.

Which of the following are true regarding the job duties that fall under those of a typical theatre director? Choose any and all that apply.

- Conduct extensive script evaluation and research - represent the "eyes of the audience" - Shape the action of the play through blocking, picturization, and focus - Work with actors to discover and develop their characters - Cast a vision, or "production concept," for the show - Synthesize the work and coordinate the efforts of other theatre artists and technicians

Match the following parts of a formula plot with their descriptions

disturbance - an inciting incident that upsets the balance of things, creates an opportunity for conflict, and gets the action rolling climax - the point of greatest dramatic tension in the play Point of attack - the point at which the protagonist must make a major decision that will result in conflict ("lights the fuse") dark moment - the point at which the protagonist fails, the quest collapses, and the goal seems unattainable event - an unusual incident, a special occasion, or a crisis in the characters' lives that draws the audience into the story denouement - the final outcome of the play, in which balance is restored and future developments may be hinted at enlightenment - the point at which the protagonist understands how to defeat the antagonist; often tied to the theme of the play conflict, crises, and complications - struggles and roadblocks that create "rising action" and increase dramatic tension