Theatre History Final Exam

"Capa y Espada"

"Cape and Sword" daredevil, classic, romantic comedia Themes of love and honor: chivalry Drama

What is a hanamichi?

"Flower Way" the platform that connects the stage to rear of Kabuki theatre space

"Trag-oida"

"Goat Song" or tragedy

"Sturm and Drang"

"Storm and Stress" 18th century German drama combatting the neoclassical ideal Backed by Lessing Mixed genres, episodic structure Ex: William Tell

Naumachia

Filled the Colosseum or fields with water and reenacted stage battles

What are some of the reasons why we know the Romans for their comedies and "entertainments" rather than their great tragedies?

For starters, no Roman tragedies have survived. We know about them, but have no text. The Romans were also known for the creation of the Circus Maxima and Gladiator fights. Many of the plays they wrote were Greek plays reworked into comedies called Fabula Pallieta.

Hypokrite, Histrione, Haiyu, Player

Greek, Roman, Japanese, English

4 German Playwrights and their Plays (HHHF)

Hans Sachs wrote The Wandering Scholar from Paradise Hrosvitha wrote Dulcitius Hildegard von Bingen wrote Ordo Virtutum Friedrich Scholler wrote The Robbers

Licensing and Censorship

Happened throughout history

Why do we remember Thespis?

He was the first actor, stepping away from the Chorus.

Name the three major "streams" or levels of Dramatic art:

High art, pop art, low art/pornography

Before Renaissance stages were house completely indoors, what two major styles of buildings did they resemble?

In Italy, ancient Greek amphitheaters and Roman scaena. In England, they resembled an outdoor inyard and in Spain they performed in courtyards.

Where and when did Opera have its genesis in Renaissance Europe?

In a Florentine academy in Italy at the end of the 16th century

6 Musical Opera Composers

Jacopo Peri Claudio Monteverdi Lorenzo da Ponte Mozart Verdi Jean-Baptiste Lully

Chikamatsu Manzaemon (1653-1724): Who was this person?

Japanese playwright; Known for Bunraku plays but also wrote some Kabuki

Who is Okuni?

Japanese priestess, her dancing and travelling troupe were the origins of Kabuki

47 ronin

Japanese samurai legend that has been made into plays, opera and even movies

Image Projection

Josef Svoboda, late 1900s

The Irish during the Middle Ages * Forces/Factors that repress Theatre

Lack of patronage Lack of wealth Widespread disease Warfare Societal disapproval

"Opera"

Literally anything depending on where it is Eastern Drama involves many things

Islam is considered a largely repressive force to theatrical development. Why is that the general opinion, and what sorts of things CAN be performed within its teachings?

Look this up

Which Renaissance playwright is the most prolific writer of plays ever?

Lope de Vega

4 Spanish Playwrights and their Plays (SLLP)

Lope de Vega wrote the King Pedro Calderon de la Barca wrote Life is a Dream Lope de Rueda wrote The Frauds Sor Juana wrote Love the Greater Labyrinth

Four Conflicts (theory)

Man vs. self Man vs. man Man vs. society Man vs. nature

Fall of Roman empire lead to the Middle Ages

Middle ages were a period of recovery, this recovery and rise of the church lead to the rise of Medieval theatre. Medieval theatre characterized mainly by religious drama

In Greece as well as Rome, these popular entertainers were known for their domestic scenarios, ribald content, improvisation and social commentary. What were they called?

Mimes

"The Well Made Play"

Modern era 19th Century France Based on the neoclassical ideal Falls under the drama category Structurally and mechanically builds to the climax

Religious Drama

Mystery Plays Miracle Plays Morality Plays Autosacramentales Sanskrit drama Noh

What is the title of the major source of information we have about Indian/Hindu dramatic writing and performance?

Natyasatra

Covent Garden

New London theatre built by John Rich in the mid 1700s Still exists today From 1737-1843, one of two London playhouses legally allowed to present drama

Yoruba Opera

Nigerian Drama Dialect

6 Western Operas

Porgy and Bess Turandot Marriage of Figaro Madame Butterfly Siegfried Der Ring der Nibelungen

4 Greek Playwrights and their Plays (SAME)

Sophocles wrote the Oedipus trilogy, Euripides wrote The Bacchae, Heracles, Medea, and The Cyclops Aeschylus wrote the Frogs and The Orestia: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Euminides Aristophanes wrote Lysistrata Menander wrote Aspis

Name three important Greek playwrights

Sophocles, Euripides, Aeschylus

Notable Theatre Theorists + their Magnum Opus

Stanislavsky

Classical-Middle Age-Medieval-Renaissance-Early Modern-Golden Age-Enlightenment-Romantic-Modern-Post Modern-Contemporary

Talk about the transitions between them Classical theatre began in Ancient Greece and Rome

The "chou" was a character from which artistic form? What are the special characteristics of this character?

The "chou" was a clown in Nanxi theatre, Southern Chinese

1860-65

The American Civil War Wartime is never good for theatre... there is a decrease in production because there is a decrease in money and patronage As a result, however, black troupes began to arise and the events of the war influenced playwrights such as William Gillette.

Name the greatest cause of the repression of theatre activity in Europe between 1347-1380

The Bubonic, or Black, Plague

Who or What "accidentally" engendered or reignited the tradition of public theatre performances in medieval Europe?

The Church did so when it ushered theatre outside because they didn't what theatre being performed in holy spaces.

What caused the decline of the Roman theatre?

The Fall of the Roman Empire was one cause. It was conquered by Barbarians. Towards the end of the Roman era, the Roman Catholic Church began to ban and shun theatre.

Name three important Greek tragedies or comedies

The Frogs, The Bacchae, Oedipus Rex

What is "El Siglo de Oro"

The Golden Age in Spain

What "aesthetic" theatrical art movement is commonly associated with the Europeans renaissance?

The Neoclassical Ideal

Three Unities (theory)

Unity of time Unity of place Unity of action

Limelight

Used lime burning on a metal plate The technology was easily adapted to the bulb

The "Deus ex machina"

device used to enter actors playing gods from above, essentially lowers them onto the stage

Name the most important Greek philosopher/theatre critic of all time and the Roman who became the most important philosopher/theatre critic of his own era

i. Aristotle ii. Horace

Name five important Renaissance tragedies

i. Eccerinus ii. Sofonisba iii. Orbecche iv. Gorboduc v. Romeo and Juliet

Name three important Roman tragedies or comedies

i. Medea ii. Hercules iii. Manaechmi

Name three important French playwrights from the Renaissance:

i. Moliere ii. Jean Racine iii. Pierre Corneille

Name three major forms of Japanese theatre:

i. Noh ii. Bunraku iii. Kabuki

Name five important Renaissance comedies

i. Paulus ii. I Simillimi iii. Ralph Roister Doister iv. Comedy of Errors v. Twelfth Night

Name three important Spanish playwrights from the 16th-17th century

i. Pedro Calderon de la Barca ii. Lope de Vega iii. Lope de Rueda

Name three important Roman playwrights

i. Seneca ii. Terence iii. Plautus

List three major justifications for the closure/suspension of public play houses:

i. The Queen's privy council banned all theatre around London ii. Puritans found it sinful iii. The English Civil War

Three major areas/components of a Greek Style Theatre

i. Theatron ii. Orchestra iii. Skene

According to current scholarship, Chinese theatre practice developed from ancient fertility rituals, cultural celebrations and artistic imports from its neighbors similar to which other ancient western culture? What types of activities were included in the Chinese "dramas"?

i. This is similar to Greek drama ii. The earliest accounts of Chinese "dramas" were court entertainments such as pantomime, juggling, singing and dancing

List three important differences between "Liturgical Drama" and "Mystery Plays" as performed in medieval Europe

1. Liturgical Drama was performed during the mass while Mystery plays were separate, often performed outside as they were forced to do so by the Church. 2. Mystery plays contained more comedic aspects that Liturgical drama, as Liturgical drama was a way to emphasize the importance of the mass. Mystery plays could depict any biblical story while Liturgical drama was restricted to what was being covered in the mass. 3. Mystery plays also had more secular themes than Liturgical drama. Mystery plays were performed in the vernacular while Liturgical drama was performed in Latin.

Besides Mystery Cycle Plays, there were two other major genres of medieval European drama. Name them:

1. Morality Plays 2. Miracle Plays

Name the European countries that utilized Pageant Wagons for their performances of Mystery Plays and those countries that utilized fixed stages

1. Pageant wagons were used mainly by the English, Spanish and Dutch 2. The French and Italian were more inclined to use fixed staging.

Name the three major "stages" utilized during the European medieval period

1. Processional 2. Stationary 3. Mansions/Church Plateas and yards

Name three important medieval Dramatic texts

1. Second Shepherd's play 2. Everyman 3. Dulcitius

Name three important medieval European playwrights

1. Wakefield 2. Hrosvitha 3. Hildegard von Bingen

Naumachia

1. Water shows 2. The Romans would fill the coliseum or flood fields with water and reenact battles at sea

Fall of Constantinople

1453 - Artisans and playwrights and merchants fled to Italy with what they could, losing many works in the process. Italy became the place of the "rebirth" of Theatre, art, philosophy, technology, etc. Theatre was then secularized in the form of Comedia dell'Arte

What is a jongleur?

A French juggler or acrobat

What is a dithyramb?

A choral hymn sung by 50 men about adventures of gods and heroes. It was the precursor to the Greek chorus.

What caused the decline of the Roman theatre - name more than one cause:

A huge cause was the fall of the Roman empire, but also the rise of Christian disapproval of theatre.

4 French Playwrights and their Plays (JAMP)

Adam de la Halle wrote The Play of Greenwood Moliere wrote The miser Pierre Corneille wrote The Cid Jean Racine wrote Phaedra

4 Italian Playwrights and their Plays (MAPT)

Albertino Mussato wrote Eccerinus Pier Paolo Vergerio wrote Paulus Torquato Tasso wrote Aminta Machiavelli wrote The Mandrake

Theatre of reform

Artaud

Western Europe: 1347-1352

Black death - Bubonic Plague "Factors" silo

Theatre of realism

Brecht

Circus Maximus

Built in Ancient Rome for Chariot Races

The "City Dionysia" in Athens was a festival celebrating what and whom?

Celebrating theatre, Athenian democracy and Dionysus, god of fertility, wine, theatre, etc.

Why were Central and Eastern Europe so late in joining the "paty" of the theatrical Renaissance in the 18th century?

Central and Eastern Europe were incredibly rural and were developing much more slowly. Because of this there were little funds and little patronage. The Byzantine Empire controlled much of Central and Eastern Europe, so the fall of Constantinople affected it hard.

Chou

Clown character Nanxi - Southern Drama in China Early 12th century

The Neo-Classical Ideal

Decorum - characters should behave in ways that a person of this nature would in reality Verisimilitude - true to life Unity of Time, Place and Action

4 Russians Playwrights and their Plays (DIVA)

Denis Fonvizin wrote The Minor Vasily Kapnist wrote Chicane Ivan Turgenev wrote A Month in the Country Anton Checkhov wrote The Seagull

"Opera" is used liberally to describe different forms of theatrical performance. What are some of the characteristics of the "Chinese (Beijing, Henan, Bang-Xi) Operas"?

Elaborate costumes and make up, highly stylized sound and movement

Which European country is credited with creating the first truly commercial theatre culture in the 16th century?

England

Mansion

Essentially a box or house with a biblical back drop in which actors performed plays during the Medieval era

* The plot should all happen within a 24 hour time frame * Restricted to one location * One, central plot line

Fall into one specific genre: not include both comedy and tragedy for instance Other minor rules

What are considered the earliest kinds of dramatics texts in Eastern Theatre? Give the approximate dates when they were being written:

Indian Poetic Epics known as Sanskrit Drama written between 300 BCE and 500 CE

The "Feast of Corpus Christi" in Europe was/is a festival celebrating what and whom?

It celebrates the Eucharist and how the partaking of it united everyone with the Body of Christ.

What cause the decline in popularity of the Neo-classical ideal:

It wasn't ever really popular in England and many French playwrights, such as Voltaire, felt the rules were too restrictive. Spain tended to ignore the rules from the beginning.

Colonial Theatre

Phoenixville, Pennsylvania Originally built in 1903 as a vaudeville house and called the Colonial Opera House Houdini performed here as was "The Beauty Doctor"

David Garrick, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Richard Wagner, Konstantin Stanislavsky

Playwright, actor, manager and producer who influenced 18th century theatrical practice German playwright known for eroticism in his works German composer, director and conductor known for his operas Russian actor and director whose teachings became prominent in American theatre and film after WW2

What type of Medieval drama was a safe basis for the plot of a Renaissance play in most European countries?

Religious Drama such as morality and mystery plays but also miracle in some instances. In Italy they were called sacra rappresentazioni" or sacred representations. Marlowe based many of his works on various morality plays.

Fall of Constantinople lead to the rise of the Renaissance

Renaissance period saw a rebirth in theatre including the rise of Opera in the late 16th century Early Modern refers to English theatre of the Elizabethan era. Characterized by the works of Shakespeare and Marlowe among others. The Golden age refers to Spanish theatre, lasting nearly two centuries from the late 1400s to the late 1600s. The Enlightenment period saw rise in French theatre. It was the transition between neo-classicism and romanticism. Romantic - Victor Hugo and the fall of neoclassicism Modern late 19th-early 20th century saw works of Richard Wagner and the emergence of the modern director Post Modern was a reaction against the modernist era and is all about raising questions but not answering them Contemporary theatre is what we have today with the rise of musical theatre and drama that again strays from the neoclassical ideal

What caused the decline of Sanskrit drama

Rise of Folk Drama and also later the Arab take over of India

According to current scholarship, Greek tragedy developed from which ancient fertility ritual in which country?

Ritual of Osiris in Egypt

Histrione

Roman word for actor

Describe the difference of Romanesque and Goth styles and how the Gothic architecture of churches facilitated performance:

Romanesque churches were less ornate, with rounded arches and columns. Gothic churches were much bigger, created more room for performance and had pointed arches. The actual space in which liturgical drama was performed was wider and more accessible because there were fewer columns on the inside.

4 Roman Playwrights and their Plays (STQP)

Seneca wrote Thyestes Terence wrote Phormio Plautus wrote the Menaechmi Quintus Ennius wrote Sabine

Theatre of cruelty Melodrama

Sensational, dramatic piece with exaggerated characters and circumstance Historically a play that had action accompanied by song and orchestral music throughout

4 English Playwrights and their Plays (SWMR)

Shakespeare wrote Twelfth Night among others Marlowe wrote Doctor Faustus among others Wakefield Master wrote the Second Shepherd's play Richard Sheridan wrote The School for Scandal

Why do we remember Hrosvitha of Gundersheim?

She was the first known female playwright

What fundamental alterations did the Romans make to the Greek style theatre and for what reasons?

The Romans had developed the arch, so the skene became much larger and was more of a building than a wall. The orchestra was also made into a semi-circle in order for the audience to feel more like they were surrounding the actors.

What cause the "shift of gears" from the Medieval Period to the "Renaissance"? Give the traditional date and cause with details of its effect on European medieval theatre development.

The fall of Constantinople in the 1453 caused Artisans, Merchants and Playwrights to flee to Italy with what they could. Many works were lost in the process, but Italy became the place of "rebirth" for theatre, art, philosophy, technology and more. Theatre was secularized in the form of Comedia dell'Arte.

"mie"

The powerful pose struck by a character in Kabuki

What fundamental principles govern Indonesian puppet and shadow theatre?

They were done in shadow and intricately designed so that when illuminated, their shadows depicted a characteristic emotion or identity to the puppet. Design of the puppet was intentional, every detail specially chosen.

According to current scholarship, the Middle Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire did not produce many dramatic texts in Europe. But they were not "Dark Ages." Why? And what group or institution preserved the extant learning from the Classical period?

They weren't "Dark Ages" because everyone was working towards re-enlightenment, relearning and recovering what had been lost during the fall of the Roman Empire. They would make copies of what remained. The fact that there wasn't total loss is owed to the Irish Catholic Church. Because they weren't conquered by the Roman Empire, their literature remained.

"Mimes"

They've been around since ancient times Know for their domestic scenarios, ribald content, improvisation and social commentary Pop-art Fall under drama silo Developed into the clown in France, comedic relief in Opera, similarly with Shakespeare

4 American Playwrights and their Plays

Thornton Wilder wrote Our Town August Wilson wrote The Homecoming Eugene O'Neill wrote Bound East for Cardiff Oscar Wilder wrote An Ideal Husband Maxwell Anderson wrote Winterset

Pear Garden

Training academy for Chinese actors in the Tang Period Founded in 714 BCE

Non-realistic theatre - types, central themes

Transformation of character, place, object and time

Name the two most sacred texts which served as "bibles" for Hindu Drama

Vedas and Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita

Comedie Francais

Well known French Theatre and company Where Hernani was first performed

In Asia Opera usually involves dance (Peking)

Western Opera is usually musical, sung from start to finish Opera went through various stages: classical, baroque, romantic and contemporary