THAR 281 Lecture 12Outline of Last Lecture: Epic TheatreI. Epic TheatreII. Erwin PiscatorIII. Bertolt BrechtIV. Piscator vs. Brecht & Shared BeliefsV. Brechtian techniquesVI. Berliner EnsembleOutline of Current Lecture:I. American Theatre:a. Show Boatb. OKLAHOMA!II. NON-Commercial Theatre:a. Provincetown Playhouseb. Eugene O’ Neilc. Robert Edmund JonesIII. WPA- Works Progress AdministrationIV. The Group TheatreV. African American Theatrea. Porgy and BessVI. American Postwar Playwrights (post WWII)a. Arthur Millerb. Tennessee WilliamsTest review Thursday American Theatre:Commercial Theatre:- Between ww1& ww2 the most dominant form of theatre in America- Theatre were you just do commercials- Theatre for a profit, example: Broadway- produce works to make moneyNon-profit theatres- theatre itself doesn’t make extra money, acters are paid, designers etc… they just break even.These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.- Musicals- most popular form of commercial theatreo Most commercially successfulo Revenues o Musical comedieso Composers:  Richard Rodgers George Gershwin Cole Porter Irving Berlin Jerome Kerrno Example: WICKED- a musical with a storyline, known as a story. o At first not all musicals started out this way. o The used to have comic sketches with musicals in between, and had nothing to do with the scene before or after it. Just a bunch of feel good skits and songs.o Important after WWI because people needed fun.- First example of an integrated musical: Show BoatShow Boat- 1927 - Jerome Kern- Oscar Hammerstein II- First attempt of integrated musicalOKLAHOMA!- Big change over to style seen today- 1943- Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein- Integrated Musical- next and most successful attempt- Known for its dream scene- done through danceo Good example of integration- Evolution of musicalsNON-Commercial Theatre:- Theatres not for profit- 1915- The little Theatre Movemento Similar to independent theatre movement in Europeo Provincetown Playhouseo Washington Square PlayersProvincetown Playhouse- George Cram Cook and Susan Glaspell- 1st theatre to produce work of Eugene O’Neill and produce the designs of Robert Edmund Jones- New American dramaEugene O’ Neill- Playwright- America’s most important playwright!!! ****- Realism, expressionism- 1st American dramatist to win a Nobel Prize for Literature- Known for making theatre grow up- Helped inspire other works, he paved the way for Arthur Miller, Walker, etc…- He was troubled and his plays portrayed that they helped him work through his issues As a child his mother had a morphine addiction, and he was blamed because it happened after he was born.- Works:o The Hairy Ape- more surreal pieceo The Iceman Cometho Long Days Journey Into Night- most well-knownRobert Edmund Jones- Scenic, lighting, and Costume Designero Advocated community of design. What was put on stage as a designer should help to tellthe story of the play, and serves it.- “new stagecraft” movemento Selective realism- in terms of design, you take specific parts of reality and use them to suggest the locale.- The Dramatic Imagination- “Father of modern American Scene design”The Group Theatre:o Stanislavski’ system of actingo Socially relevant drama- wanted to bring about social changeo Motivate political and social changeo Disbanded 1941 Members: Lee Strasberg, Cheryl Crawford, Stella Adler, and Harold ClurmanWPA- Works Progress Administrationo President Franklin D. Roosevelto Depressiono Started to create jobs for people.o Started federal theatre project.Federal Theatre Project:o Non-commercial theatreo Hallie Flannigan Davis (ran by)o Aided theatre artists during the depression: Used as an escapeo Ended support in 1939Important Contributions:o The living newspaper Current event stories were acted out in front of people. Satire, got the news out there for those who could or didn’t read.o African American TheatreAfrican American Theatreo 22 different ones createdo Produced new works and introduced African American talent to these areas Ethel Waters- singer Paul Roberts- athlete, singer, actorPorgy and Bess- -most well-known African American musical - -premiered 1935- -written by 3 white men- Important landmarkAmerican Postwar Playwrights (post WWII)Selective Realism: heightens certain details of action, scenery, and dialogue while omitting others.Arthur Miller: • Playwright and essayist • Won the Pulitzer Prize for Death of a Salesman - His plays were about :o Effects of societyo Failureo Responsibilityo GuiltTennessee Williams:- Playwright- Known for lyrical drama- Used selective realism- Wrote about:o Social outcastso Outcasts in hostile environmentso