THAR 281 1st EditionExam 1 Study Guide: Lectures 1-9Lecture 1Why do we imitate others?1. Instruction2. Entertainment3. ConnectionCeremony vs. RitualCeremony = formal religious of social performanceRitual = acting out of a specific established procedure What are the characteristics of theater?1. Has to be LIVE2. Needs to have a LIVE audience 3. Has to be in a specific place4. Collaborative5. Present the experience6. Real/imagined eventImportant Theater Terms:House = where audience gathersApron = an extension of the stage closer to the audiencePit = space usually between audience and stage where musicians play musicWhat are the various types of stages?1. Proscenium Stage like a picture framea. Small space between audience and performers2. Thrust Stagelike fashion show runwaya. Stage surrounded on 3 sides3. Arena Stage like Kyle Fielda. Performers completely surrounded by audience4. Found Stage like at a park or like a flash-moba. Random place where they perform Lecture 2What is City Dionysian?A huge festival held in Athens during the spring where everybody drops everything to attend thisWho was Aristotle?a. Primarily interested in scienceb. Wrote one piece of drama called “The Poetics” c. He named 6 characters of theater (listed by in order of importance):1. Plot2. Character3. Theme4. Language5. Music6. Spectacleb. He tries to define tragedy as sad, complete, and of certain magnitudeWho was Aeschylus? a. First person who said to have 2 characters in front of the chorus instead of just 1i. Did this in order to create dialogueb. Said to reduce the size of the chorus (from 50 to 15 people) i. Smaller group creates more clarity in languagec. Wrote about 90 plays; 7 of them we still have and can use todayi. Ex: Supplints and OrestaWho was Sophocles?a. Said to have 3 people on stage instead of 2 like Aeschylus had suggestedb. Won first prize at the City Dionysia festival c. Wrote about 100 plays; only 7 still exist today ii. Ex: Oedipus Trilogy (Antigone) and Elektra Who was Euripides?a. Most “modern: of Greek playwrightsi. Because he portrays women with pityii. Mixed comedy with tragedyiii. Questioned the gods and heroesb. Wrote 90 plays; 18 are still used todayi. Ex: Medea and Bacchae Important Myths?a. Medea and Jason; Jason leaves Medea so she goes mad and kills Jason and his new wife and their children and the wife’s fatherb. Oedipus’ storyWhat is catharsis?a. Catharsis is a purging/cleansing of emotionb. By watching tragic events (like Medea’s story) then the audience experiences same emotions as the scene portrays and the learns from them Lecture 3What changes did the Romans make to theater?a. Cut out the chorus that Greek comedy hadb. Added musical company to the dialoguec. Emphasis on eves-dropping/mishearingd. Generally the main setting was in the streets while Greeks had it in theaters What is a stock character?a character that has a type; they don’t care about individualityWho was Plautus?a. wrote 20 plays that we still have todayi. New playwrights took some of his plots (structure) to use in modern timesWho was Terence?a. more subtle; he wrote 6 plays which survive todayii. Often combined 2 plots together or used 2 characters to describe both plots differently Who was Seneca?a. Wrote based on Greek myths; violence accepted nowb. Chorus is of reduced importance (it is still present though)Who is Horace?a. Wrote work about theater called Art of Poetry (“Ars Poetica”)b. Concerned with making rules and making sure there was a moral for audience to learn c. Chorum said how a person should behave according to their given social status, age, etc.What are the popular forms of entertainment?Gladiator fights, chariot races, executions, mime (uggling, gymnastics, song, etc.), executionsWhat caused the decline of Roman Comedy?People move out of the countrySmaller group of people performing nowChristianity rising ad authorityLecture 4What language were classical Indian plays written in? Why?San skrit; so that only refined people understood/appreciated it Classical Indian Theater Terms:a. Cannon= is a collection of works; san skrit drama there is about 50-60 playsb. Natyasastra=work that describes origin of theater tradition in Indiac. Shakuntala= seven act work that tells story of a king and orphan that fall in loved. Total Theater= all aspects working together to “overwhelm” audience Yuan s. Ming DynastyYuan Dynasty= has form of drama called Zazu; has a four act work; 68 of the work survived Ming Dynasty= popular culture falls out; more academic/ornate; aimed more to the upper classWhat is Noh Theater?Japanese theater where performers are trained at a young age; has some mask work to help define what character is. Composed of 2 type of text: phantasmal and present experience What is Bunraku Theater?Japanese theater form where puppets are used; similar to Noh; puppets are 2/3 of actual persons size; handlers mostly dress in black for disguise. What is Kabuki Theater?Most popular Japanese theater form that has elaborate costumes and very similar to Noh in tone/structure. Dances are symbolic & structured in similar way; costumes are in veil. Lecture 5What are the characteristics of the Early Middle Ages (500-1000)?Source of stability was the Catholic churchHave feudalism as type of governmentIncrease in technology; mostly agricultural lifestyle though What are the characteristics of the High Middle Ages (1000-1500)?Increase in commerceKnowledge spreads (more education)1450 = Gutenberg’s printing pressWhat are the characteristics of liturgical drama? Evolved from liturgical music. Eventually they’re short call and responses through singing called tropes.What are tropes exactly?They’re spoken in Latin and then in the language of the people First produced in monasteries then in larger spacesEventually become religious vernacular drama What are mystery/cycle plays?They are biblically based but independent from churchFilled with anachronisms, an object or event outside of its proper historical context There was an introduction to comedyWhat was the Second Shepard’s Play about?One of most famous mystery plays based on birth of Jesus and has a comedic side to itWhat are morality plays?Secular (did not mention Jesus or Bible explicitly) presented similar to a mystery playAre about good vs. evil in most casesWhat are the main elements of production?In France, women are allowed on stage but on in EnglandMostly produced with amateur