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Theatre Basics

Subject : performing-arts
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. 'The Father of Realism'; was initially a Romantic writer and his early plays were verse dramas largely based on Norwegian history and folk literature; plays presented complex - sometimes distrubing - views of human society; A Doll's House (1879) - Gh






2. Result of western influence - a toned down version of Kabuki - told stories of everyday life - particularly those of women - women played women's parts (whereas Kabuki was all male)






3. Studied the history of class conflict






4. Based off the idea that before a problem can be solved - society must first understand that the problem exists; 'attack the message - not the messenger'






5. Told stories about common people who felt grand emotions and suffered devastating consequences (Enlightenment)






6. Six characters take on life of their own when the playwright fails to complete the play in which they were supposed to appear






7. Most famous Restoration-era woman to make her living by writing plays






8. Contemporary form of Sanskrit Theatre - dramatized version of the Hindu epic poems Ramayana and Mahabharata






9. This happened for the first time during the Restoration






10. Thought that inner truths could be hinted at only through symbols; sought to replace the specific and concrete with the suggestive and metaphorical; usually had little plot or action and tended to baffle the audience






11. Book - music - and lyrics






12. The realism of the play is expressed through lyrical language






13. Term used to describe performances that mix theatre - visual arts - music - dance - gesture and rituals; often use multimedia effects - sounds and lighting effects to make a point and allow the audience to understand its deeper implications; often re






14. Holds that human beings are naturally alone - without purpose or mission - in a universe that has no God






15. Set out to break all the neoclassical rules - attacked the three unities






16. Type of Islamic theatre which is created by lighting two-dimensional figures and casting their shadows on a screen; the audience watches the silhouettes while a narrator tells a story






17. No spoken dialogue - entirely sung; comes from the Latin word 'work' and may have originally meant 'works in music' or 'musical works for the stage'; first operas were in Italy in late 1500s






18. Africa's greatest living playwright; born in Nigeria; plays combine symbolism - mysticism - beautiful dialogue - and they make strong political points; plays are deeply rooted in African myths - dance - and rituals but also influenced by Western dram






19. A program of sketches - singing - dancing and songs pulled from previous sources






20. The audience remains alienated from the performance so they could critically consider the play's themes






21. Wrote 'high comedies' which were cerebral socially relevant plays that had an intellectual scope so vast they forced audiences to reassess their values; Man and Superman (1903) & The Quintessence of Ibsenism (1891)






22. Comedies forced Victorian society to reexamine its hypocrisies; Lady Windermere's Fan (1892) - A WOman of No Importance (1893) - An Ideal Husband (1894); advocated 'art for art's sake'; The Importance of Being Ernest






23. Third part of a Noh play - the protagonist appears as a new self - and the cause of torment is resolved






24. Brought Western-style theatre to Africa to dramatize Bible stories in order to win converts






25. French physicist - mathematician - and philosopher - expressed the essence of Romanticism






26. History plays about major political events of the past - domestic plays about the loves and lives of merchants and townspeople - and dance-dramas about the world of spirits and animals






27. A permanent - professional theatre outside NYC; founded in 1947 by Margo Jones; stage new plays alongside commercial hits and historical plays; appeal to the intellectual audiences that Hollywood seldom serves






28. Unstructured theatrical events on street corners - bus stops and anywhere else people gathered






29. Instead of learning how to conjure real emotions - actors of Sanskrit drama studied for many years to learn representations of emotions through:






30. No protagonist; deals with a family of characters who tell many stories at once; the fact that characters on stage take no action may inspire audience members to be motivated for the opposite in real life






31. French Enlightenment playwright; was an inventor and thinker who spent countless hours at the leading intellectual salons of France; most famous plays are The Barber of Seville - and The Marriage of Figaro - his plays reflect the attitudes of the Enl






32. Musicals that are mostly singing and have less spoken dialogue; similar to operattas - but thier tone is often much darker and more dramatic






33. One of the most valuable historical records of Indian theatre; an encyclopedic book of dramatic theory and practice; has 37 chapters and covers every aspect of classical Indian drama - also a treatise on dramatic theory and philosophy - states that t






34. Three parts of a Noh play






35. One of the most important French philosophers of the Age of Reason - wrote and edited the first encyclopedia; was also a dramatist who penned books on the techniques of acting; authored The Paradox of Acting - a book that attached the pompous declama






36. Sigmund Freud's book which analyzes the character of Oedipus and Hamlet






37. Second part of a Noh play - protagonist performs a dance that expresses his or her concern






38. The men who play female roles are called:






39. Third part of a Noh play - the protagonist appears as a new self - and the cause of torment is resolved






40. Most famous American expressionist playwright who won Nobel Prize for Literature (1936); A touch of the Poet (1935) - The Iceman Cometh (1939) - A Long Day's Journey into Night (1956) & A Moon for the Misbegotten (1952); The Hairy Ape (1952)

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41. More serious plot and theme; West Side Story (1957)






42. Peking Opera was dramatically altered when:






43. Plays about the issues of the day that were in Manhattan neighborhoods






44. Comic operas that mixed popular songs of the day with spoken dialogue






45. One of the most influential thinkers of the Enlightenment - French poet - essayist - and playwright whose writing often got him in trouble with the church; built a theatre on his own estate so he could freely present his plays






46. Nigerian playwright that was executed for trying to protect the Ogoni people against encroachments of Shell oil company






47. A sudden - striking pose (often with their eyes crossed - chin sharply turned - and big toe pointed towards the sky) in Kabuki accompanied by several powerful beats of wooden clappers






48. Smaller - less expensive alternative experimental theatres; flourished in lofts - basements - coffeehouses and any found space usable






49. First part had musical numbers with little comic dialogue; second part was full of songs - dance and standup routines; third part featured a one-act play






50. People who dismissed Traditional African Theatre because it was so unlike anything they knew







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