Test your basic knowledge |

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. Attacked the evils and restrictions of society; tried to reveal the higher reality of the unconscious mind with fantastic imagery and contradictory images; performances were often violent and cruel as they tried to shock the audience into the realiza






2. Most famous of the absurdist playwrights; best considered a fatalist - although work is sometimes hilarious and can ask existential questions; Endgame (1957) Krapp's Last Tape (1958) and Happy Days (1961); Waiting for Godot (1953)






3. First black woman playwright to be producted on Broadway; Raisin in the Sun based of her actual childhood






4. In Sigmund Romberg's play the king young heir to the throne sacrifices his personal happiness for the good of the kingdom when he sorrowfully pulls himself away from his true love in order to marry a princess whom he does not love






5. 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






6. Spoken lines of dialogue as well as the plot






7. Would be removed in the box set to give audience a real life look into the scene






8. 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






9. What western theatre is often called:






10. One of the most famous Sanskrit dramas - a love story in seven acts written by the playwright Kalidasa






11. Bandits discuss rival systems of goverment while waiting for an attack






12. A synthesis of music - dance - acting - and acrobatics; it was first performed by strolling players in markets - temples - courtyards - and the streets






13. Most famous English actress - born into poverty - started out singing in taverns and selling oranges in theatres - became the King's mistress






14. 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)






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






16. Developed from the dance-prayers of Buddhist priests; has five possible subjects: the deities - the deeds of heroic samurai - women - insanity - and famous legends






17. Recorded conversations of slum dwellers in Dublin and used their words verbatim in his plays

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php on line 183


18. Feature the work of a director-choreographer






19. Have become living traditions that are handed down from father to son

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php on line 183


20. 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






21. Type of Islamic theatre - religious drama of Iran which allowed for actors - both professional and amateur - and has been performed in open-air playing spaces and on some occasions in specially constructed indoor stages for hundreds of years

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php on line 183


22. One of the most well-known Muslim Playwrights - who uses her plays not only to express herself but also to prompt discussions about such topics as violence against women - religious fanaticism - and female sexual desire






23. Highlights the insanity of life in a comical way






24. A blend of melody and drama and refers to the background music often played during these performances






25. Characters were not individuals but types; standard roles included scholar - lover - hero - maiden - old woman - coquette - virtuous wife - and acrobatic warrior-maiden






26. Attacked the evils and restrictions of society; tried to reveal the higher reality of the unconscious mind with fantastic imagery and contradictory images; performances were often violent and cruel as they tried to shock the audience into the realiza






27. French philosopher often called the Father of the Romantic movement; argued that people could find happiness in a 'state of nature' and that they should learn from nature rather than the artificial and corrupted teachings of society






28. A big production number that usually receives a torrent of applause that literally stops the show






29. Would agitate the masses - attack the spectators' sensibilities and purge people of their destructive tendencies; wanted stylized - ritualized performances - not realism - which they felt restricted the theatre to the study of psychological problems






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






31. Studied the history of class conflict






32. What western theatre is often called:






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






34. Sell over $1billion worth of tickets annually - majority of those are for musicals






35. The want for more 'genuine' sets - more 'honest' acting - and dialogue to be modeled after everyday speech - influenced by ideas of CHarles Darwin - Sigmund Freud and Karl Marx






36. Writes the lyrics






37. 1. theatre has an actor who plays a character - theatre is artificial - and 2. theatre usually has a story with a conflict - conflict is key to all drama






38. Book - music - and lyrics






39. Included comic scenes - dance interludes and sentimental ballads all based on white stereotypes of black life in the South






40. Life has no purpose and they confused and antagonized audiences by refusing to adhere to a coherent set of principles - mirroring the madness of the world






41. Type of theatre that grew out of ritual - incorporated acting - music - storytelling - poetry - dance - costumes - and lots of masks to create a theatre that combined ritual and ceremony with drama






42. The artist imposes his own internal state onto the outside world itself; expressionism is a subjective account of an objective perception; expressionist plays use deliberate set distortion






43. An extreme form of realism; an acurate 'documentary' of everyday life - including its seamy side






44. First black woman playwright to be producted on Broadway; Raisin in the Sun based of her actual childhood






45. Staged inexpensive - noncommercial productions of artistically significant plays in small - out-of-the-way theatres






46. Uses rock music - the rock and roll of the 1950s (Grease) - the psychedelic rock of the 1960s (Hair) or contemporary pop and rock (Rent)






47. The orchestrated melodies






48. 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






49. 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






50. Characterized by a light-hearted - fast-moving comic story - whose dialogue is interspersed with popular music; Guys and Dolls (1950)