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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. During the Enlightenment there were revolutions in: ... which had a profound effect on theatre






2. 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






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






4. 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






5. The first modern musical; a melodrama about black magic staged in NYC in 1866






6. Wooden clappers used in Kabuki






7. Writes the book






8. French philosopher and playwright; The Flies (1943) & No Exit (1944)






9. Divided into fatalist - hilarious and existentialist






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






11. Three parts of a Noh play






12. 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






13. Writers who felt science was not adequate to describe the full range of human experience - and their writings stressed instinct - intuition - and feeling






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

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15. Divided into fatalist - hilarious and existentialist






16. Wooden clappers used in Kabuki






17. 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'






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






19. 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






20. A form of musical entertainment featuring bawdy songs - dancing women - and sometimes striptease






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






22. Greatest of the Sturm und Drang playwrights; was also a critic - journalist - painter - biologist - statesman - poet - novelist - philosopher - scientist - and the manager of the Duke of Weimar's playhouse






23. Russian playwright whose play The Lower Depths (1902) took look at people living in cellar of Moscow flophouse






24. 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






25. By Swedish Playwright August Strindberg; fourteen-act play that follows the disconnected logic of a dream






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






28. A dialogue that captures the incoherence - broken language - and pauses of modern speech; usually marked by surreal distortion and impending danger; from writing of Franz Kafka






29. The first theatre in the world to be lit with electric lights






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






31. Writers who felt science was not adequate to describe the full range of human experience - and their writings stressed instinct - intuition - and feeling






32. Peking Opera was dramatically altered when:






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






34. This happened for the first time during the Restoration






35. Grew up in poverty and put himself through medical school and set up free clinics in Russia to help the poor; The Seagull (1896) - Uncle Vanya (1899) Three Sisters (1901) & The Cherry Orchard (1904); placed on stage the lazy chaos of lives crushed by






36. 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)






37. 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






38. 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)






39. 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






40. Most popular type of theatre during the Restoration; often featured great wit and wordplay and told stories about sexual gratification - bedroom escapades - and humankind's unrefined nature when it comes to sex






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






42. A true-to-life interior containing a room or rooms with the fourth wall removed so that the audience has the feeling of looking in on the characters' private lives






43. 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






44. 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






45. Kabuki borrowed many of these movements to make Kabuki acting highly stylized and almost puppet-like






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

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






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






49. Feature the work of a director-choreographer






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