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






2. First female theatre manager in London; was also an actor and singer; managed first theatre to have a box set; Olympic Theatre in London






3. The German equivalent to Diderot; was a playwright - critic - and Enlightenment philosopher Who wrote tragedies and comedies about the middle-class; his greatest play was Nathan the Wise






4. Includes all other forms of drama - from the ancient ritual theatre of Africa to the traditional theatre of Asia to the shadow and puppet theatre of Muslim lands






5. First part of a Noh Play - usually a chance meeting between two characters - introductions are made and the characters engage in a question-and-answer sequence that reveals the protagonist's concern






6. The sung words






7. 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

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8. Records of this type of theatre are fragmentary - but we do know that it grew out of regional religious rituals related to Confucianism - Taoism - and Buddhism - and ritual dances performed during the Shang dynasty






9. 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






10. 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)






11. 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






12. 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






13. Peking Opera was dramatically altered when:






14. Any artist or work of art that is experimental - innovative or unconventional; some styles would be symbolism - expressionism - futurism - Dadaism - surrealism - and absurdism






15. Book - music - and lyrics






16. An early form of theatre; it used theatrical techniques such as song - dance - and characterization - but it was still firmly rooted in religion






17. The first 'talkie' movie; featured white actor Al Jolson in blackface performing in a minstrel show






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






19. Writes the book






20. Suggests we are trapped in an irrational universe where even basic communication is impossible






21. Wooden clappers used in Kabuki






22. '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






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






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






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






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






27. Argued that the prime function of playwrights is to expose the social and moral evils of their time






28. Founded in 1946 by Julian Beck and Judith Malina; dedicated itself to contemporary social issues and highly political - easthetically radical plays






29. Peking Opera was dramatically altered when:






30. Grew out of the theatre of Thespis in Ancient Greece; passed from the Athenians to the Romans to the medieval Europeans






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






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






33. The men who play female roles are called:






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






35. Play by Wole Soyinka; celebrates Nigerian independence but also warns against returning to Nigeria's violent past






36. Grew out of the theatre of Thespis in Ancient Greece; passed from the Athenians to the Romans to the medieval Europeans






37. 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






38. 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






39. The sung words






40. 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






41. Play that takes place in a mental institution - the audience sits on the stage with the actor-patients






42. Sarcastic label of Scribe's plays; the sympathetic protagonist suffers at the hands of an evil antagonist in the course of intense action - suspense - and contrived play devices; ending is always happy and the loose ends are neatly tied up






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






44. 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






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






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






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






48. The time period that glorified humans' power to reason and analyze - a period of great philosophical - scientific - technological - political - and religious revolutions






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






50. Exposed the squalid living conditions of the urban poor and explores scandalous topics like poverty - venereal disease and prostitution; 'Sordid Realism'