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. All lines are sung - usually to grand classical music; Madama Butterfly (1904)






2. Improved the daguerreotype and created modern photography; was also an English physicist






3. The orchestrated melodies






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






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






6. Writes the music






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






8. 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






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






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






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






12. 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






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






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






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






16. Writes the lyrics






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






18. Named new 'photographic' realism NATURALISM and his phrase 'slice of life' is quoted description of it






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






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






21. A production of British actor Charles Kean; had realistic costumes - set and props that he had researched to make sure they were historically correct

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






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






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






25. Big-time vaudeville who performed a series of lavish musical reviews on Broadway






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






27. A medley of the show's songs played as a preview; usually the beginning of a traditional musical; lets the audience know that it's time to stop talking because the performance is about to begin






28. Romanian-born French playwright best categorized as a hilarious absurdist; The Bald Soprano (1949) & Rhinoceros (1959)






29. Highlights the insanity of life in a comical way






30. The first all-black show to pay at a top Broadway theatre






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






32. 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






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






34. Spoken lines of dialogue as well as the plot






35. Holds that human beings are naturally alone - without purpose or mission - in a universe that has no God; not a negative - for without God humans can create their own existences - purpose and meaning






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

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37. Peking Opera was dramatically altered when:






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






39. The sung words






40. 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






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






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






43. Built in Venice in 1637






44. 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






45. Filled with characters who cannot resist an argument about social issues; no character is exempt from talking politics and theorizing about moral - artistic or religious reform






46. 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






47. Islam's holy book - contains a warning about 'graven images' similar to the one in the Bible - prohibition applies to dolls - statues - portraits - and people playing a character






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






49. 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






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