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






2. 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






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






4. 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






5. 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






6. 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






7. 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






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






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






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

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






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






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






14. 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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15. 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






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. Said that the free enterprise system is seriously flawed and is a cause of great human misery because it exploits the poor






18. The orchestrated melodies






19. 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






20. 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






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






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. Writes the music






24. A robust and spectacular version of Noh; named after the characters for 'song' - 'dance' - and 'skill'; created by a woman named Okuni - owner of a brothel






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






26. Feature the work of a director-choreographer






27. Type of theatre greatly influenced by Buddhism and Shinto; originates in ritual






28. 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






29. Estrangement; essentially the alienation effect






30. Wrote plays about the rugged lives of Irish peasants using their dialect; Riders to the Sea (1904) & The Playboy of the Western World (1907)






31. Musicals that feature a particular band's songs






32. Light opera - differs from 'grand opera' because it has a frivolous - comic theme - some spoken dialogue - a melodramatic story - and usually a little dancing; The Mikado (1885)






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






34. Including operetta - developed out of intermezzi






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






36. 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)






37. Goethe's most famous Romantic play






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






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






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






42. Known for life-like sets that used hand-painted screens and gas-powered lighting effects to stage realistic sunrises and storm clouds; invented the DAGUERREO-TYPE - which was an early form of photography






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






44. 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






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






46. 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






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






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






49. 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






50. 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