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. 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






2. Proclaimed 'God is dead...and we have killed him.'; felt taht absence of God was a tragedy - but believed human beings needed to accept the tragedy and move forward in a world that was unjust and meaningless






3. 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






4. Showed middle-class characters finding happiness and true love (Enlightenment)






5. Writes the lyrics






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






7. 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






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






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






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






11. Including operetta - developed out of intermezzi






12. French director who stage play The Butchers (1888) with real sides of beef infested with maggots






13. Comic interludes performed during the intermissions of opera






14. 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






15. Earliest form for photography






16. Goethe's most famous Romantic play






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






18. A popular form of stage entertainment from the 1880s to the 1940s; included a dozen or so slapstick comedy routines - song-and-dance numbers - magic acts and juggling or acrobatic performances






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






20. Africa's greatest living playwright; born in Nigeria; plays combine symbolism - mysticism - beautiful dialogue - and they make strong political points; plays are deeply rooted in African myths - dance - and rituals but also influenced by Western dram






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






22. The orchestrated melodies






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






24. 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






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






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






27. 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'






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






29. Theatre was not seen as being of value to society - so plays were not an important part of:






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






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






32. A period of licentious gaudiness inspired by the elaborate styles that Charles II brought with him from the French Court






33. 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






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






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






36. 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






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






38. 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






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






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






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






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






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






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






45. 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






46. Musicals with a particularly well-developed story and characters






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






48. Two types of traditional Japanese theatre






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






50. Elaborate geometrical designs were used for these roles which included supernatural beings - warriors - and bandits; the color of the make-up indicated the character's personality