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. 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






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






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






4. Musicals that feature a particular band's songs






5. 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






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






7. Divided into fatalist - hilarious and existentialist






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






9. Form of drama that dominated theatre in India for a thousand years; named for the ancient Indian language in which its plays are performed; combine the natural and the supernatural - the believable and unbelievable






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






11. 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






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






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






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






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






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






17. 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






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






19. Form of theatre that mixed traditional African ritual theatre and Western-style drama; encouraged African nationalism - glorified Africa's past - and advanced African customs - rituals - and culture; also dealt with serious political themes and appla






20. Most famous American expressionist playwright who won Nobel Prize for Literature (1936); A touch of the Poet (1935) - The Iceman Cometh (1939) - A Long Day's Journey into Night (1956) & A Moon for the Misbegotten (1952); The Hairy Ape (1952)

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






22. This happened for the first time during the Restoration






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






24. Two types of traditional Japanese theatre






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






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






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






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






29. 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






30. The orchestrated melodies






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






32. A big production number that usually receives a torrent of applause that literally stops the show






33. 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






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






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






36. 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






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






38. Spoken lines of dialogue as well as the plot






39. Divided into fatalist - hilarious and existentialist






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






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






42. 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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43. Used giant puppets and actors to enact parables denouncing the Vietnam War and materialism






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






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






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






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






48. What western theatre is often called:






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






50. 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