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






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






3. Three parts of a Noh play






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






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






6. 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






7. 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






8. Feature the work of a director-choreographer






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






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






11. 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






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






13. A German poet - director and playwright who challenged traditional ideas about theatre; became a communist after watching policement shoot 4 unarmed civilians; The Life of Galileo (1938) - Mother Courage and her Children (1939) & The Caucasian Chalk






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






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






16. 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






17. 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






18. 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


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






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






21. 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






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






23. 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






24. Comic interludes performed during the intermissions of opera






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






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






27. Estrangement; essentially the alienation effect






28. Highlights the insanity of life in a comical way






29. Comedies forced Victorian society to reexamine its hypocrisies; Lady Windermere's Fan (1892) - A WOman of No Importance (1893) - An Ideal Husband (1894); advocated 'art for art's sake'; The Importance of Being Ernest






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






31. French philosopher often called the Father of the Romantic movement; argued that people could find happiness in a 'state of nature' and that they should learn from nature rather than the artificial and corrupted teachings of society






32. 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






33. 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






34. 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






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






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






37. '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






38. More serious plot and theme; West Side Story (1957)






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






40. Bandits discuss rival systems of goverment while waiting for an attack






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






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






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






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






45. Highlights the insanity of life in a comical way






46. 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






47. 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






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






49. Most famous of the absurdist playwrights; best considered a fatalist - although work is sometimes hilarious and can ask existential questions; Endgame (1957) Krapp's Last Tape (1958) and Happy Days (1961); Waiting for Godot (1953)






50. Spoken lines of dialogue as well as the plot