Theatre Exam 2 – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
group dynamics
answer
the functioning of humans when they come together into groups
question
paper the house
answer
to give away a lot of free tickets to the families and friends of cast members to make it appear as thought the performance is well attended
question
willing suspension of disbelief
answer
we admit that what is happening is not real and so we don't need to rush up and save the actor who is being attacked or call the police to stop the actor playing the criminal
question
aesthetic distance
answer
the ability's to remove themselves from a work of art just far enough so that they can contemplate it, or even judge it
question
presentational theatre
answer
makes no attempt to offer a realistic illusion onstage, and the actors openly acknowledge the audience and sometimes even invite members to participate
question
representational theatre
answer
actors never acknowledge the audience and go about their business as if there were no audience present
question
realism
answer
a style of theatre that attempts to portray life as accurately as possible
question
fourth wall
answer
an imaginary wall between the actors and audience
question
etiquette
answer
includes the conventions of behavior prescribed for a particular occasion
question
Audience Etiquette
answer
1)turn off phones and beepers 2)don't text or tweet during the play 3)do not talk 4)try not to cough 5)don't be late 6)don't eat 7)be courteous 8)go light on perfume and cologne 9)don't leave until intermission or the end 10)no photos or recording devices allowed
question
"Will Call"
answer
window for picking up tickets that have already been paid for
question
curtain
answer
start of the show
question
preview performances
answer
tickets half price; offer another way to save money--performances open to the public before the play officially opens and are common in the professional theatre but rare in college, community, and amateur theatre
question
director's note/playwright's note
answer
explains what he or she intended to accomplish with the play
question
souvenir programs
answer
programs that have more pictures and information about the cast and production
question
talk-back
answer
post-performance discussion where you get a chance to meet, and perhaps ask questions of, the director, actors, and sometimes the playwright
question
reviews
answer
also known as notices--evaluations of a production, often published in newspapers or magazines
question
dramatic criticism
answer
aka literary criticism--offers the reader a discriminating, often scholarly interpretation and analysis of a play, and artist's body of work, or a period of theatre history
question
plot
answer
unified arrangement of the incidents in which characters, meaning, language, and visual elements come together to comment on a single subject
question
character
answer
the personalities of the story
question
thought
answer
what the play means, the ideas it's trying to communicate, and its themes and message
question
diction
answer
"modes of utterance"--dialogue used to create the thought, character, and plot--playwright's mode of expression
question
spectacle
answer
the performance's set, costumes, and effects--the sensory aspects of the production
question
censorship
answer
altering, restricting, or suppressing of information, images, or words circulated within a society--can take the form of banning or altering books, periodicals, films, television and radio programs, and any other expression of thought that someone finds objectionable or offensive
question
Licensing Act
answer
1737; passed in England; law placed the censoring of plays under the authority of the Lord Chamberlain, one of the officials of the royal court
question
bowdlerize
answer
to remove any possibly vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable material before publication
question
ensemble
answer
dozens of artists and technicians, including playwrights, actors, directors, and designers, as well as painters, carpenters, drapers, stagehands, and electricians, who join together to make it appear as if a performance were the product of a single creative mind
question
repertory
answer
a group of plays performed by a theatre company during the course of a season
question
ghost light
answer
the stage is lit with a single bare lightbulb mounted on a portable pole
question
costume shop
answer
rows of sewing machines, fabric-cutting tables, fitting rooms, and laundry facilities
question
literary manager
answer
liaison between playwrights, agents, and the theatre--reads and evaluates new scripts for the next season
question
producer/producing director
answer
someone who financially backs the theatre or orchestrates funding through grant money and ticket sales
question
artistic director
answer
person who is in charge of the overall creative vision or goal of the ensemble--chooses which plays to produce, who directs them, and who designs them--in charge of an entire season of plays
question
stage manager
answer
runs the show during the performance, helps the director throughout rehearsals, and doing other tasks
question
flat
answer
standard scenery unit made of wooden frames covered with canvas, muslin, or thin plywood
question
technical director
answer
supervises the construction crews
question
prompt book
answer
book in which every aspect of the production is recorded
question
rehearsal report
answer
stage manager stays after to write this up, reports lets the entire ensemble know how rehearsal went and informs designers about an concerns or ideas that came up
question
assistant stage manager
answer
conducts the technical rehearsals, authorizes understudies, calls for brush-ups, and gives friendly reminders to everyone
question
performance report
answer
gives notes to actors and crew about any problems that occurred and what needs to be fixed by the next performance
question
draper
answer
persons job to study the costume designer's drawings and renderings and then find a way to cut fabric into patterns that realize the design
question
stitchers
answer
people who sew the fabric patterns together creating the full costumes
question
rehearsal costumes
answer
costumes that are temporarily used during rehearsal so that the actors get a feel for the actual costumes long before they are ready
question
prop master
answer
people who work on props for the next production
question
prop
answer
is theatre lingo for "properties" and includes hand props or any objects actors handle while on stage (pens, fans, cigars, etc)
question
rehearsal props
answer
props to be used during rehearsals to represent the real property that the actors will not be able to use until the last week of rehearsals
question
musical director
answer
supervises all aspects of a musical and conducts the orchestra during performances
question
choreographer
answer
creates new dance numbers and is teaching the steps to the dancers
question
movement coach
answer
shows the actors how people moved drink the Restoration--a time when graceful mannerisms were the norm
question
fight director
answer
forced to hold his rehearsal in a hallway--experts at staging safe, realistic, make-bleieve fights
question
vocal coach
answer
helps the actors with speech clarity, volume, and preservation of their voices for the long run of a show
question
sound designer
answer
works with various effects recordings as she synthesizes the sounds, so that everything from the pre-show music to the sound of a doorbell is exactly right
question
set designer
answer
CAD program to design a set for a production what will not be needed for several months
question
dramaturg
answer
literary advisor and expert in theatre history who helps the director understand specifics about a plays performance history, the historical period in which the play is set, as well as the play's style and verse...or....they serve as a literary manager, whereas in others they assist the play's development by setting yup workshop productions and stages reading to help the play find its final form
question
production meeting
answer
meeting where all aspects of the production are discussed and evaluated
question
mission statement
answer
declares in a clear and conches terms the theatre's purpose and keep objectives
question
publicity department
answer
works on promoting the next play
question
concept meeting
answer
artistic gathering held long before the play is cast or the sets and costumes designed---people brainstorm, research, and experiment with different ideas
question
stage door
answer
door located behind the theatre, the actors arrive for the evening performance here, has a little lobby where there is a notice board
question
call
answer
time actors arrive at the theatre
question
curtain
answer
time play starts
question
prop table
answer
table where each prop is laid out clearly and labeled
question
sound board operator
answer
person who runs various sound cues and making sure all the speakers, mixer, amplifier, backstage monitor, and intercom are working
question
house
answer
place where the audience sits
question
prop check
answer
ensures all props are where they need to be
question
house manager
answer
person in charge of all the ushers; his job to deal with seating issues, help audience find their seats, and the play begins on time
question
greenroom
answer
place where actors wait before their entrances
question
running crew
answer
anyone helping out backstage
question
stagehands
answer
people who shift scenery and generally set up the play for the next scene
question
dressers
answer
help actors make quick costume changes
question
riggers
answer
aka flymen, mount and operate all curtains, sets, and anything else that must move via the fly system about the stage
question
legs
answer
curtains that are used on the sides
question
teasers
answer
curtains that frame the top of the stage
question
scrims
answer
open-mesh gauze curtains used to make the stage appear opaque
question
cyclorama
answer
large, stretched, curtain suspended from a U-shaped rod; makes a background that curves around the back of the stage to suggest unlimited space
question
wright
answer
derives from the Middle Ages--"one who builds"---base word for playwright
question
closed-shop union
answer
aka a union shop---a union to which all employees must belong and which the employer formally recognizes as their sole collective bargaining agent--employees can call a strike if their demands go unmet
question
Writers Guild of America (WGA)
answer
closed-shop union for television and screenwriters--these people are allowed to form a union because they sell their copyright, giving up control over their piece of work
question
open-shop union
answer
membership is optional; because playwrights retain the copyright of their piece of work, they are not considered writers for hire, rather management, which means they aren't allowed to form a closed-shop union
question
Dramatists Guild of America (DGA)
answer
playwrights' union---can champion for the rights of the playwrights, but can do little to demand higher pay
question
subsidiary rights
answer
the playwright must pay the theatre a percentage (usually 10%) of any royalties that the play earns for the next ten years--playwrights must give up their royalties then
question
dialogue
answer
the spoken text of the play, the words the characters say
question
parentheticals
answer
short descriptions such as (lovingly), (angry), or (terrified)---these words describe to actors how to express their lines
question
stage directions
answer
notes that indicate the physical movement of the characters
question
theme
answer
playwrights often search for meaning int he world and attempt to understand human nature by making a statement about life, a central idea, or a moral
question
actions
answer
the characters' deeds, their responses to circumstances, which in turn affect the course of the story--what the actors DO with what happens
question
Three elements of conflict
answer
Desire, Obstacle, Reason why compromise is not an option
question
subtext
answer
the hidden meaning behind the words, the real reason a character chooses to speak--what the character consciously or subconsciously means
question
Art of Language
answer
Subtext, Listening, Imagery, Rhythm, Tempo, Sound
question
imagery
answer
using poetic language to allow the audience to see what the theatre can't afford to provide
question
plot-structure
answer
the playwright's selection of events to create a logical sequence and as a result to distill meaning from the chaos of life
question
genre
answer
category of artistic work that has particular form, style, or subject matter
question
formula plot
answer
a plot that follows a blueprint--
question
exposition
answer
aka back story--lets the audience in on what happened to the characters before the play began and what happens between the scenes and offstage
question
protagonist
answer
the central character who pushes forward the action of the play--audience must identify, care for, an root for them
question
antagonist
answer
"opposer of action" the adversary who stands in the way of the protagonist's goals
question
event
answer
unusual incident, a special occasion, or a crisis in the character's lives--draws the audience into the play
question
disturbance
answer
inciting incident that upsets the balance and gets the action rolling by creating an opportunity for conflict between protagonists and antagonists
question
major dramatic question (MDQ)
answer
disturbance and point of attack cause this--the hook that keeps people in the theatre for two hours because they want to know the answers
question
rising action
answer
each conflict, crisis, and complication is more dramatic and more serious than the ones before--middle of the play follows the path of most resistance
question
conflict
answer
the struggle between opposing forces in the play
question
crises
answer
events that make it necessary for the characters to take action
question
complications
answer
roadblocks that stand in the way of success
question
dark moment
answer
when the protagonist fails for internal or external reasons, the quest collapses, the goal seems unattainable
question
enlightenment
answer
occurs when the protagonist come to understand who to defeat the antagonist
question
climax
answer
the point of the greatest dramatic tension in the play; the moment when the antagonist is defeated
question
denouncement
answer
the final outcome of the play, a short final scene that allows the audience to appreciate that the protagonist, because of the preceding events, has learned some great or humble lessons
