EXAM 1 THEATRE APPRECIATION

fine arts

Art forms created primarily for aesthetic, intellectual, or emotional appreciation rather than practical utility (e.g., theatre, music, painting, sculpture, dance).

aesthetic distance

he psychological boundary between audience and performance that allows objective contemplation of the art without mistaking it for reality. (The mental distance that keeps you aware you are watching a show. It lets you feel for the characters without calling 911 when someone gets shot on stage)

Willing suspension of disbelief

The conscious decision to temporarily set aside disbelief and accept the fictional world of a performance, allowing for emotional engagement with the story and characters.

“A performs B for C”

Eric Bentley’s core formula defining theatre: an actor (A) performs a story or script (B) to an audience (C)

Documentary Theatre

A play built using real-world evidence like court transcripts, news stories, or interview tapes to tell a true story.

Passion Play / Hell House

• Passion Play: A traditional play that acts out the last days, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

• Hell House: A Halloween-style haunted house run by religious groups that uses scary scenes to show what they consider sins and their consequences.

Agitprop Theatre

Short for "agitation-propaganda." It is political theatre designed to make the audience angry or passionate enough to take immediate political action.

Drama Therapy

• Using acting, role-playing, and theater games as a psychological tool to help people heal from trauma or work through personal problems.

Engaged Theatre

Plays specifically made to tackle community issues, highlight social causes, and get the audience talking about real-world problems.

Influence of #MeToo and BLM Movements:

These social movements pushed theatre to hire intimacy coordinators for safety, cast more diverse actors, tell more diverse stories, and fix unfair power dynamics behind the scenes.

role of the producer

the “money and business” person who buys the script rights, raises funds, hires the top team, and pays the bills

Actors' Equity Association (AEA)

The labor union for professional stage actors and stage managers that makes sure they get fair pay, breaks, and safe working conditions.

Casting Director

The person who sets up auditions and finds the best actors to fit each role in the play.

Stage Manager

The ultimate manager who runs rehearsals, keeps everyone organized, and pushes the buttons to call all light and sound cues during the actual show.

Upstage / Downstage:

• Downstage: The front of the stage closest to the audience.

• Upstage: The back of the stage farthest from the audience (named after old tilted stages).

Dress Rehearsal:

The last practice run right before opening night where actors wear full costumes and makeup, using all the real lights, props, and sound effects.

Given Circumstances

The specific environmental, historical, and situational facts provided by the script (where, when, and who the character is).

Objectives:

What a character wants to achieve in a scene or throughout the play.

Rhetorical Tradition:

A historical approach to acting based on formal public speaking, standardized vocal delivery, and set gestures.

Declamatory Style:

An older style of acting characterized by grand gestures, exaggerated emotion, and unnatural, speech-like delivery directed at the audience.

History of Actor Training

The evolution of acting methods from classical physical/vocal imitation toward modern psychological realism.

Francois Delsarte

A 19th-century French teacher who created a rigid system linking specific physical poses and gestures to exact emotional states.

Constantin Stanislavski:

A Russian director and actor who developed the foundational system for modern realistic acting focused on internal emotion and logical behavior.

Moscow Art Theatre

The theatre company co-founded by Stanislavski that popularized realistic acting and modern stage direction.

Anton Chekhov:

A Russian playwright whose realistic, subtext-heavy plays (The Seagull, The Cherry Orchard) helped Stanislavski test and refine his system.

Creative State of Mind:

• Stanislavski's term for the relaxed, focused mental state an actor needs to act naturally on stage.

Affective Memory:

A technique where actors recall real personal memories to trigger real emotions on stage.

Method of Physical Actions:

Stanislavski's later approach where performing physical tasks on stage naturally triggers genuine emotions.

"The Magic If":

• The actor's tool of asking "What would I do if I were in this character's situation?" to make actions believable.

"Method Acting":

• A modern American adaptation of Stanislavski's work (popularized by Lee Strasberg) that heavily emphasizes personal psychological recall and deep personal identification with the character.

Breakdown

A detailed list of all roles in a script sent to agents, outlining each character's age, gender, ethnicity, traits, and physical description.

Typecasting:

Casting an actor based on their physical appearance, personality traits, or previous roles that fit a specific stereotypical archetype.

Ingenue:

A specific typecast role referring to a young, innocent, and uncorrupted female character.

Non-Traditional Casting:

Casting actors in roles without regard to traditional expectations like gender, race, age, or physical ability.

Color-Blind Casting:

Casting actors strictly by talent and fit, without considering race or ethnicity for the role.

Color-Conscious Casting:

Intentionally considering an actor’s race and ethnicity to add cultural context, depth, or specific meaning to the character and play.

Headshots:

Professional 8x10 photos of an actor's face used by casting directors alongside a résumé to evaluate candidates.

Role of Director:

The creative lead responsible for interpreting the script, setting the artistic vision, guiding actors, and coordinating designers.

Protagonist / Antagonist:

• Protagonist: The main character driving the action of the play.

• Antagonist: The force or character opposing the protagonist's goals.

Point of Attack:

The exact moment in the overall story where the playwright chooses to begin the action of the play.

• Director’s Concept

• The central unifying idea, visual style, or approach the director uses to guide the entire production

Open / Closed Text:

• Open Text: A script open to broad interpretation, allowing directors to alter settings, timelines, or meanings.

• Closed Text: A rigid script with explicit instructions that must be followed closely as written.

Blocking vs. Organic Blocking:

• Blocking: Pre-planned actor movement and positioning set by the director.

• Organic Blocking: Actor movement that develops naturally during rehearsals based on emotional instincts.

Business:

Small, physical actions performed by an actor on stage (e.g., pouring tea, lighting a pipe, folding laundry).

Stage Picture:

The visual arrangement of actors and scenery on stage at any given moment to tell a story or show relationships.

Concept of “Yes, And”

: The foundational rule of improvisation where an actor accepts whatever premise their partner presents ("yes") and immediately adds new information to build the scene ("and").