DR 208 - Theatre History

Efficacy

• (associated with Ritual; [vs. Entertainment associated with theatre])

• “capable of fulfilling a function”; power of capacity to produce a desired/intended result; the power to effect the object intended

• “Ritual action produces the desired result (not just symbolic or expressive)”

Shamanism

• a spiritual practice that centres around the shaman

• —> that includes those who serve as guardians of the threshold between this world and the shadow-world —> through mastery they communicate with and make the shadow-world present to the ritual community

Ritual Theatre

• a type of theatre

• —> draws words/gestures from the myths of the participant community; aims to perpetuate the beneficial effects of a past event be re-enacting it in the present

• —> use of theatrical means to embody and perform sacred texts

• —> seek to realign the present with a symbolic past

• —> can go between the bounds of whether or not the audience is a participant and/or can critique

• ex: Abydos “Passion Play”

Abydos “Passion Play”

• an example of ritual theatre

• one of the 1st examples of a “Passion Play” with almost a 2000yr run

• —> (Passion play format): a god suffers, dies, and is reborn for the good of mankind

• commemorate the burial of Osiris and transformation into master of afterlife

X other name for: Korean Shaman

Mudang

X What ritual did Shaman/Mudang perform

gut; praying to gods on behalf of humans (1. for individual 2. for village)

Ritual

• definition

socio-religious ceremony —> prescribed sequence of actions/words (in established order)

X the 6 characteristics of ritual

• formalism

• traditionalism

• invariance

• rule-governance

• sacral symbolism

• performance

X Formalism

• what is is (category)

• definittion

one of 6 characteristics of ritual

• rituals often employ for formal codes of speech than in everyday life

X traditionalism

• what is is (category)

• definittion

one of the six characteristics of ritual

• rituals oftem employ arcahic/anachronistic elements

X invariance

• what is is (category)

• definition

one of the six characteristics of ritual

• rituals often follow strict/repetitive patterns

X rule-governance

• what is is (category)

• definition

one of the characteristics of ritual

• rituals are often governance by strict rules which determine behavior

X sacred symbolism

• what is igt (category)

• definition

one of the six characteristics of ritual

• ritual soften reference/employ symbols that are sacred to the community

X performance

• what is it (category)

• definition

one of the six characteristics of ritual

• rituals often include public display of religious actions

X orchestra

• “the dancing place”

• at the centre of the theatron

X Dithyramb

choral dirge, hymn (passionate, ecstatic) dedicated to Dionysus (________us)

Tragedy

a type of theatre that emerged:

• old-stories are reexamined in present use

• —> written as re-reading if existing texts

• had 3 main writers (Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides)

Aeschylus

• one of the 1/3 tragedy playwrights

• (other 2: Sophocles, Euripides)

• introduced the idea of the 2nd character; “now we can debate” (1st: Thespis, 3rd: Sophocles)

• —> “Tragedy of conflict and debate”

Sophocles

• one of the 1/3 tragedy playwrights

• (other 2: Aeschylus, Euripides)

• introduced the 3rd character; shift: conflict/debate —> social conflict (1st: Thespis, 2nd: Aeschylus)

• —> “Tragedy of Social conflict”

Euripides

• one of the 1/3 tragedy playwrights

• (other 2: Sophocles, Aeschylus)

XEthos

the character or disposition of a character that is revealed in action. _____ is a moral and ethical condition

XPathos

• “suffering, feeling, emotion, calamity” literally “what befalls one”. the quality in something expeirienced/observed that arouses feelings of pity

Theatron

• “the place of seeing”

• (think: the ¾ pie-like diagram. incl. skene, etc.)

Xaltar

• place in the centre of the orchestra (in a theatron)

proskenion

• the little “stage” at the most upstage part of a theatron

• right infront of the skene

skene

• the ‘building’ (that acts as hidden storage and doubles as a set) in the most upstage part of a theatron

ekkyklema

• “rolling platform”

• the theatrical device that shows the after math of violence in Greek Theatre

Dues ex Machina

• “god from the machine”

• theatrical device in Greek theatre that could raise/lower actor acting as a “god”

Thespis

• poet/performer

• transformed the classic dithyramb by stepping out from within the chorus (impersonate central character)

• introduced the 1st character (2nd: Aeschylus, 3rd: Sophocles)

• —> “Tradegy of Shared humanity”

Agon

• verbal contest of dispute; “contest for the prize at the games”; central scene

• (has 3 related terms —> the three typoes of characters)

XProtagonist

• “actor who plays the first part; leader”

• chief character in a dramatic work

XAntagonist

• “opponent, competitor, rival” from “anti” (against)

• the conflicting figure; actively opposes

Xdeuteragonist

• “second” + “combatant, actor”

• one who plays the second part in a drama

XChorus

• part (people) of the fictional world of the play and the story enacted in it

• —> they make action of the play public

• consisted of 12 people (later —> 15)

Messenger

• one that “does the work”; reports suffering, provides sensitivity and passion

catharsis

• “purging/purifying the harmful effects of pity/fear” through witnessing theatrics. (witness horror in the safety of the theatron)

• —> as told from aristotle’s poetics

Aristotle

• end of his life, wrote the first philosophical treatise on dramatic art (the poetics)

• assos. terms: mimesis, peripeteia, anagnorisis, pathos

mimesis

• term assos./from aristotle

• “representation or imitation of nature; representation of an action”

Xperipeteia

• term assos./from aristotle

• “reversal”

Xanagnorisis

• term assos./from Aristotle

• “recognition”

Aristophanes

• (greek) comic writer

• only playwright we have for old comedy

• his comedies focus on lowborn hero who is fed up with society a develops an unorthodox scheme to change situation

dialectical

• term to desribe a play —> you debate discuss meaning, interpretive

didatic

• term to describes plays —> this IS the meaning, less interpretive

Menander

• “father of new comedy”

• wrote domestic comedies based on stock characters + familiar plots

• only have one play “the grouch” (with fragments of others)

teological plot

• plot with an emphasis on endings that resolve complications

• —> (after discovery —> hero becomes wealthy or heroin respectable) moving towards satisfying logical solution

parabasis

• a moment in which the chorus speaks directly to the audience (often through the voice of the playwright)

Old Comedy

• assos. person

• type of Greek comedy

• Aristophanes is the only comic writer we have

• —> they focus on lowborn hero who is fed up with society

New Comedy

• assos. person

• type of Greek comedy

• Menander is the “father of new comedy”

• they generally end with order

• —> masked —> variety of characters

• —> focus on consequences of excessive behavior

Fabulla Palliata

• meaning “stories in Greek costume'“

• Plautus’ plays/comedies were in this style

• they’re set in Greece but roman in value (comments on roman value/attitude by placing in a foreign environment)

XFabulla Atellana

improvised rustic faces from the town of Atella; featuring central core of masked stock characters

Plautus

• playwright for “The brother’s Menachmus”

• adapted Hellenic new comedy for roman audiences (makes a hybrid which leans more roman) —> more physical/verbal, more songs, violates dramatic illusion, relied on clever servant character

XLudi Scaenici

• Meaning “games” “of the stage”; festivals that include theatrical performance

XLudi Romani

• oldest roman festival

• (ancient rome; 240BCE-100CE)

X Theatrum Pompeium

• (no longer temporary roman stage in the roman forum) model for theatres throughout Rome

• —> it’s a part of a larger complex (gardens, temple, sacred ares, etc.)

• built by Pompey the great

X Scanae Frons

• term within Theatrum Pompeium

• backdrop for performance; dressing place for actors

X Pulpitum

• term within the Theatrum Pompeium

• raised platform (right Infront of Scaenae Frons, in between that and the orchestra)

X Tribunalia

• term within the Theatrum Pompeium

• Place in the audience that is, design wise, somewhat serpeated from the rest; important dignitaries sat themselves here (closer to the stage, easily viewed from all of audience)

X Tragic Pantomine VS. Roman Mime

• 1. elite culture (early years in the roman empire) w/ M + F performers

• 2. enormously popular, similar to today’s “street performers”

X Damnatio

• “Spectacle of Death”

Natya

• “he dances” “Sacred Performance” (dance/music/performance)

• classical Sanskrit performance; combines many aspects (music, dance, impressions, etc.),

• —> takes stories from holy epics

• _____ is created by the god Bhrama (god of creation) as celebration/pleasure

Natyashastra

• “dance/music/performance” and “authoritative guide” (in theory and practice)

• a text (attributed to the sage: Bharatamuni —> may not have been real) with 36 detailed chapters on all different aspects of theatre; an all-purpose guide to theatre

• probably took present form in the 8th/9th century CE

Bharata muni

• a sage (writer) who may not have actually been real

• —> attributed to the text Natyashastra

• (sort of equivalent to Plato and Aristotle)

Rasa

• “juice” “taste” “flavour” “essence”

• Moods that a play evokes; end goal that happens to the audience; state of heightened awareness evoked by a work of art

• —> there is 8 of these (9th was added)

• —> they are evoked by draw3ing on the 8 human emotions (Bhavas)

• (in the chain of effects this would be the 2nd one [after production elements & before state in audience]; the state in actor)

Bhavas

• [human] “emotions”

• —> there is 8 of them

• —> combine the right ____ and you evoke the appropriate Rasa

• (in the chain of effects this would be the last one [after production elements & state in actor]; the state in audience)

Kalidasa

• the (poet/)playwright of the Sanskrit drama “The recognition of Shakuntala”