Theater Appreciation 1

Theater Definition

The combination of actors, space, and audience; theater = actors + space + audience.

Theater as Art

A performing art that is live, immediate, and ephemeral; artificial yet lifelike.

Shared Traits of Performance

Performers, something done, audience, performance space, and time.

Theater vs. Film

Theater is live and unfolds in real time, unlike film which can be paused or edited.

Performance in Everyday Life

Examples include job interviews, weddings, sports, and political speeches.

Theater as Performing Art

Uses live actors and a performance space to tell a story or present art.

Immediacy of Theater

Each performance is unique and fleeting; no two shows are exactly alike.

Why Theater

People go to be entertained, experience social events, and engage intellectually.

Proscenium Stage

Stage with a proscenium arch; audience faces one side like a picture frame.

Thrust Stage

Stage surrounded on three sides by the audience; actors enter from aisles or vomitories.

Arena Stage

Theater-in-the-round; stage surrounded on all sides by the audience.

Blackbox Theater

Flexible, minimalist space painted black; audience can be arranged in any layout.

Environmental Stage

Performed in real-world spaces; audience may move with actors through locations.

Alley Stage

Audience on opposite sides of the stage; actors perform between them.

Booth Stage

Temporary setup with a curtain backdrop; often used in educational tours.

Broadway

Professional theater in NYC with 500+ seats; eligible for Tony Awards.

Broadway Cost

Average ticket $189; can reach $700 or more for premium shows.

Off-Broadway

Theaters with 100–499 seats; showcase new talent and smaller productions.

Off-Off Broadway

99 seats or fewer; experimental or non-commercial productions.

Regional Theater

Non-profit theaters outside NYC that produce new and classic plays.

Educational Theater

College and university productions used for actor training.

Community Theater

Local productions using volunteers, introducing new audiences to live theater.

Children’s Theater

Plays designed for young audiences, often teaching social lessons.

Playwright Definition

Creates dialogue and story structure that express ideas and drive plot.

Sources of Ideas

Playwrights draw from real life, current events, and overheard conversations.

Book Writer

Writes dialogue for musicals; works alongside lyricists and composers.

Playwright Backgrounds

May come from theater or outside industries, offering diverse perspectives.

Lynn Nottage

Playwright of 'Ruined' and 'Sweat'; Pulitzer Prize winner for drama.

Margaret Edson

Wrote the Pulitzer-winning play 'Wit'; never wrote another play.

Edward Albee

Wrote 'Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'; major American playwright.

August Wilson

Wrote the 'Pittsburgh Cycle' of ten plays about African-American life.

Playwright Training

Some universities offer playwriting programs, but many learn independently.

Playwrights as Screenwriters

Often write for TV and film; similar storytelling structure.

Getting Produced

Playwrights may have workshops or readings before full productions.

Play in Rehearsal

Scripts may change through collaboration with directors and actors.

Playwright Pay

Earn royalties for productions; copyright lasts author’s life plus 50 years.

Good Playwriting

Should entertain and also provide insight into human life or society.

William Shakespeare

English playwright and poet; wrote 38 plays and 154 sonnets.

The Actor’s Role

Without actors, there is no theater; they bring written words to life.

Acting vs Performing

Actors portray characters; performers entertain, sometimes without acting.

The Paradox of Acting

Actors are both themselves and the characters they portray.

Inspirational Acting

Draws from personal emotions and experiences to connect to a character.

Actor Training

Includes script analysis, body and voice work, and imagination exercises.

The Actor’s Body

Requires stamina, responsiveness, and adaptability.

Neutral Mask Work

Trains actors to express emotions through body rather than face.

Body Language

Communicating ideas and emotions through movement and gestures.

The Actor’s Voice

Controlled through breathing, projection, articulation, and dialect work.

Imagination Training

Encourages creativity and emotional openness in performance.

Group Theatre

1931 collective that shaped the American acting method based on Stanislavski.

Stanislavski System

Focuses on motivation, objectives, and 'given circumstances' of characters.

Method Acting

Developed by Lee Strasberg; uses emotional memory for realism.

Meisner Technique

Created by Sanford Meisner; emphasizes reacting truthfully in the moment.

Before the Play

Arrive early, dress appropriately, and turn off your phone.

Playbill

Contains information on cast, crew, and director’s notes.

Taking It In

Notice lighting, sound, costumes, and acting style.

Given Circumstances

The world of the play: past events, time, place, and social context.

Polar Attitudes

Conflicting beliefs between character and society create drama.

Theater Conventions

Agreements between audience and artists (e.g., time passes between acts).