Theatre History II Test III

What nationality was the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen?

German

What did the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen do?

Ushered in modern realism

Who would be a fan of the Duke?

Dottie - Because of levels

What did the Duke think the levels for the stage were?

They broke up the stage

The Duke of Saxe-Meiningen was a...?

Scenic designer

Who said "I WAS ANNOYED THAT SHAKESPEARE WAS SO BADLY PLAYED ON THE GERMAN STAGE."?

The Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

Who is often referred to as the Father of Modern Drama?

Henrik Ibsen

What did Henrik's work often focus on?

The reality of the middle class

Henrik Ibsen was a...?

Playwright

Who ranks as "one of the truly great playwrights of theatre."

Henrik Ibsen

Who has an impact on theatre when it comes to Naturalism?

Charles Darwin

Who is the spokesman for the naturalism movement?

Emile Zola

Where is truth found in naturalism?

Observation, recording, and experimentation

What are the primary causal factors for life?

Hereditary & Environment (out of our control)

Emile Zola wrote what?

Naturalism in The Theatre (1881): Slice of Life

What does Theatre Libre mean?

Free Theatre

Was Theatre Libre free?

No, the "free" was the avoidance of censorship; it was very experimental.

What was one of the plays that Theatre Libre presented in 1888?

The Butcherers, which hung actual meat carcasses onstage

The Freie Bühne meant

Free Stage (also ties to getting around censorship)

Who is the head of Freie Bühne?

Otto Brahm was the head, but he was still not in control

George Bernard Shaw was...?

Novelist and Critic TURNED Playwright and Philosopher

What were some of the plays Shaw wrote?

Arms and the Man, Man and Superman, Mrs. Warren's Profession, Major Barbara, Pygmalion (MOST KNOWN), Androcles and the Lion, and Saint Joan

What does Shaw believe in?

Gradualism and perfection through supermen. Concept of life force.

What theatre was fully professional from day one?

The Moscow Art Theatre

Who founded the Moscow Art Theatre?

Constantin Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko

Much of Stanislavsky's and Danchenko's success with the Moscow Art Theatre came with collaboration with a famous playwright named?

Anton Chekov

Anton Chekov's first major success?

The Sea Gull

Was The Sea Gull a success?

At first, it was a flop, but it found success.

What is the logo of the Moscow Art Theatre?

The Sea Gull

Anton Chekov wrote other plays for the MAT, which are considered classics of the Modern Theatre; they are...

Uncle Vanya, The Three Sisters, and The Cherry Orchard

Constantin Stanislavsky was...?

An acting instructor

Stanislavsky, as attributed by Brockett

Requires Extensive body and vocal training
Knowledge of craft
Real life as a basis for the creation of all roles
Inner Justification for all actions (The Magic If) (Emotional Memory)

MAT dominant objective?

The Through Line

What did the MAT do to create motivations in actions, scenes, plays, and relationships between characters?

Study scripts

What did Stanislavsky say to be authentic in the character?

"Play well, or play badly, but play truly."

"Probably no other name - besides Shakespeare's - is heard so often in theatre." This was a quote by Lee Strasberg directed at whom?

Constantin Stanislavski

At this time, what is the theatre in Italy?

Still opera

Eleonora Duse was a...?

Actress

Who was counted as an all-time great actress?

Eleonora Duse

What is the main drive for American Theatre?

Money

What is "The Syndicate"

A company that controls the booking for performances in and out of New York. They are ruthless, only in it for success and money.

Who was Charles Frohman?

A Syndicate Member

What did Charles Frohman believe in terms of theatre?

Stars were needed to draw audiences, and public taste is infallible.

Charles Frohman developed stars. Who were they?

John Drew, Ethel Barrymore, Maude Adams, and Henry Miller.

Who was a former manager of Madison Square Garden?

David Belasco

Who adds everything modern he can to the theatre?

David Belasco

Who works on a single-play basis and never in a standing company?

David Belasco

The breakdown of the Syndicate is attributed to which set of brothers?

Shubert Brothers

Shubert Brothers created a company to

Create rival theatre on the road

Who created the Broadway district?

Shubert Brothers

By 1915, the competition in the theatre was rising. What were some of the attributes of this time?

Rising ticket prices, rise of movies, and spectator sports

What takes realism away from theatre in 1915?

Griffith's Birth of a Nation

In 1927...

Talkies turn the tide against the stage.

In 1929...

Depression starts a long, slow twilight and re-gearing for the theatre.

Modernism is usually thought to start with...?

Symbolists

Richard Wagner was a...?

Composer

Richard Wagner believed that drama should be...

"dipped in the magic fountain of music."

Characteristic of Festival House at Bayreuth...

No Box or Pit or Galleries
Stepped rows with no center aisle
Fanshaped for sightlines
One Price Ticketing
Orchestra pit hidden below the apron
Space for stage movements and effects

What is the "Mystic Chasm"

The hidden orchestra pit below the apron

What is the alternative to Realism and Naturalism?

Symbolism

The Theatre of Symbolism...?

Theatre D'art

Theatre D'art focused on...

Symbols, Legend, Myth, and Mood (Like Edgar Allen Poe)

What playwright is a master of mood and symbols?

Maurice Maeterlinck

Maurice Maeterlinck was...?

Playwright

Who is the forerunner of Absurdism?

Alfred Jerry

Play as the model of absurdism written by Alfred Jerry...?

Abu Roi

Adolphie Appia is a...?

Scenic Designer

Appia believed in three things to control in design...

the moving of the 3d actor, perpendicular scenery, horizontal floor

Appia discarded what?

Flats for 3d units to focus on light.

Appia sees the play as ____ and light as ____ to the ______.

play as VISUAL and light as PAINT to the CANVAS

Artistic unity is central, ONE VOICE and the final say of the?

Director

Who ditches the proscenium arch?

Appia

Edward Gordon Craig is the child of...?

Ellen Terry

Edward Gordon Craig is a...?

Scenic Design

Who includes right angles, height, and parallelism in his designs?

Gordon Craig

Do Appia and Craig believe the director is Numero Uno?

Yes

Who is the Hero of Eclecticism? Who sees a play as a problem to be solved, not a style to be applied?

Max Reinhardt

Who is Oscar Wilde...?

Playwright, most known for The Importance of Being Earnest

Oscar Wilde is also known for...?

Salome, Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of No Importance.

J.M. Barrie is the writer of...?

Peter Pan

Some trends in nonrealism...?

moving back to simple staging

Who had the most successful non-realistic approach to Shakespeare?

Granville Barker

Upheaval in politics leads to state control of theatre; they take total control when...?

1936

Biomechanics...?

Trained in gymnastics, circus movements, and ballet movements.

Stanislavsky in 1917 was affected by the Russian Revolution in what way?

Let go of all his wealth and focused on writing plays and directing, and remained the director of the MAT for the rest of his life

What theatre was less affected by WWI?

German Theatre

Who wanted theatre to be an agent of change...?

Bertolt Brecht (The New Epic Theatre)

Characteristics of the Epic Theatre...?

Theatre as pulpit rejects unity, rejects method acting.

Bertolt Brecht is a...?

Playwright

Major works of Brecht...?

Rise and Fall of the Town of Mahogony, The Three-Penny Opera, Mother Courage, Galileo, The Good Woman of Setzuan, and The Caucasian Chalk Circle.

Antonin Artaud is a ...?

Theorist

Who wrote "The Theatre and Its Double"

Atonin Artaud

Atonin Artaud was apart of what theatre?

The Theatre of Cruelty

The Theatre of Cruelty focuses on...?

What divides us, Hatred, Violence, and Disaster.

The Theatre of Cruelty believes...?

Theatre exists to provide emotional catharsis (purging) in new ways to engage an audience.

Two French playwrights who gave us wonderful works.

Jean Giraudoux and Jean Anouilh

Plays by Giraudoux...?

Amphitryon 38, Judith, Odine, and The Trojan War Shall Not Take Place

Plays by Anouilh...?

Carnival and Antigone

Best Playwright in Italy in the period of 1915-1940

Luigi Pirandello

Pirandello plays...?

Right You Are - If You Think You Are, Six Characters in Search of an Author, Henry IV, and As You Desire Me.