| Term | Definition |
|---|
| dues ex machine | "god in the machine" giant crane used to fly in the actors playing gods |
| skene | small building near the stage used by actors for dressing or relaxing/scenery |
| thespian | an actor (named after Thespis) |
| peking opera | chinese drama that features chanting, singing, and music |
| kabuki | melodramatic, sensational Japanese drama with song and dance, intended for common man |
| noh | japanese dramatic tragedy in classical style performed with poetry, dance, and music |
| greenroom | room where actors can relax when they are not on stage |
| cycles | series of short plays based on religious history, often performed on pageant wagons in Medieval times |
| passion play | drama based on episodes of Christ's life |
| comedia dell'arte | improvised comedy with stock characters, which began in Renaissance Italy |
| Groundlings | audience members who stood in the pit around the Elizabethan stage |
| soliloquies | types of monologues that reveal the character's inner thoughts |
| Wooden O's | elizabethan theatres which were usually round or octagonal |
| the restoration | era that began with the restoration of the British monarchy in 1660 under Charles II |
| realism | type of literature that depicts life objectively and accurately |
| romanticism | literary movement of the late 18th centuries that emphasized imagination and emotions |
| vaudeville | variety shows featuring singers, acrobats, comedians, animal acts, and other types of entertainment |
| absurdism | a belief that life is meaningless and that searching for order only brings conflict |
| epic theatre | drama that asks the audience to think seriously about a political or social issue and in which theatricality overrides realism |
| regional theatres | theaters in major American cities other than NY |
| Aeschylus | father of tragedy, greatest tragic poet of all time, invented the trilogy, won first prize 13 times |
| Sophocles | second great writer of tragedies, many talents, wrote Oedipus Rex and Antigone |
| Plautus | comic writer, served as a pattern for other writers such as Shakespeare and Moliere |
| Christopher Marlowe | considered the second greatest dramatist of tragedy in England, wrote Dr. Faustus |
| Ben Jonson | classic writer, wrote Everyman in his Humour |
| William Shakespeare | greatest of all dramatists, 38 plays, comedies, histories, fantasies, hamlet, etc. |
| Oscar Wilde | wrote witty farces, such as Importance of Being Earnest |
| Tennessee Williams | Southern characters who are neurotic and desperate; Streetcar, Glass Menagerie |
| Arthur Miller | dilemma of American families and the tragedy of common citizens, Death of a Salesman and The Crucible |
| Neil Simon | one of the world's most popular and prolific writers of comedy, family realism and serious themes with wisecracks and barbed wit |
Combine with other sets
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace