characterisation, theatre, and narrative choices Flashcards
define ‘stylised theatre’:
THEATRE STYLE
plays with one specific artistic focus. (e.g. manga, Marvel).
define naturalism/non-naturalism (a.k.a. abstract theatre):
THEATRE STYLE
- naturalism if often associated with Stanislavski and method acting approaches.
- non-naturalism is more experimental.
define ‘platform theatre’:
THEATRE STYLE
physical theatre confined to very small acting spaces.
define ‘melodrama’:
THEATRE STYLE
Victorian drama, full of exaggerated characters and action to entertain audiences in the days before TV.
define:
- pantomime
- commedia dell’arte
- black comedy
- and slapstick
THEATRE STYLE
- stylised, comedic version of melodrama.
- originally 16th century Italian street theatre, with elements of satire and slapstick.
- dark humour, mocking things we normally take seriously.
- scenes/moments of clownish visual/physical comedy.
define ‘satire/parody’:
THEATRE STYLE
- satires mock a person, system, genre, etc., in order to criticise it.
- parodies do exactly the same, but by direct impersonation of that person, system or genre.
define:
- ‘theatre of the absurd’
- ‘whodunnits’
- and ‘kitchen sink dramas’
THEATRE STYLE
- monty python style comedy. reaction to madness of the world wars, some playwrights felt this proved God doesn;t exist and that we should just embrace life’s chaos.
- can the audience solve the crimes before the detective character(s)?
- British version of the Brazilian style ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’, shows the tough realities of lives for the working class people. aims to bring social change.
define:
- ‘theatre in education’
- and ‘morality plays’
THEATRE STYLE
- education pieces of drama which tour schools, to help young people to learn about a particular topic or social issue.
- originally a Medieval, Christian way of teaching moral lessons - e.g. An Inspector Calls.
what is the difference between a motivation and a super-objective?
- and what is an ‘arc’?
CHARACTERISATION
- motivation: short term goals that a character wishes to achieve over the course of one or two scenes.
- super-objective: a main overall aim which drives a character in a play.
- arc: the ‘journey’ a character goes on from start to end of the play.
what are dynamic characters?
CHARACTERISATION
aren’t always main characters, but they trigger key events in a play.
describe ‘genre stock characters’ (A.K.A. archetypes):
CHARACTERISATION
we can either use or subvert these stereotypes.
- examples from melodrama/pantomime: hero, heroine, villain, damsel in distress, dame.
- other examples: anti-hero, ‘fool’, underdog, sidekick, ‘foil’, femme fatale.
define ‘exposition’:
how to tell, or show-not-tell the audience given circumstances, instead of telling them outright.
define ‘denouement’:
the moment when the narrative starts to resolve itself, for better or for worse.
define ‘pre-show/post-show action’:
anything the audience experiences before or after the performance, which directly links to the play.
define a ‘prologue/epilogue’:
a separate introductory/concluding speech or piece of action.
what is a ‘framing device’, and what is a sub-plot?
a secondary story, within which your central story is placed.
- sub-plot: a 2nd story which runs beside (and enhances?) the main one.
define ‘circular narrative’:
a story in which the first and last scene are identical … or nearly.
how could you show a ‘dual/multiple perspective(s)’?
- show one after the other?
- use split stage/cross cut?
what is an analogy?
telling a story through metaphorical scenes.
define a ‘(leit) motif’:
a moment / (tune) / prop, etc. which keeps cropping up throughout a play.
what is a ‘real time or episodic’ narrative?
dramas tend to use a real time pace more than comedies do. some plays have 100% ‘real time’ action. real-time action can bore us or intensify a story’s tension/suspense.
what is a ‘jump-cut’?
a time-shift in which the transition takes us to a different time, but with the characters in the same positions.
what are ‘short cuts to meaning’?
incredibly useful. showing a quick symbolic action which represents a much longer event.
