Exam 2 Flashcards
What 3 countries became major influences for eastern theatres?
India, China, Japan
Indian Sanskrit is a combination of which two religions?
Hinduism and Buddhism
Sanskrit combined which three theatre elements to tell a story?
Acting, singing, and dancing
Sanskrit included which two types of works?
Comedic and Dramatic
True or False: Sanskrit only included male companies.
False, it has all male, all female, and mixed gender companies
How were Sanskrit dramas typically performed, referring to the actors?
They were performed by troupes led by one actor
What is a Sudtradhara?
Served as the chief actor and troupe manager.
What was necessary for an actor to have skill wise for Sanskrit theatre?
The actor needed skills that combined voice, body, emotions, costumes, and makeup.
What is the Natyasastra or The Art (Study) of Theatre?
A treatise written to describe the mythological origins of Indian theatre, including important material about Indian drama. It also served as an encyclopedia of theatre practice.
What does the term “rasa” mean in the Natyasastra?
Flavor is explained as permission for spectators to surrender themselves to a dramatic situation that relates to powerful emotions within themselves, similar to the western concept of the “willing suspension of disbelief”, but connected to the metaphysical nature of Indian religions.
What are some of the topics covered in the Natyasastra?
gesture and posture, music, dance, voice, types of characters, categories of plays. and Indian theatre space.
What are the dimensions of a typical Sanskrit theater?
96 feet long and 48 feet wide. Divided equally into stage and auditorium.
What did the four pillars represent in Sanskrit theaters?
Each pillar one being white, yellow, red, and blue would indicate where audience members would sit based on their social class.
What was the role of the curtain in Sanskrit theaters?
A curtain would divide the stage into performance area, and a backstage area for actors to change costumes.
What two things played an important role in Sanskrit theatre?
Music and elaborate costumes.
Who was the most productive Sanskrit playwright?
Bhasa
What is the Shakuntala?
The most famous Sanskrit play which is written in 7 acts and tells a story of the romance between a king and a hermit’s daughter, containing both serious and comedic elements.
What did the Yuan Dynasty contribute to theatre?
Lots of literature, a bare stage with two doors on each side with a piece of painted cloth hanging between them, theatre built for outdoor use with no roof, elaborate costume and heavily applied makeup.
What did the Ming Dynasty contribute to theatre?
There was a shift of drama that focused more pleasing on the literary elite. Literary drama was created which emphasized poetry and was averse to powerful dramatic action. The play structure became much more complex. Multiple singers would sing and act. instrumental accompaniments became more elaborate. The ming dynasty brought about the first theatre critic, Li Yu.
How did Li Yu believe playwrights should write?
He thought playwrights should write clearly, with a mass audience in mind, and should be well versed in practical stage knowledge.
What did Li Yu’s writings deal with?
plot construction, dialogue, music, and versification.
What did Li Yu put little emphasis on?
poetic songs favored by other playwrights.
What did Li Yu develop?
Well made situation comedies with intricate plots and sophisticated dialogue.
What did Li Yu create?
original plots based on the lives of common people.
What two religions were a strong influence for theatre in Japan?
Shintoism and Buddhism
What did Noh Theatre synthisize?
it synthesized various theatrical forms into a single, total experience.
Explain Noh actors.
they trained from childhood and became adept at singing, acting, dancing, and mime.
What are the two types of Noh theatre?
phantasmal and present experience
What is phantasmal?
a play in two parts that recounts a legend of a chief character that undergoes some profound experience.
What is present experience?
a more realistic play that features action that occurs to living characters in present, stage time.
Explain the Noh Theatre structure.
It has a bridge that connects the actor’s dressing room to the stage. The stage is roofed and has a large ceremonial pine tree painted on the rear wall. The rear stage has a place for musicians. There was another portion of the stage for a chorus of 10 men. The stage is an 18-foot square.
What is the bridge called in Noh theatre structure?
Hashigakari. It is around 20 feet in length.
What is Bunraku?
a form of puppet theatre.
How many people does it take to operate the puppets?
3 people. There was also a chanter who told the stories the puppets would act out.
Who does the japanese credit for the creation of Kabuki theatre?
A Shinto priestess, who began dancing on a temporary stage set up in the dry bed of the Kamo River in Kyoto.
What was the basis of Kabuki theatre?
Dance.
What were kabuki musical-dramas about?
They revolved around romantic and erotic stories.
Who originally performed in Kabuki shows?
Women. It was later banned for women to perform due to sexual services being provided. Later boy troupes were also banned due to sexual things.
What is an onnagata?
A male Kabuki actor who played women’s roles. They are highly respected for their work. They portrayed the feminine personality through stylized gesture and attitude, costume and makeup.
Explain the structure of Kabuki theaters.
The stage is wide and has a relatively low proscenium. Musicians are sometimes onstage and at other times offstage and generally accompany the action. Elaborate scene effects, including a revolving stage. A narrow raised platform connected to the rear of the auditorium to the stage. The stage is well equipped with large and small elevator traps to lift actors.
What is the hanamichi?
A raised narrow platform that is connected to the rear of the auditorium to the stage. Actors would use the hanamichi for entrances and exits and would pay short scenes there as well. There was even a small trap that allows supernatural characters to emerge or disappear in the midst of the audience.
What is a Wayang?
the term used for traditional Indonesian theatre and usually refers to the various types of puppet theatres
What are shadow puppets made from?
Buffalo hide mounted on bamboo sticks.
How are the shadow puppets operated?
They are held up behind a white cloth and are manipulated by the sticks attached to the head, arms, and other parts of the body.
Who narrates the drama in Shadow plays?
The person manipulating the puppet narrates and speaks the dialogue of the characters.
What were the Shadow plays accompanied by?
music and sound effects.
