Renaissance theatre (1)

Question 1

What is Commedia dell’arte?

Answer 1

In Commedia, performers had no set text; they invented words and actions as they went along.

Question 2

Define Lazzi.

Answer 2

Lazzi: Comic pieces of business used repeatedly by characters in Italian commedia dell’arte.

Question 3

Define Neoclassic ideals

Answer 3

Neoclassical ideals: Rules developed by critics during the Italian Renaissance, supposedly based on the writings of Aristotle.

Question 4

What is verisimilitude?

Answer 4

One overriding concern of the neoclassicists was verisimilitude, by which they meant that drama should be “true to life.”

Question 5

What were the 3 unities that the neoclassicists mandated their insistence on?

Answer 5

Unity of time, place, and action

-Unity of time required that the dramatic action in a play not exceed twenty-four hours.

-Unity of place restricted the action of a
play to one locale.

Unity of action required that there be only one central story involving a relatively small group of characters; this meant that there could be no subplots.

Question 6

What unity did Aristotle suggest?

Answer 6

The three unities are often mistakenly attributed to Aristotle, though in fact he had suggested only one unity: the unity of action.

Question 7

What are the neoclassical ideals?

Answer 7

1. Verisimiltude : true to life
2. Structure: 3 unities
3. Purity of Genre: no mixing tragedy and comedy.
4. Decorum : no mixing of classes and no onstage violence.
5. Purpose: drama should teach and entertain.

Question 8

Describe William Shakespeare as a dramatist.

Answer 8

As a dramatist, he worked with elements that had been established in early Elizabethan drama—Senecan dramatic devices; the platform stage; powerful dramatic verse; source material from English history

Question 9

The plays of Shakespeare, Marlowe, and their contemporaries were performed primarily in _______

Answer 9

The plays of Shakespeare, Marlowe, and their contemporaries were performed primarily in public theatres

Question 10

What is the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza?

Answer 10

Oldest surviving theatre built during the Renaissance.

Question 11

What is the Teatro Farnese in Parma?

Answer 11

First theatre with a proscenium arch.

Question 12

What is De architectura?

Answer 12

De Architectura is a book written by Roman Architect Vitruvius that influenced construction as did ruins of Greek and Roman theatres

Question 13

Who were the two authors known for tragedy in the french neoclassical time?

Answer 13

Pierre Corneille and Jean Racine.

Question 14

Describe the characteristics of Corneille.

Answer 14

• began his career writing comedies but soon turned to tragedy
• did not follow the neoclassic rules established by Italian critics.
• took a break but then returned to following neoclassic rules

Question 15

Describe the characteristics of Jean Racine.

Answer 15

• comfortable with the neoclassic rules from the start
• Racine’s masterful handling of poetry and emotion established a model to be followed in France for the next three centuries

Question 16

What are Corrales?

Answer 16

Corrales: Theatre of the Spanish Golden Age, usually located in the courtyard of a series of adjoining buildings.

Question 17

Most Spanish acting troupes were _____ like those of Elizabethan England

Answer 17

Most Spanish acting troupes were compañías de parte—sharing companies, like those of Elizabethan England

Question 18

Describe the production of a private theatrein the Elizabethan period.

Answer 18

Elizabethan private theatres were indoor spaces lit by candles and high windows.

Open to general public but smaller, and therefore more expensive

Question 19

Describe the production of a public playhouse theatre.

Answer 19

Public Theatres.
* Outdoor spaces.
* All levels of society attended.
* Located outside the city limits to avoid government restrictions.
* Yard, boxes, and galleries.
* Groundlings stood in the yard.
* Lords’ rooms for the wealthy were in the boxes.

Question 20

What is a sharing plan?

Answer 20

Sharing plan: The business organization of Elizabethan acting companies. The elite members of the company, shareholders received a percentage of the troupe’s profits.