Term | Definition |
Classical Drama | : much of drama today can be traced back to this period in ancient Greece and to religious festivals honoring the god Dionysus. |
Thrust stage | : A stage that extends into the audience on three sides and is connected to the backstage. |
Medieval Drama | : the period in which drama was invented once again. |
Renaissance drama | : 16th and 17th centuries in England, was a period of great artistic and technological creativity and drama benefited from the innovative spirit of the period. |
Modern drama | : Began in late 19th century. During this time realism was a dominant force in literature. |
Pastoral drama | : Dramatic works set in rural settings that idealize the life of shepherds and other country people. |
Theater of the absurd | : playwrights that explored the possibility that human life lacks any ultimate meaning; these plays put characters in absurd situations where effective action and genuine communication are possible. |
Expressionism | : Playwrights aimed to portray states of intense emotion (sometimes to the point of psychological disturbance) through very exaggerated costumes, make-up, and actions. |
Symbolist drama | : rather than portray everyday situations, playwrights used imaginary settings and symbolic characters and actions to explore spiritual and psychological truths. |
Stage directions | : detailed description of plays settings and characters and sometimes even the emotion or gesture meant to accompany a specific speech. |
Fourth wall | : an imaginary barrier between the audience and the audience. |
Realism | : The effort to portray life as it is. |
Picture-frame stage | : The audience looks into the stage and sees actors interacting within a detailed set representing a room or other location |
Proscenium arch | : an indoor auditorium with rows of seats faceing a picture-frame stage. |
Court comedies | : Comedic works, often consisting of improbable plots, elaborate costumes and sets, and music, meant to be performed in a royal court. |
Chronicle plays | : Dramatic works based on historic events and often with the purpose of promoting patriotism. Featured noble or royal characters, a great many performers, and spectacular pageantry. |
Elizabethan drama | Exposure to the drama of the Classical period inspired Renaissance playwrights to adopt the genres of tragedy and comedy to explore issues of history, politics, gender, and family relations, and other current topics |
Flat Character | : Characters that don't change. |
Mystery plays | : Dramatic works based on biblical stories. |
Miracle plays | : Dramatic works based on legendary miracles performed by saints or sacred objects. |
Morality plays | : Dramatic works that personify virtues and vices to convey allegorical themes. |
High comedy | : A subgenre of comedy that engages audiences on an intellectual level and where the humor derives from situations that reveal inconsistencies in human behavior. Its funny because its true. |
Low comedy | : A subgenre of comedy where the humor derives from jokes, trickery, and physical actions that engage audiences on an elemental level. Makes us laugh but rarely makes us think. |
Shakespearian Tragedy | : A subgenre of tragedy containing elements of Aristotelian tragedy and featuring tragic characters, sensationalistic violence, and the language of blank verse. |
Modern Tragedy | : A subgenre of tragedy that emerged in the modern period to portray ordinary people struggling with everyday issues. Modern tragedies can be realistic or involve experimentation with dramatic form and conventions. |
Tragicomedy | : A dramatic genre containing elements of both tragedy and comedy, featuring conflicts that nearly end tragically but finally lead to happy resolutions. |
Melodrama | : A dramatic genre featuring music and tending to focus on action, adventure, passion, and suspense over character depth. |
Comedy | : Subgenre of drama. |
Tragedy | : Subgenre of drama. |
Amphitheater | : An outdoor theater. |
Orchestra | : One of the 3 main parts of a greek theater. A circular space in the center of the amphitheater where the
play was performed. |
Skene | : A backstage building for storing and changing costumes. |
Theatron | : where the audience sat in tiers surrounding the orchestra and the skene. |
Burlesque | : A subgenre of low comedy characterized by extreme caricature, distortion of situations and events, and exaggeration to the point of absurdity. |
Commedia dell'arte | : A subgenre of low comedy that emerged in Italy in the 16th century and involves stock characters improvising on a given scenario. |
Farce | : A subgenre of low comedy in which the humor derives from crass jokes, absurd situations, and ridiculous actions. |
Slapstick | : A subgenre of low comedy that involves practical jokes, humiliating blunders, horseplay, and violence. Often an element of farce. |
Comedy of manners | : A subgenre of high comedy that portrays relationships and love affairs, often in upper-class society, and satirizes conventional social codes of behavior. |
Romantic Comedy | : A subgenre of high comedy that features young couples encountering obstacles on their paths toward love and usually finding happy endings. |
Satire | : A subgenre of comedy in which irony, sarcasm, and ridicule are used to point out flaws in people or social institutions in order to encourage positive social change. |