American Theatre Gaby CarinoBrynn Michaels, Johnny Wang Randy Huang

 Many believe American Theatre started around the 1700s when the Lewis Hallam troupe arrived in Williamsburg, Virginia.  Around the 1750s, state courts began to forbid plays and other “theatrical entertainments” of any kind since it was thought to give bad examples to children. This didn’t stop actors from performing.  On April 15, 1865, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a well known actor.

Laws Forbidding the Performance of Plays  Massachusetts in 1750 The Continental Congress banned plays in most states during the Revolutionary War. Pennsylvania in 1759 Rhode Island in 1761

Locations Broadway Theater is a play/musical that is performed in one of the 39 large professional theaters located in the Theater District. Broadway Theater is not to be mistaken with The Broadway Theater which is located in midtown-Manhattan. The Kodak Theater is a theater in Hollywood and is the home of the Academy Awards Ceremony. (also known as The Oscars) It is also the home for American Idol since The Pantages Theater is located at Hollywood and Vine. (the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street) One of the recent production was of Broadway’s musical, Wicked. The theater also hosts other performances that vary from Foo-Fighters to Shakira.

 Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852 and was turned into plays and musicals called Tom’s Shows The Wizard of Oz is a children’s novel written by L. Frank Baum and has been adapted into many plays and films.

Theatre House and Stage Area The Proscenium Stage is commonly used in the west and includes a Proscenium Arch at the front of the stage. Most of the play happens behind the Proscenium Arch and often has a curtain to hide the stage when needed. The area in front of the curtains is the apron and the areas behind the left and right of the Proscenium stage are the wings. The House’s seats are slanted downwards toward the performers and there are no audience members on both sides of the stage – in other words, there is only one direction to view the stage.

Minstrel Shows were a type of comedy act performed by whites in Blackface – white performers used greasepaint and shoe polish to darken their face and exaggerate their lips. Many of William Shakespeare’s plays were often performed by American actors. Plays like Romeo and Juliet had the men with baggy clothing and covered with a vest.

Baggy Clothing + Vest Equals…

This dude’s ugly…

Costumes for Females Female Burlesque performers created colorful costumes and performed fire- breathing, dancing, comedy acts, and even the “Hootchy Kootchy" dance (better known as the Belly Dance) Female actors in the 19 th century wore big, elaborate, poofy dresses and were often brightly colored (pink, orange, green, etc.)

Plays Written in this Time Period  “Fools” is a Romantic-Comedy play by Neil Simon which lasted only 40 performances. (Neil Simon wrote the play knowing this would happen)  David Lindsay-Abaire received the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his drama, “Rabbit Hole”

T HE N D E Peace Out Gaby Carino Brynn Michaels, Johnny Wang Randy Huang