Explore Theatre: A Backstage Pass Michael M. O’Hara & Judith A. Sebesta PowerPoints prepared by the authors This multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law: any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network; preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images; any rental, lease, or lending of the program.

What is the Experience of Theatre? Chapter 2 What is the Experience of Theatre? Stage versus Page

Theatre “experienced” on stage, not on page. “Page” has some advantages: “Stage” limited “Page” (drama) is unlimited “Page” audience is bigger “Page” has some advantages:“Stage” bound by temporal, artistic, economic, and spatial limits“Page” (drama) is unlimited in its imaginative freedomsSome playwrights wrote for a reading audience

Theatre on a stage; drama on the page! Avoid narrative and contextual traps: Scripts are not the end result of theatrical work. Productions always happen within temporal and cultural contexts.

Theatre/Drama = Double Consciousness Perpetual Present Tense always “now” Cultural and Historical Repository always “yesterday” Perpetual Present Tense always “now” (happens each night)Cultural and Historical Repository always “yesterday” (written in the past)

Double Possibilities Because theatre is both now and yesterday: Read (historical and ephemeral) texts simultaneously Complexity Because theatre is both now and yesterday:You can "read" both texts (historical and ephemeral) simultaneously.Issues can be complex - e.g., religious, political, secular, social ideas interrogated and explored

Clicker Question Literary v. Popular drama. How many of you have read: A. a contemporary television script B. a contemporary movie script C. both of the above D. none of the above

Clicker Question How many of you have read: A. a contemporary play script B. a Shakespearean play script C. both of the above D. none of the above

Popular v. Literary Why the difference? Aristotle, his Poetics - and his "lost" Book. “Name of the Rose” High v. Low culture

Parts of Drama (all) Plot - what happens (not Story: what happened + happens + may happen) Character - a moral quality Theme (idea) - the engine that drives theatre Language - how it is said or sung Music - even the voice is an instrument Spectacle - what you see

Genre = type Tragedy - serious consequences depicted seriously Comedy - non-serious consequences depicted non- seriously Melodrama - moral universe & motivated music Tragicomedy - mix Farce - aim is laughter To which types are we most exposed?

Clicker Question How many of you have seen a theatrical: A. Tragedy B. Comedy C. Melodrama D. Farce E. None of the above

Clicker Question How many of you have seen a film: A. tragedy (e.g., Braveheart) B. comedy (e.g., The Hangover) C. melodrama (e.g., Star Wars) D. farce (e.g., Dumb and Dumber) E. all of the above

Analysis versus Viewing Viewing responds to a text Emotional, Effortless, and Easy (primarily personal) Analysis critiques a text Cogent, Coherent, Concise (expands beyond the personal)

How is ‘drama’ different from life? How does life begin, develop, end? Temporally Actions are chaotic How does (most) drama begin, develop, end? Theatrically Actions are ordered Do we sometimes conflate dramatic expectations with life experiences? Temporally (bound by time)Actions are chaotic (no necessary resolution)Theatrically (bound by script & stage)Actions are ordered (scripts end, most resolve action)

What do the differences suggest about life? What is the experience of “life” when compared to “drama?” How do we try to impose order on life? What does this sense of “order” do to our perception of life and or drama? Life = chaotic Drama = ordered.Watches, calendars, birthdays, etc.We often assume/expect that life will follow drama’s rules.

Summary: Literary and theatrical approaches to plays share the belief that texts are not complete, that meaning is created through the process of completing those texts by placing text within context: historical, contemporary, theoretical, and enactment.