1. Theatre Bell-ringers
November 2017

2. Thursday, November 30
Musical – A piece of theatre where music, song, and dance play an integral part in the storytelling.
Opera – A dramatic work that is sung straight through.
Operetta – A short opera on a light or comedic theme, with some spoken dialogue.
Give two examples of each.

3. Wednesday, November 29
Farce – A heightened comedy with exaggerated situations and characters. Plot is more important than characters.
Melodrama – A heightened drama with exaggerated situations and character. Use of stock characters and music underscoring.
A stock character is a stereotypical fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or film, whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition. Stock characters are archetypal characters distinguished by their flatness. As a result, they tend to be easy targets for parody and to be criticized as clichés. The presence of a particular array of stock characters is a key component of many genres. The point of the stock character is to move the story along by allowing the audience to already understand the character.

4. Tuesday, November 28
Comedy – A piece of theatre with humorous characters and a happy ending.
Name an example of a comedy.
Tragedy – A piece of theatre with dramatic characters and an unhappy or tragic ending.
Name an example of a tragedy.
What is the key difference between a comedy and a tragedy?

5. Monday, November 27
Orchestra Pit – the area beneath the apron of the stage where the orchestra plays
Do we have an orchestra pit in our theatre?
Properties (Props) – Portable objects used by character
Stage props – those props that remain on the stage
Hand props – those props that are carried on or off by the actors
Where do we keep the hand props?

6. Tuesday, November 21
Sight Lines – The unobstructed lines of sight from the audience’s perspective. What the audience sees when they look at the set. What the audience can see on stage and back stage. Who must be concerned about sight lines? How do we control sight lines?

7. Monday, November 20 Monologue – A speech performed by one character.
Soliloquy – A speech performed by one character that demonstrates the character’s private thoughts. It is not heard by the other characters, just the audience.
Dialogue – A conversation between two or more characters.

8. Thursday, November 16
Black Box – a flexible performance space that is painted completely black.
Blackout – A lighting cue that turns all the lights off suddenly.
When would a director use a blackout?

9. Friday, November 17
Spike tape – colored tape on the stage that marks the location for a set piece.
Spike – to mark an area on the floor to indicate where certain set pieces, risers, or flats go
Strike – to remove the scenery and props either from the stage for the performance or completely at the end of a production

10. Wednesday, November 15
Previews – Shows that have audiences, but are considered to be dress rehearsals. During previews the cast still rehearses during the day, and the show can still change day to day.
Freeze (frozen) – When the show is finished and will no longer be changed. The cast no longer rehearses during the day.
Opening night – the official opening of the show.

11. Tuesday, November 14
Backstage – the area of the stage that is out of sight of the audience – also called off stage
The stage manager often tells the stage crew and actors to be QUIET backstage!

12. Thursday, November 2
“off book” – when an actor has memorized his/her lines and blocking and no longer needs to have the script on stage.
Curtain call – when the actors are “called” to the “curtain” to accept the applause from the audience for their performance. This event is blocked by the director and the order of the actors is usually from the smallest parts to the principals.

13. Wednesday, November 1
Run through – Rehearsals conducted without any stops.
Calling for lines – when an actor forgets a line, he says, “line” and the ASM gives him the first few words.
Can actors still call for lines during a run through?