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The Theater Experience

by: WILSON EDWIN

The Theater Experience

by: WILSON EDWIN

ISBN 13:
9780073125558
ISBN 10:
0073125555
Edition: 10th
Format: Paperback
Copyright: 12/05/2005
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages

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Summary

The ideal theater appreciation text for courses focusing on theater elements,The Theater Experienceencourages students to be active theater-goers as they learn about the fundamentals of a production. By addressing the importance of the audience, Wilson brings the art of performance to life for students who may have little experience with the medium.

Preface

xvii

Introduction

(3)

Theater: The Art Form

(2)

The Focus of Theater: Human Beings

(1)

Ceremonies and Rituals: The Impulse toward Theater

(2)

Theater as a Transitory Art

(2)

The Elements of Theater

(1)

Summary

(3)

Part 1 The Audience

(86)

The Audience: Its Role and Imagination

(24)

The Relationship between Performer and Audience

(2)

The Special Nature of Theater: A Contrast with Film

(1)

The Chemistry of Performer-Audience Contact

(1)

Theater as a Group Experience

(3)

Psychology of Groups

(1)

How Audience Makeup Affects the Theater Experience

(1)

The Separate Roles of Performers and Spectators

(4)

How Should the Audience Be Involved?

(1)

Audience Participation through Direct Action

(3)

The Imagination of the Audience

(4)

Tools of the Imagination: Symbol and Metaphor

(1)

The ``Reality'' of the Imagination

(1)

The Imaginary Worlds of Theater

(7)

Realism and Nonrealism

(4)

Distinguishing Stage Reality from Fact

(3)

Summary

(3)

Background and Expectations of the Audience

(22)

Background of Individual Spectators

(2)

Background of the Period

(5)

Theater and Society

(1)

Greek Theater and Culture

(1)

Elizabethan Theater and Culture

(1)

Modern Theater and Culture

(3)

Background Information on the Play or Playwright

(1)

Expectations: The Variety of Experiences in Modern Theater

(11)

Broadway and Touring Theater

(2)

Resident Professional Theaters

(1)

Alternative Theaters: Off-Broadway and Elsewhere

(2)

Children's Theater

(1)

College and University Theaters

(1)

Multiethnic, Multicultural, and Gender Theaters

(6)

Summary

(2)

The Critic and the Audience

(12)

Theatrical Criticism

(4)

What Is Criticism?

(1)

Preparation for Criticism

(1)

Critical Criteria

(2)

Descriptive and Prescriptive Criticism

(1)

Getting Started in Theater---Mel Gussow, Critic

(3)

Fact and Opinion in Criticism

(2)

The Reviewer and the Critic

(1)

The Dramaturg or Literary Manager

(1)

The Audience's Relationship to Criticism

(2)

The Audience's Independent Judgment

(1)

Analysis and Overanalysis

(1)

Summary

(2)

Stage Spaces

(22)

Creating the Environment

(1)

Theater Spaces

(17)

Proscenium Stage

(4)

Arena Stage

(3)

Thrust Stage

(4)

Created and Found Spaces

(5)

All-Purpose Theater Spaces: The Black Box

(1)

Special Requirements of Theater Environments

(1)

Summary

(2)

Part 2 The Performers and the Director

101

(72)

Acting: Offstage and in the Past

107

(14)

Examples of Acting in Everyday Life

108

(1)

Social Roles

108

(1)

Personal Roles

108

(1)

Acting in Life versus Acting Onstage

108

(4)

Stage Acting: A Historical Perspective

112

(5)

Physical Demands of Classical Acting

112

(3)

Vocal Demands of Classical Acting

115

(2)

Performing in Classics Today

117

(2)

Summary

119

(2)

Stage Acting Today

121

(24)

The Acting Experience

122

(2)

Challenges of Acting Today

124

(2)

The Development of Realistic Acting

125

(1)

Photo Essay: Performers Play Different Parts

126

(2)

Getting Started in Theater: Cherry Jones: Actress

128

(14)

Performers' Training Today

134

(6)

Synthesis and Integration

140

(2)

Judging Performances

142

(1)

Summary

143

(2)

The Director and the Producer

145

(28)

The Theater Director

146

(2)

Evolution of the Director: A Historical Perspective

146

(2)

Photo Essay: The Director at Work

148

(14)

The Director and the Script

150

(6)

The Director and the Production

156

(6)

Photo Essay: Putting a Production Together---Dido, Queen of Carthage, A.R.T.

162

(2)

The Director's Power and Responsibility

164

(1)

The Producer or Manager

164

(4)

The Commercial Producer

164

(2)

Noncommercial Theaters

166

(2)

Completing the Picture: Playwright, Director, and Producer

168

(3)

Summary

171

(2)

Part 3 The Playwright: Creating the Play

173

(98)

Creating the World of the Play

179

(22)

The Subject and Verb of Drama: People and Action

181

(1)

Structural Conventions: The Rules of the Game

182

(4)

Limited Space

182

(1)

Limited Time

183

(1)

Strongly Opposed Forces

184

(2)

A Balance of Forces

186

(1)

Incentive and Motivation

186

(1)

Essentials of Dramatic Structure

186

(2)

The Form of Drama: Plot versus Story

186

(2)

Dramatic Characters

188

(1)

Creating a Dramatic Structure

188

(3)

The Opening Scene

189

(1)

Obstacles and Complications

189

(1)

Crisis and Climax

190

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Susan-Lori Parks: Playwright

191

(7)

Point of View

191

(1)

The Dramatist's Point of View

192

(2)

Society's Point of View

194

(2)

A Cautionary Word about Genre

196

(2)

Summary

198

(3)

Dramatic Forms: Climactic, Episodic, and Others

201

(20)

Climactic Structure

202

(2)

Characteristics of Climactic Structure

202

(2)

Significant Periods of Climactic Structure

204

(1)

Episodic Structure

204

(7)

Characteristics of Episodic Structure

204

(7)

Significant Periods of Episodic Structure

211

(1)

Combinations of Climactic and Episodic Form

211

(1)

Ritual and Pattern as Dramatic Structure

212

(2)

Rituals

212

(2)

Patterns

214

(1)

Serial Structure

214

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Richard Foreman: Director, Playwright, and Designer

215

(1)

Experimental and Avant-Garde Theater

215

(2)

Special Structures

215

(2)

Segments and Tableaux as Structure

217

(1)

Structure in Musical Theater

217

(2)

Summary

219

(2)

Dramatic Characters

221

(14)

Types of Characters

222

(1)

Extraordinary Characters

222

(1)

Photo Essay: Extraordinary Characters

223

(8)

Representative or Quintessential Characters

224

(1)

Stock Characters

225

(2)

Characters with a Dominant Trait

227

(1)

Minor Characters and Major Characters

228

(1)

A Narrator or Chorus

229

(2)

Nonhuman Characters

231

(1)

Using Dramatic Characters Effectively: Juxtaposition and Interaction

231

(2)

Juxtaposition of Characters

231

(1)

Orchestration of Characters

232

(1)

Summary

233

(2)

Tragedy and Other Serious Drama

235

(16)

Tragedy

236

(4)

Traditional Tragedy

236

(3)

Modern Tragedy

239

(1)

Heroic Drama

240

(2)

Photo Essay: Modern Domestic Drama

242

(2)

Bourgeois or Domestic Drama

244

(1)

Melodrama

245

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Emily Mann: Playwright-Director

246

(3)

Summary

249

(2)

Comedy and Tragicomedy

251

(20)

Comedy

252

(7)

Characteristics of Comedy

252

(3)

Techniques of Comedy

255

(3)

Forms of Comedy

258

(1)

Tragicomedy

259

(1)

What Is Tragicomedy?

259

(1)

Photo Essay: Forms of Comedy

260

(4)

Getting Started in Theater: Nicky Silver: Playwright

264

(1)

Modern Tragicomedy

264

(1)

Theater of the Absurd

265

(4)

Absurdist Plots: Illogicality

266

(1)

Absurdist Language: Nonsense and Non Sequitur

267

(1)

Absurdist Characters: Existential Beings

268

(1)

Summary

269

(2)

Part 4 The Designers

271

(76)

Scenery

279

(26)

A Brief History of Stage Design

280

(1)

Scenic Design Today

280

(1)

Objectives of Scene Design

281

(1)

Aesthetic Aspects of Scene Design

281

(9)

The Scenic Environment

281

(2)

Mood and Style

283

(3)

Realistic and Nonrealistic Scenery

286

(2)

Locale and Period

288

(1)

The Design Concept

288

(2)

The Central Image or Metaphor

290

(1)

Coordination of the Whole

290

(1)

Scene Design and Popular Entertainment

290

(1)

Practical Aspects of Scene Design

291

(6)

The Physical Layout

291

(1)

Materials of Scene Design

292

(4)

Special Effects

296

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Robin Wagner: Scene Designer

297

(1)

The Process of Scene Design

297

(6)

Elements of Design

297

(1)

Steps in the Design Process

298

(1)

The Scene Designer's Collaborators

299

(3)

Designing a Total Environment

302

(1)

Summary

303

(2)

Stage Costumes

305

(22)

Costumes for the Stage

306

(7)

Objectives of Costume Design

306

(1)

The Process of Costume Design

306

(7)

Photo Essay: The Designer---Jane Greenwood

313

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Jess Goldstein: Costume Designer

314

(4)

The Costume Designer at Work

315

(3)

Other Elements

318

(3)

Makeup

318

(2)

Hairstyles and Wigs

320

(1)

Masks

320

(1)

Coordination of the Whole

321

(1)

Photo Essay: Masks---An Ancient Theatrical Device

322

(3)

Summary

325

(2)

Lighting and Sound

327

(20)

Stage Lighting

328

(5)

A Brief History of Stage Lighting

328

(1)

Objectives and Functions of Lighting Design

329

(3)

The Lighting Designer

332

(1)

Getting Started in Theater: Peggy Eisenhauer: Lighting Designer

333

(1)

Photo Essay: The Many Uses of Stage Lighting

334

(7)

Sound in the Theater

341

(4)

Sound Reproduction: Advantages and Disadvantages

341

(1)

The Sound Designer

342

(1)

Sound Reproduction and Sound Reinforcement

342

(1)

Sound Technology

343

(2)

Summary

345

(2)

Part 5 The Theater Landscape Today

347

(66)

Contemporary American Theater

353

(26)

Traditional and Avant-Garde Theater

355

(4)

Theater of Diversity

359

(13)

African American Theater

359

(5)

Asian American Theater

364

(1)

Hispanic Theater

365

(2)

Native American Theater

367

(1)

Feminist Theater

368

(2)

Gay and Lesbian Theater

370

(2)

Political Theater

372

(2)

Performance Art

374

(2)

Postmodernism

376

(1)

Summary

377

(2)

Musical Theater

379

(20)

Background

380

(2)

Drama and Music

380

(1)

The Appeal of Music and Dance

380

(1)

Opera

381

(1)

Types of Musical Theater

382

(1)

A Brief History of the American Musical

382

(8)

Antecedents

382

(3)

The 1920s and 1930s: Musical Comedies

385

(1)

The 1920s and 1930s: Advances in Musicals

385

(3)

Musical Theater of the 1940s and 1950s

388

(2)

Getting Started in Theater: Nathan Lane: Actor

390

(2)

Musicals from the 1960s through the 1980s

391

(1)

Photo Essay: The Diverse American Musical

392

(5)

Musicals from 1990 to the Present

395

(2)

Summary

397

(2)

Contemporary World Theater

399

(14)

Europe

400

(4)

European National Theaters

400

(2)

European Alternative Theater

402

(2)

African Theater and Drama

404

(1)

Latin American Theater

405

(1)

Theater in the Middle East

406

(2)

Asia

408

(3)

Japanese Theater

409

(1)

Indian Theater

410

(1)

Summary

411

(2)

Epilogue: Integrating the Elements and Predicting the Future

413

The Audience: Integrating the Elements

414

(1)

Observation and Assimilation

414

(1)

Observing the Elements as Parts of a Whole

414

(1)

The Overall Effect: What Does Theater ``Mean''?

415

(2)

Modern Theater: Different Purposes, Different Experiences

417

(2)

The Future: What Lies Ahead?

419

(2)

Summary

421

Appendixes

Appendix A Synopses of Plays

(11)

King Oedipus, Sophocles

(1)

Tartuffe, Moliere

(1)

A Doll's House, Henrik Ibsen

(1)

The Cherry Orchard, Anton Chekhov

(1)

Mother Courage, Bertolt Brecht

(1)

A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams

(1)

Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller

(1)

Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett

(1)

A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry

(1)

Fences, August Wilson

(1)

Appendix B Historical Outlines

(15)

Appendix C Major Theatrical Forms and Movements

(8)

Appendix D Glossary

Notes

(1)

Select Bibliography

(1)

Index

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

The Theater Experience

The Theater Experience

9780073125558

0073125555

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials

Write a Review

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

The Theater Experience

The Theater Experience

9780073125558

0073125555

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials

Write a Review

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