1. Chapter 1

2. A Historical Reason to Attend Theatre
 Theatre is the foundation of all drama
▪ Ancient Greeks established the categories of
tragedy and comedy
▪ Roman domestic comedies were the prototype of
situation comedy
 Seeing a performance means taking part in
theatre history
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3.  Theatre incorporates profound,
provocative, timeless observations about
the human condition
 Theatre is an art form with its own
characteristics:
 Quality
 Coherence
 Integrity
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4.  What Is Art?
 Characteristics of Art
▪ A mirror or reflection of life
▪ An extension or a projection of how we live, think,
and feel
▪ It reveals to us what we treasure and admire and
what we fear most deeply
▪ It may be an absolute necessity for human survival
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5.  What Is Art? continued
 Characteristics of the Performing Arts
▪ Literary
▪ Novels, short stories, poetry
▪ Visual
▪ Painting, sculpture, architecture, photography
▪ Performing
▪ Theatre, dance, opera, music
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6.  The Art of Theatre
 Elements of Theatre
▪ Audience
▪ Performers
▪ Script or Text
▪ Director
▪ Theatre Space
▪ Design Elements
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8.  The Art of Theatre continued
 Theatre as a Collaborative Art
▪ The various elements of theatre must be brought
together and coordinated by a host of people—
collaboration!
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9.  Nationsand cultures influence one
another’s theatrical traditions
 Global connections were rare prior to the
1800s
 Theatre can no longer be easily classified by
specific national designations
▪ Beginning around 1900, Asian and other non-
European theatres were influenced by
developments of modern theatre in the West
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10.  Nationsand cultures influence one
another’s theatrical traditions continued
 Theatre is a global activity
▪ Interaction
▪ Adaptation
▪ Collaboration
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11.  Types of theatre are wide-ranging
 Audiences are diverse
 Diversity in Contemporary Theatre
 Contemporary theatre is:
▪ Complex
▪ It mirrors the society in which it is produced
▪ It is fragmented and reflects the complexity of
today’s life
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