Robert Cohen - Theatre, Brief Version-McGraw-Hill Education (2016)

Glossary
Within the definitions, terms that are defined in this glossary
appear in italic.
absurd The notion that the world is meaningless, derived
from an essay, “The Myth of Sisyphus,” by Albert Camus,
which suggests that human beings have an unquenchable desire
to understand but that the world is eternally unknowable. The
resulting conflict puts individuals in an “absurd” position, like
Sisyphus, who, according to Greek myth, was condemned for
eternity to push a rock up a mountain, only to have it always
roll back down before it reached the top. The philosophical
term gave the name to a principal postwar dramatic genre: theatre
of the absurd.
act (verb) To perform in a play. (noun) A division within a
play. Acts in modern plays are separated by an intermission.
Full-length modern plays are customarily divided into two
acts, sometimes three. Roman, Elizabethan, and neoclassic
plays were usually printed in five acts, but the actual stage productions
were not necessarily divided by intermissions, only
stage clearings.
ad-lib A line improvised by an actor during a performance,
usually because the actor has forgotten his or her line or because
something unscripted has occurred onstage. Sometimes an
author directs actors to ad-lib, as in crowd scenes during which
individual words cannot be distinguished by the audience.
aesthetic distance The theoretical separation between the created
artifice of a play and the “real life” the play appears to
represent.
agon “Action,” in Greek; the root word for “agony.” Agon
refers to the major struggles and interactions of Greek tragedy.
amphitheatre In Rome, a large elliptical outdoor theatre,
originally used for gladiatorial contests. Today the term is
often used to designate a large outdoor theatre of any type.
anagnorisis “Recognition,” in Greek. Aristotle claimed that
every fine tragedy has a recognition scene in which the protagonist
discovers either some fact unknown to her or him or
some moral flaw in her or his character. Scholars disagree as
to which of these precise meanings Aristotle had in mind. See
also hamartia.
angle wing A flat wing to which is hinged a second flat wing
at an angle—usually between 90 and 115 degrees. Used extensively
in seventeenth-century scenery, where it was painted to
represent, among other things, diagonal walls on either side of
the stage or exterior corners of buildings. See flat; wings.
antagonist In Greek tragedy, the “opposer of the action”; the
opponent of the protagonist.
Apollonian That which is beautiful, wise, and serene, in the
theories of Friedrich Nietzsche, who believed drama sprang
from the junction of Apollonian and Dionysian impulses in
Greek culture.
applied drama The use of theatre and theatrical exercises to
help a specific community, such as prisoners or the differently
abled, gain means of self-expression and explore aspects of
their identity.
apron The part of the stage located in front of the proscenium;
the forward—most portion of the stage. The apron was used
extensively in the English Restoration period, from whence the
term comes. Today, it is usually called the forestage.
aragoto The flamboyant and exaggerated masculine style of
acting employed in certain kabuki roles.
arena stage A stage surrounded by the audience; also known
as “theatre-in-the-round.” Based on a Latin term meaning
“sand,” the arena originally referred to the dirt circle in the
midst of an amphitheatre.
aside A short line in a play delivered directly to the audience;
by dramatic convention; the other characters onstage are presumed
not to hear it. Popular in the works of William Shakespeare
and dramatists of the Restoration period, the aside has
made a comeback and is used to good effect, in conjunction
with the longer direct address, by contemporary American
playwrights such as Margaret Edson and Neil LaBute.
audition The process whereby an actor seeks a role by presenting
to a director or casting director a prepared reading or
by reading from the text of the play being presented.
avant-garde Artists who abandon conventional models and create
works that are in the forefront of new movements and styles.
backstage The offstage area hidden from the audience that
is used for scenery storage, for actors preparing to make
entrances, and for stage technicians running the show. “Backstage
plays,” such as The Torchbearers and Noises Off, “turn
the set around” and exploit the furious activity that takes place
backstage during a play production.
biomechanics An experimental acting system, characterized
by expressive physicalization and bold gesticulation, developed
by the Russian director Vsevolod Meyerhold in the 1920s.
blackface The practice, once very common, of white actors
using makeup to darken their faces and embody racist caricatures
of African Americans.
black musical See black theatre.
black theatre In America, theatre that is generally by, with,
and about African Americans.
black-box theatre A rectangular room with no fixed seating
or stage area; this theatre design allows for a variety of configurations
in staging plays.
blocking The specific staging of a play’s movements, ordinarily
by the director. Often this is worked out (“blocked out”) on
paper by the director beforehand.
book In a musical, the dialogue text, apart from the music and
song lyrics.
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