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38 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Davenant
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-theatrical producer during commonwealth period & formerly a court playwright;
-circumvented Puritan restrictions on theater; -produced “The First Day’s Entertainment at Rutland House” and “The Siege of Rhodes”, which used a proscenium arch & wing-and-shutter set, is considered the first English opera, and first used actresses |
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Killigrew
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Killigrew stayed with royal family in France during exile
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Devenant & Killigrew
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D&K granted patent on London theater by Charles II in 1660; divided their company into Davenant’s Duke’s Company of younger actors and Killigrew’s King’s Company of older actors
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John Dryden
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most notable author of Restoration tragedy; “All for Love” = transformation of “Antony & Cleopatra” into neoclassical tragedy;
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heroic tragedy
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serious drama of the Restoration period,
extraordinary characters undertaking extraordinary deeds; themes of love & honor |
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Aphra Behn
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-very successful writer of comedy of intrigue during English Restoration;
-first woman English playwright; -also first to earn a living as the writer; -"The Forced Marriage” = first play; -bawdiness; -“The Town Fop” and “The Rover”; -tragicomedies of intrigue, very contrived, influenced by Spanish theater and Italian commedia; |
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comedy of manners
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-focuses on the fashions and foibles of the upper class (gossip, adultery, sexual escapades);
-poke fun at social conventions and period norms; -satirize upper-class preoccupation with reputation; -importance of language (wit, repartee, sexual suggestion); -influenced by Moliere; -dramatic structure combines French & Italian neoclassical theater with Elizabethan theater (crisis & episodic forms); -stock characters with names describing traits; fop = common character; -“The Country Wife”, “Love in a Tub”, etc |
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William Wycherly
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-comedy of manners;
-satirized elegant society and was also a member of it; -wrote only a few plays, hobby not profession; -borrowed material from Moliere and Terence; -master of sexual humor; -sponsored at court by King’s favored duke; -“The Country Wife”, -in later years, fell out of favor in court |
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William Congreve
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-another Restoration dramatist;
-wrote 4 comedies, including “The Way of the World”, later considered best Restoration comedy; -“The Way of the World” bridged bawdy Restoration comedy & 18th century sentimental comedy |
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Nell Gwynn
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-best-known theater personality of Restoration era;
-famous for comic performances, dancing, and liaison with Charles II; -began as orange girl at Theater Royal in Drury Lane; -became mistress of leading actor, Charles Hart; -known for singing, dancing, charm, beauty, and wit; -specialized in breeches roles; |
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Christopher Rich
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most successful theatrical business man of Restoration; controlled patents issued to both Davenant and Killigrew; exploitive lawyer who managed the finances of the United Company; bad financial practices led to revolt of actors
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breeches roles
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dramatic device instated after women began performing on English stages in 1660; parts that required women to dress as men; ex. “The Country Wife
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contract system
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–replaced sharing plan system;
-actors hired for a specific period of time at a set salary; -marked decline of actors’ control over theater in London (companies outside London continued to use sharing plan); -included use of benefit performances |
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Thomas Betterton
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-finest actor of the Restoration;
-member of Davenant’s Duke’s Company (shareholder and leading actor); -also noted for performances in Shakespeare’s plays; -attention to detail, self-discipline, restraint; -model of English oratorical style until mid-18th century; -esp. noted for Shakespeare’s tragic heroes, though had a wide range for both comedy & tragedy; -married leading actress in Duke’s Company; -became co-manager after Davenant’s death; -studied French theater innovations in Paris; -headed United Company after merger of Duke’s and King’s Companies; -led revolt of actors against Rich & company management, set up rival company, eventually collapsed due to financial instability |
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Drury Lane
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– theater in London still existing;
-first built by Killigrew in 1663, known as Theater Royal, descriptions vary; -simple, classical, elegant; -seated 650 ppl; pit, box, gallery arrangement; 34ft deep platform stage, back half framed by proscenium & held scenic elements; -Killigrew & Davenant's companies' homes -patent passed to Christopher Rich, bankrupted & closed in 1709 -18th century gentleman ghost |
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Dorset Garden
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-third major theater in London during Restoration
-evidence to suggest it was used primarily for plays with extensive scenic effects |
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drame bourgeois
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-dramatic form championed by Denis Diderot;
-any serious play that did not fit the neoclassical definition of tragedy and featured middle-class protagonists; -also middle-class or domestic tragedy; -themes of middle-class morality; -sentimental and melodramatic, i.e. openly emotional and good vs. evil; -ex. “The London Merchant” |
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sentimental comedy
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popular dramatic form in England;
-similar to Restoration comedy, but reaffirms middle-class morality (virtue rewarded, wickedness punished); -comedies of manners = satirize socials norms and conventions; -in France, featured emotional & virtuous characters beset by misfortune, but ends happily; -ex. “The Rivals”, “The School for Scandal” |
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ballad opera
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-English parody of Italian opera;
-popularized in 1730’s by “The Beggar’s Opera”; -no sung dialogue (recitative); -spoken dialogue alternated with songs set to popular melodies; -lower class characters; -social & political satires |
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opera comique
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-evolved from French pantomime-like entertainment;
-printed cards displayed text in rhyming couplets, action was mimed by performers; -spectators encouraged to sing dialogue; -characters drawn from commedia; -became increasingly like ballad opera as legal restrictions eased; -by mid-century, less satirical & comic, more sentimental with recognizable French characters |
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R.B. Sheridan
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-best-known writer of sentimental comedy;
-also theater manager and politician; -“The Rivals”, “The Duenna” (long-running ballad opera); -became part-owner of Drury Lane; -“The School for Scandal”, “The Critic”; -restricted unlicensed theaters; -spectacle and pantomime; |
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Denis Diderot
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-“Discourse on Dramatic Poetry” defined drame bourgeois;
-greater realism on stage (acting and scenic); -wrote plays to illustrate ideas, ex. “The Illegitimate Son” and “The Father of the Family”; “The Paradox of Acting” supported case for a studied rather than emotional actor; -concept of “fourth wall” |
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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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responsible for important innovations in German theater;
-theater director, critic, playwright, and philosopher; -involved in “storm and stress” movement; -first important play = “Goetz von Berlichingen”; -believed theatre should transcend the ordinary; -intensive rehearsals, ensemble company, rehearsal rules; -believed actors should address audience; -routine blocking patterns, but careful stage compositions; -“Rules for Actors” addressed personal behavior to improve social status; -established “stage German” dialect; -oversaw sets and costumes; -historical accuracy; -regulated audience reactions |
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Sturm und Drang
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“storm and stress”, Germany;
- rejection of dramatic rules; -not uniform in playwriting techniques, some imitated Shakespeare’s episodic structure; -“Goetz von Berlichingen” and “The Robbers”; -Goethe & Friedrich Schiller; -radical in style and subject; -forerunner of 19th century romanticism |
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Covent Garden
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-opened by John Rich, 1732;
-extravagant pantomimes and revivals; -one of two theaters licensed by the 1737 act; -theater enlarged twice, ultimately to 3000 seats; -site of first historically accurate production of “King John” in 1824; |
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The Licensing Act of 1737
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issued by Parliament;
-restricted the presentation of drama to the Drury Lane and Covent Garden theaters; -made the lord chamberlain responsible for licensing plays, rather than the master of revels; -stipulated against profit and particular list of presentations |
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Carlo Gozzi
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-sought greater antirealism in commedia;
-noble, but impoverished Venetian family; -began writing as a young man; -thought realism made commedia mundane & boring; -mixture of prose & poetry; -planned action & improv; -25-year association with Venetian acting company; -10 fantasy plays based on Western & Asian myth; -“The King Stag”, “The Green Bird”; -all elements should emphasize the fantastic |
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Carlo Goldoni
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-sought greater realism in commedia;
-middle class of Venice; -house dramatist for theater in Venice; -attempted comic interludes, tragedies, tragicomedies, opera librettos; -house dramatist for another theater; -moved commedia from scenarios to full scripts; -discouraged masks and improv; -“The Venetian Twins”, “The Mistress of the Inn”; -created plays with oriental theme; -wrote in Paris late in life; -took stock characters towards sentimentality |
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boulevard theaters
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-located on Boulevard du Temple;
-catered to popular tastes; -invented many types of musical entertainments to avoid monopolies of government theaters; -developed from popular fair entertainments such as comic opera, pantomime, and melodrama; -all eventually put under control of Opera in 1784 |
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ground rows
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silhouette cutouts along the stage floor
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act drops
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curtains at the front of the stage
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melodrama
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emerged in boulevard theaters at end of 18th century; spectacular effects, violent action, moral lessons; good vs. evil
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local color
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the inclusion of places audience members will recognize from their own community; re-creating recognizable locales
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the Bibiena family
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-most influential Italian designers and theater architects of the 18th century;
-three generations, 7 family members; 3 innovations: baroque art in scene designs, vast scale and ornamentation of settings, and angle perspective (several vanishing points); -settings extend beyond proscenium arch; -established style of scene design on a grandiose scale |
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Charles Macklin
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-attempted to utilize historically accurate costumes;
-best known for sympathetic, tragic portrayal of Shylock in Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice”; -strolling player before acting at Lincoln’s Inn Field; -later became member of Drury Lane Theater; -considered primarily comic performer; -many lawsuits; natural performance style rooted in observation and mimicry; -method described in John Hill’s “The Actor”; dismissed from Drury Lane after actors’ strike; -later became playwright |
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David Garrick
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-oversaw entire production process = early director;
-surprisingly natural style; -acting based on observation; -equally skilled in comedy & tragedy; -became a patent holder at Drury Lane Theater; -championed natural acting style, development of character traits through preparation & research; -long rehearsal periods; -strict disciplinarian; -banished spectators from stage; -experimented with historical accuracy |
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Dumesnil and Clairon
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-two of the greatest French actresses;
-notorious rivals, contrasting techniques and styles; - Dumesnil excelled in passionate roles; leading tragic actress; -Clairon made debut @ age 13 at Comedie Italienne in Paris, spent time in provinces, returned to Opera in Paris in 1743; auditioned for Comedie Francaise in a tragic, rather than a soubrette role; -both played successfully at Comedie Francaise; - Dumesnil relied on inspiration, Clairon relied on craft; -Clairon praised in Diderot’s “The Paradox of Acting”; - Clairon adopted more natural speaking style, and pursued historical accuracy |
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Caroline Neuber
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-formed troupe with husband in 1725;
-German actress and actor-manager who attempted to reform popular theater; -introduced neoclassical dramatic forms; -focused on rehearsal and staging; -initially eliminated some comic, clown characters; -insisted on memorization of lines; -performed Gottsched’s model repertory; -eventually broke with critic; -most acclaimed as comic actress |