1-WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE-(1564-1616) Elizabethan Playwright and Poet.

Considered the most influential

writer of all time. He wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets. English. Writes about love, power, betrayal, murder,
history, and mistaken identity

2-OSCAR WILDE: Irish poet Playwright (1854-1900). Wrote many comedic plays making fun of social
structures in London. One of the most famous playwrights in history EX "The Importance of Being Earnest"

3-August Wilson-(1945-2005). Influential African American playwright whose plays illustrate experiences
and heritage of the African-American community in the 20th century. One of his most famous works is called
"Fences".

4-Neil Simon-(1927-2018): American Playwright and screenwriter. He wrote over 20 plays and many were
turned into movies. He wrote mainly about the American middle class and mixed comedy and drama One of
his most famous works was "The Odd Couple"

5-Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) Considered the "father of modern drama" and the "father of realism".
Norwegian playwright whose works focused on everyday people and their everyday issues. Mostly dramas.
Most famous is "A Doll's House". His plays are the most widely performed after William Shakespeare

6-Aechylus, Euripedes, Sophocles, The 3 great Greek tragic playwrights, the first playwrights in the world in
the birth of theatre (appx 435BC). Many of their works are still performed often today (Oedipus Rex,
Antigone, The Frogs, Medea, Electra). Writes about the Gods and human error/hubris

7-Samuel Beckett-(1906-1989)was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer,

theatre director and poet. His plays are modernism but also starts Absurdism.His plays were tragicomic,
sometimes nonsense, dark comedy, and very minimal. Important words were “Endgame” and “Waiting for
Godot”

8-Anton Checkhov-Russian writer.(1860-1904).Checkhov is important because the style he wrote in was

modernism (real people and real everyday life). Sometimes there is not a huge plot because we are just
watching people. He also made fun of the Russian political system and the upper class.( He wrote The Cherry
Orchard and Uncle Vanya)
1-Naturalism

Naturalism is a movement in European drama and theatre that developed in the late 19th and early 20th
centuries. It refers to theatre that attempts to create a perfect illusion of reality through a range of dramatic
and theatrical strategies.

2-Expressionism

Expressionism is a modernist movement in drama and theatre that developed in Europe in the early decades
of the 20th century and later in the United States. Anti-realistic in appearance The outward appearance on
stage can be distorted and unrealistic to portray an eternal truth.The speech is heightened.

3-Modernism

A broad concept that sees art, including theatre, as detached from life in a pure way and able to reflect on
life critically.

4-Postmodernism

There are multiple meanings, and meaning is what you create, not what is. This approach often uses other
media and breaks accepted conventions and practices.

5-Classical

A type of theatre which relies upon imagination (and therefore limited props) to convey the setting and
atmosphere of the play. Classical theatre usually contains lofty, grand prose or free verse dialogue. Good
examples are the Elizabethan dramatists William Shakespeare.

6-COMEDY

An entertaining performance designed to make an audience laugh.

In Greek and Roman theatre, any play with a happy ending was called a comedy, regardless of whether it was
funny.

7-FARCE

Form of comedy play originated in France, using fast-paced physical action and visual comedy more than
humour based on language

8-MINIMALISM

Artistic movement starting in the 1960s which aspired to simple form and design. A minimalist theatrical
stage design might involve only the essential components of the scene (e.g. a single chair and a suspended
window frame, and no other set or furniture).

9-MUSICAL THEATRE
a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and
emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music,
movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an integrated whole.

10-PERFORMANCE ART

An interdisciplinary performance presented to an audience. The performance may be either scripted or

unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without
audience participation. The performance can be live or via media; the performer can be present or absent. It
can be any situation that involves four basic elements: time, space, the performer's body, or presence in a
medium, and a relationship between performer and audience.
1-CATHARSIS-The emotional release of the audience after the fall of the tragic character or, in modern
terms, the emotional release and response of something on stage (usually through tears, gasps, cheers, or
REAL standing ovations).

2-VOMITORIUM- The doors in each section of each level of the auditorium. So named because they spit out
or “vomit” spectators from the seating areas

3-TABLEAU: A silent and motionless depiction of a scene created by actors, often from a picture. The plural
is tableaux.

4-MEZZANINE- The second seating tier, usually overhanging the orchestra at its midpoint. It is preferred
seating for many theater-goers as they allow you to be close to the action while taking in a more complete
stage picture.

5-SWING-a multi-talented performer who’s responsible for learning many ensemble parts so that they can
“swing on” when someone is ill, injured, or missing the performance for any reason.

6-SITZPROBE: A German word that describes the first time the performers sit and run through the full score
with the orchestra.

7-PANTALONE-An italian commedia dell’arte stock character of a greedy miserly old. Often they are
business owners of some sort. Ebenezer Scrooge, Mr. Burns, and Mr. Krabs are popular modern examples

8-PERIAKTOI-A 3 sided, triangle flat, usually on castors that can be moved around stage or rotated to a new
side for scene or elemental changes