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Historical development of theater
Historical development of theater
Historical development of theatre
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Mel Brooks said, “Hope for the best. Expect the worst. The world’s a stage. We’re Unrehearsed.” Brooks was not wrong in pointing out that the world is a stage. Brooks did not say that the world is a film, or a painting, or a comic book strip. The world is a stage, and theatre – barring ozone depletion – is our best representation of the human race on this earth. The theatre – and subsequently acting – has existed and functioned as a societal common place dating as far back as to nearly the start of recorded history. The theatre is said to be the most realistic art form, serving as the closest thing to an accurate depiction of human life. The visceral stage is only feet away from the viewer and the art is happening in real-time, by living humans, in the flesh. Of course, the most effective and realistic aspect of the theatre is acting. Acting is an art, skill, and profession that has continuously progressed and evolved since the evolution of the theatre. It could be said that this progression took on an almost linear path of augmented development, or at least up until the advent of the twentieth century. This linear progression has exponentially developed, profoundly expanding over the last hundred years. Most of the “recent” growth in the acting field can be attributed to Lee Strasberg and the Actors Studio. At the helm of the Actors Studio, Strasberg revolutionized depth in acting and has had a lasting affect, forever changing actors’ training and their quality of work.
To fully understand how Lee Strasberg and the Actors Studio revolutionized actors’ training, methods, and practices, one must first look back and understand Strasberg’s source material and influences. In doing this, it is imperative to look at the wor...
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...e and not on the individual talents of one actor. Strasberg left the Group Theatre in 1937 for Hollywood, where he would try and make a name for himself; he permanently moved back to New York ten years later becoming the guiding force and artistic director of the Actors Studio – the organization formed by Crawford, Elia Kazan, and Robert Lewis after the Group Theatre was dissolved; this dissolution was partially due to the Group’s troubles with HUAC – the House Un-American Activities Committee.
It was in 1948 when Strasberg became the Artistic Director and brain trust of the Actors Studio; a position he would hold for 34 years until his death in 1982. The goal of the Actors Studio was – and still is – to provide a top-notch acting education, improving both the methods and abilities of both young actors and current, working professionals as well. The studio was
He worked as an assistant professor in the theater department at St. Mary’s University. Additionally, he is the artistic director of the Scioto Society, which produces the drama “Tecumseh,” in Chillicothe, Ohio. Burke is currently working as the artistic director at the Charlotte Children’s Theater. Recently, our class had the tremendous opportunity to interview Mr. Burke with questions relating to his process in directing. I asked him, “What do you believe is the importance of being a director in relation to the significance of being actors or crew members?”
In Dialogue: Theatre of America, Harold Clurman said, “we make theatre out of life” (27), and it was precisely this view that motivated him to help create a uniquely American theatre. Clurman, considered one of the most influential directors of the modern American theatre, had a unique vision of what the American theatre could become. One of the founders of the quintessentially American troupe, the Group Theatre, Clurman was a contemporary of Elia Kazan and Lee Strasberg, and even married to Stella Adler for twenty years. At a ceremony honoring Clurman, Elia Kazan stated that Clurman’s “greatest achievement [was] himself” (Harold Clurman: A Life of Theatre). An important figure in our theatrical past, Clurman’s theories on theatre and directing require close attention. In this paper, I will first provide a brief biography of Clurman, second, examine his theories of theatre and directing, and lastly, I will explore his criticisms of the then-contemporary theatre, and draw conclusions to the current state of the Broadway theatre.
Lazarus, Joan. "On the Verge of Change: New Directions in Secondary Theatre Education." Applied Theatre Research 3.2 (July 2015): 149-161. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1386/atr.3.2.149_1.
Many actors have studied Stanislavsky innovative technique for actors, emphasizing emotional truth and inner motivation and known today as the Stanislavsky Method, revolutionized modern acting. This method has taught actors several techniques that have improved their style. Actor, Al Pacino is one of the greatest actors of all time. He studied at The Actors Studio, in New York and it has been the main source and inspiration for a naturalistic acting technique known in America as "the Method." Under its artistic director, Lee Strasberg, the Studio adapted many of the techniques developed by Russian director Konstantin Stanisalvsky for training actors to feel and realistically portray the emotions of their characters. The intense emotional realism achieved by workshop students—who have included Marlon Brando, James Dean, Geraldine Page, Rod Steiger, Robert De Niro, and Jane Fonda—has influenced actors worldwide. (Actors Studio," Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 2000)
While growing up, Aronofsky had the great pleasure of seeing the greatest movies being released for the first time in theatres. Spielberg’s Jaws and George Lucas’ Star Wars were great successes that triggered a further liking of film for Aronofsky. Coming from a strong household and educated with an MFA in Directing, Aronofsky’s great successes were becoming f...
Alexander Mackendrick’s On Film-Making: An Introduction to the Craft of the Director is quite an interesting read. Director of such films as The Ladykillers and The Man in the White Suit, Mackendrick left Hollywood to pursue instructing at the California Institute of the Arts, where he would teach until his death in 1993. Published in 2004 by Faber & Faber, edited by Paul Cronin, this book showcases the committed, prestigious teachings of Mackendrick,...
Mainly the initial aims of these companies was to stimulate, educate and inform young people through encouraging them to participate in enjoyable and imaginary based theatre programmes. Despite early attempts in Britain in the mid 1930’s, where a Glasgow Director of education allowed the Bertha Waddell’s company to perform in junior schools within school time, the majority of the advances within the movement came after World War Two. Due to the nature and after-effects of the time, many post war Education Authorities felt the need to sponsor drama and live theatre companies to aid in their areas learning processes. One could perhaps say that due to the sheer devastation of the war many education authorities felt that through the use of drama therapy and role play style interaction that students would be able to address their true anxieties and would therefore have a more rewarding time in post war school. Around this time parallel groups were beginning to form in Birmingham and London.
A mere mention of the term theatre acts as a relief to many people. It is in this place that a m...
“The theatre was created to tell people the truth about life and the social situation,” says Stella Adler. Theater is unique and intriguing because it blends literary and visual arts to tell a story. Before Theater 10, I viewed theater on the surface level: cheesy plot lines with dramatic scenarios for entertainment purposes. Throughout the course, I have learned what it means to appreciate theater, such as understanding Brechtian and Chinese theatre; however, I believe understanding theater’s ability to convey crucial historical and social messages, such as in the production of RENT, is more relevant and important for theater appreciation.
Acting can easily be broken down into three different kinds: stage acting, screen acting, and being a movie star. Each category of acting is very different from one another, with each one having very different requirements. Stage and screen acting have the most differences, while being a movie star is more of a subtype of screen acting.
Applied Theatre work includes Theatre-in-Education, Community and Team-building, Conflict Resolution, and Political theatre, to name just a few of its uses. However, Christopher Balme states that “Grotowski define acting as a communicative process with spectators and not just as a production problem of the actor” (Balme, 2008: 25). Applied Theatre practices may adopt the following “theatrical transactions that involve participants in different participative relationships” such as Theatre for a community, Theatre with a community and Theatre by a community Prentki & Preston (2009: 10). Whereas, applied theatre one of its most major powers is that it gives voice to the voiceless and it is a theatre for, by, and with the people. However, Applied Theatre practitioners are devising educational and entertaining performances bringing personal stories to life and build
working out of the Schiller building (designed by Adler and Sullivan) and then out of a studio
The survival of theatre lies in the very nature of humankind: its inner voyeuristic drive. The desire to watch other people dealing with their conflicts and fates challenges as well as reinforces values and the morality of society. The theatre provides an exciting opportunity to watch stories and situations as if they were real life, showing us the truth of our nature.
For thousands of years, people have been arguing that theatre is a dying art form. Many people think theatre is all just cheesy singing and dancing or just boring old Shakespeare, but there is much more to theatre than those two extremes. Theatre is important to our society because it teaches us more about real life than recorded media. Theatre has been around for thousands of years and began as a religious ceremony that evolved into an art form that teaches about the true essence of life. Theatre can incorporate profound, and provocative, observations of the human condition that can transcend time; lessons found in Greek plays can still be relevant to the modern world. People argue that the very essence of theatre is being snuffed out by modern