Theatre (Greek "theatron", "θέατρον") is the branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed any one or more elements of the other performing arts. In addition to the standard narrative dialogue style, theatre takes such forms as opera, ballet, mime, kabuki, classical Indian dance, Chinese opera, mummers' plays, and pantomime.
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"Drama" (literally translated, Action, from a verbal root meaning "I do") is that branch of theatre in which speech, either from written text (plays), or improvised is paramount. "Musical theatre" is a form of theatre combining music, songs, dance routines, and spoken dialogue. However, theatre is more than just what one sees on stage. Theatre involves an entire world behind the scenes that creates the costumes, sets and lighting to make the overall effect interesting. There is a particularly long tradition of political theatre, intended to educate audiences on contemporary issues and encourage social change. Various creeds, Catholicism for instance, have built upon the entertainment value of theatre and created (for example) passion plays, mystery plays and morality plays.
There is an enormous variety of philosophies, artistic processes, and theatrical approaches to creating plays and drama. Some are connected to political or spiritual ideologies, and some are based on purely "artistic" concerns. Some processes focus on a story, some on theatre as an event, some on theatre as a catalyst for social change. According to Aristotle's seminal theatrical critique Poetics, there are six elements necessary for theatre. They are Plot, Character, Idea, Language, Song, and Spectacle. The 17th-century Spanish writer Lope de Vega wrote that for theatre one needs "three boards, two actors, and one passion". Others notable for their contribution to theatrical philosophy are Konstantin Stanislavski, Antonin Artaud, Bertolt Brecht, Orson Welles, Peter Brook, Jerzy Grotowski.
The most recognisable figures in theatre are the directors, playwrights and actors, but theatre is a highly collaborative endeavour. Plays are usually produced by a production team that commonly includes a scenic or set designer, lighting designer, costume designer, sound designer, dramaturg, stage manager, and production manager. The artistic staff are assisted by technical theatre personnel who handle the creation and execution of the production.
Some believe it is important for actors to study all commonly taught acting methods to perfect their craft. Methods include: Meisner, Stanislavsky, Strasberg, and Hagen.
There are a variety of genres that writers, producers and directors can employ in theatre to suit a variety of tastes:
This list is not only somewhat incomplete and eurocentric, but none of the genre listed are actually mutually exclusive. The richness of live theatre today is such that its practitioners can borrow from all of these elements and more, and present something that is a multi-disciplinary melange of pretty much everything.
In the British Isles and most English-speaking countries the spelling of the word is theatre. In the United States, the alternative spelling theater, an inheritance from Noah Webster's attempt to Americanize the English language, is common. The general consensus of most American style guides is to use theater unless the word is part of the proper name of a particular performing arts facility or company that uses the spelling theatre [1] [2] [3]. Even in the U.S., both spellings are widely accepted. In particular, theatre is traditionally the preferred spelling in New York City.[citation needed]
For some people in the U.S., the two spellings carry different meanings: theatre denotes the performing arts, whereas theater refers to the building in which performances or other entertainments are presented [citation needed]. However, among theatre professionals in the U.S., theatre is common for both the art and the building.
It is also sometimes the case for 'theatre' to signify a live performance, and 'theater' to signify a place where movies are shown.
Technical Theatre