Ogunleye Mololuwa emjayroland@yahoo 07032265987

1. OgunleyeMololuwa emjayroland@yahoo.com 07032265987

3. Introduction to Drama

4. Do now • Watch this video to help your knowledge on drama: • http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=s61b0CfAtcw

6. What is Drama?

7. Keywords

9. Drama is a type of literature that is primarily written to be performed for an audience. When reading a play, it is important to keep certain features of drama in mind. Some of these features relate to drama as literature; others reflect its character as a performance.

10. Do you know the types of drama?

11. Types of Drama- Tragedy • Tragedy: A play in which the main character experiences disaster, but faces this downfall in such a way as to attain heroic stature.* • Even though Tragedies are “gloomy” they are triumphant, because they inspire exaltation at the greatness human beings can attain even in defeat.

12. Comedy • Comedy closes with a peaceful resolution of the main conflict.* • High Comedy: The humor arises from subtle characterization, social satire, and sophisticated wit. • Low Comedy: Emphasizes absurd dialogue, bawdy jokes, visual gags, and physical humor.*

13. Types of Comedy • Romantic Comedy: The main characters are lovers, and the plot tends to follow the pattern of “boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl again.” • Satiric Comedy: Uses humor to ridicule foolish ideas or customs with the purpose of improving society. • Comedy of Manners: Satirizes the vices and follies of the upper class.*

14. What other forms of drama do you know?

15. Additional Forms of Drama • Farce: Relies on exaggeration, absurdity, and slapstick • Straight Drama or Drama: Deal with serious subjects, but do not always end in disaster.

16. Try to remember the various elements of drama discussed in the video?

17. Elements of Drama • External Conflict: Pits a character against nature or fate, society, or another character • Internal conflict: Between opposing forces within a character. • Protagonist: The central character of the play and often undergoes radical changes as the action progresses.* • Antagonist: The character who opposes the main character*

18. Foil: A minor character whose traits contrast sharply with those of the protagonist • Dialogue: Conversations between characters • Monologue: A long speech spoken by a single character to himself or herself, or to the audience • Soliloquy: A monologue in which a character speaks his or her private thoughts aloud and appears to be unaware of the audience.

19. Aside: a short speech or comment delivered by a character to the audience, but unheard by the other characters who are present.

20. Conventions of Drama • Cast of Characters: listed in the beginning of the play, before the action starts. • Act: a major division of a play • Scenes: Major division of an act • Stage Directions: a dramatist’s instructions for performing a play.

23. Protagonist

24. Antagonist

25. What do you know about the history of drama?

26. Theater History

27. History… • Greek Drama 500-400 B.C. • Medieval: The Middle Ages 1200-1500 AD • Elizabethan & Jacobean 1500-1642 • Restoration & 18th Cent. Drama 1660-1800 • Romantic Era 1800-1880 • Modern Era 1850-Present

28. Greek and RomanTheater “Drama…an imitation of action not the action itself.” -Aristotle

29. The role of “drama” in the ancient Greek culture was a specific one: it played a significant part in the religious rites of the period.

30. I am a “Thespian” Thespis, was the earliest recorded theater practitioner. He was the first recorded winner of the competition for the performance of tragic plays. It is unclear whether he was an actor, a playwright, a priest, or all or some of these. His name lives on in the word “Thespian,” which is the name for someone who practices the art of the theater.

31. Greek Theater

32. DIAGRAM OF AN ANCIENT GREEK THEATER SPACE

33. The Ancient Greek Theatre Space Skene: A building behind everything in which the actors changed costumes Orchestra: a circular area with an altar in the center where the performances took place Proskenion: a raised platform that supported a small stage. Audience: Usually the theatre spaces were built into hillsides and the seating was arranged in a large semi-circle

35. The Ancient Greek Theatre Space Periaktos: Triangle prisms which could be pivoted to reveal three different backgrounds Eccyclema: a platform on wheels used to display the effects of violence within a play Deus ex Machina: (god from the machine) a crane-like machine that was used to lower an actor, playing the part of god, onto the stage in order to fix the problems at hand

36. THE CHORUS a group of actors onstage who often spoke in unison to prepare the audience for what is about to happen or what has just taken place

37. The Mask The mask was designed to be oversized in order to better convey the expressed emotion to an audience in a large theater. Some masks were designed with a megaphone-like mouth-piece in order to help the actor “project” his voice. Masks also allowed for one actor to play many different parts in the course of one play. What does it mean to “project” your voice?

38. The Ancient Greek Influence Aristotle (384-322 BC) • Philosopher and scientist • “Cathartic Effect” – it allows the viewer to watch the experience without being to involved Aristotle Quotes: “The instinct for imitation is inherent in man from his earliest days, he learns earliest lessons by imitation.” “Drama is an imitation of action not the action itself.” ARISTOTILEAN CASE

39. Roman Theater

40. Ancient Roman Theater ROMAN MASKS The Roman masks were now more specific to archetypal characters: the handsome youth, the father, the parasite, the miser, the mother, the clever slave, and the braggart soldier

41. Medieval Drama • Folk drama = plays performed by wandering troupes of actors • Liturgical drama = plays put on by the Roman Catholic church • Mystery Plays = derived from holy scripture • Passion plays = focused on the crucifixion of Christ • Miracle plays = dramatized the lives of the saints • Morality plays = dramatized sermons with allegorical characters

42. Elizabethan Drama • Raised stage = relied very little on set, but heavily on author’s ability to tell the tale • Female parts were played by young boys • Originality, as we use the term, meant little at the time • Designed to appeal to a wide audience, not the elite.