Theatre in the round
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
(Difference between revisions)
| Revision as of 11:17, 2 October 2022 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Current revision Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| - | '''Medieval theatre''' refers to the [[theatre]] of [[Europe]] between the fall of the [[Western Roman Empire]] in the 5th century A.D. and the beginning of the [[Renaissance]] in approximately the 15th century A.D. Medieval theatre covers all drama produced in Europe over that thousand year period and refers to a variety of genres, including [[liturgical drama]], [[mystery plays]], [[morality plays]], [[farce]]s and [[masque]]s. Beginning with [[Hrosvitha]] of Gandersheim in the 10th century, Medieval drama was for the most part very religious and moral in its themes, staging and traditions. The most famous examples of medieval plays are the [[English cycle dramas]] and the [[morality play]], ''[[Everyman (play)|Everyman]]''. | + | A '''theatre in the round''', '''arena theatre''' or '''central staging''' is a space for [[theatre]] in which the audience surrounds the [[Stage (theatre)|stage]]. |
| - | Due to a lack of surviving records and texts, a low literacy rate of the general population, and the opposition of the clergy to some types of performance, there are few surviving sources on medieval drama of the [[Early Middle Ages|early]] and [[High Middle Ages|high]] medieval periods. However, by the [[Late Middle Ages|late]] period, [[drama]] and [[theatre]] began to become more secularized and a larger number of records survive documenting [[play (theatre)|plays]] and performances. | + | Theatre-in-the-round was common in ancient theatre, particularly that of [[Greece]] and [[Rome]], but was not widely explored again until the latter half of the 20th century. |
| - | + | The Glenn Hughes Penthouse Theatre in [[Seattle, Washington]] was the first theatre-in-the-round venue built in the United States. It first opened on May 19, 1940 with a production of ''Spring Dance'', a comedy by playwright [[Philip Barry]]. | |
| - | ==Texts and Authors== | + | |
| - | Many texts survive from this era. Some of the most important ones are: | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | *''[[Quem Quaeritis?]]'' - the piece of the liturgical Easter mass that eventually grew into a huge body of religious drama | + | |
| - | *"[[The Second Shepherds' Play]]" from the Wakefield (also called Towneley) Cycle | + | |
| - | *The York cycle - the longest mystery cycle in existence | + | |
| - | *''[[Everyman (play)|Everyman]]'' - this Flemish play is the most famous morality play | + | |
| - | *''[[The Castle of Perseverance]]'' - from 1440, it's the earliest known full-length vernacular play in existence. It's especially important because a stage drawing is included, which may suggest [[theatre in the round]]. | + | |
| - | *"[[La Farce de maître Pierre Pathelin]]" - a French farce that was very popular for over a century. | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | Most authors of medieval plays are anonymous. Important ones are: | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | *[[Hrosvit]]ha - the first female playwright, a nun from [[Bad Gandersheim|Gandersheim]] | + | |
| - | *The Wakefield Master - contributor to some of the plays of the [[Wakefield Cycle]], including "The Second Shepherds' Play." His real name is not known. | + | |
| - | *[[John Bale]] - English churchman | + | |
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| - | *[[Wakefield Mystery Plays]] | + | *[[Arena]] |
| - | *[[The Second Shepherds' Play]] | + | *''[[The Castle of Perseverance]]'' |
| - | *[[History of theatre]] | + | *[[Thrust stage]] |
| - | *[[Medieval French literature]] | + | |
| - | *[[Oberammergau Passion Play]] | + | |
| - | *[[Carnival]] | + | |
| - | *[[The Vice]] | + | |
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Current revision
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
A theatre in the round, arena theatre or central staging is a space for theatre in which the audience surrounds the stage.
Theatre-in-the-round was common in ancient theatre, particularly that of Greece and Rome, but was not widely explored again until the latter half of the 20th century.
The Glenn Hughes Penthouse Theatre in Seattle, Washington was the first theatre-in-the-round venue built in the United States. It first opened on May 19, 1940 with a production of Spring Dance, a comedy by playwright Philip Barry.
[edit]
See also
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Theatre in the round" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
