DRAMA OVERVIEW
MORE THAN ANY OTHER LITERARY
FORM, DRAMA IS A VISUAL & COL-
LABORATIVE MEDIUM, DESIGNED
TO BE PERFORMED BY ACTORS IN
FRONT OF AN AUDIENCE.
DRAMA OVERVIEW
GENERALLY SPEAKING, DRAMA IS
MORE DOMINATED BY DIALOGUE
THAN ARE FICTION & POETRY.
DRAMA OVERVIEW
A PLAY (THE COMMON TERM FOR A
DRAMATIC COMPOSITION) ALSO HAS
A NUMBER OF DISTINGUISHING
CON-VENTIONAL ELEMENTS
(DIVISION IN-TO ACTS & SCENES,
STAGE DIREC-TIONS, A LIST OF
CHARACTERS, AND OTHERS).
ORIGINS OF DRAMA
WESTERN DRAMA ORIGINATED
IN ANCIENT GREECE. THE
WORD DRAMA ITSELF COMES
FROM THE GREEK DRAN—
MEANING TO DO, TO ACT.
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
FOR SEVERAL CENTURIES BEGINNING
AROUND 530 B.C.E., PLAYWRIGHTS
COMPETED DURING RELIGIOUS FES-
TIVALS RELATING TO DIONYSUS, GOD
OF WINE & FERTILITY.
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
PLAYS CAME TO BE PERFORMED IN
LARGE OUTDOOR
AMPHITHEATERS. (THE WORD
THEATER COMES FROM THE GREEK
WORDS FOR “SEEING PLACE.”)
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
ACTORS WORE STYLIZED
MASKS THAT SYMBOLIZED
THEIR CHARAC-TERISTICS.
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
ANOTHER CONVENTION OF GREEK
DRAMA WAS THE CHORUS, WHICH
DANCED & SANG BETWEEN SCENES
IN THE ORCHESTRA (THE ROUND
AREA AT THE FOOT OF THE
AMPHITHEA-TER).
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
THE CHORUS REPRESENTED THE
VALUES OF THE COMMUNITY, AND
ITS SCENE-ENDING ODES PROVIDED
COMMENTARY ON THE PLAY AND
CLUES TO WHAT WAS TO COME.
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
ANOTHER CONVENTION WAS THE
DEUS EX MACHINA (“GOD FROM
THE MACHINE”)—AN ELABORATE
MECHANISM FOR LOWERING
ACTORS PLAYING THE ROLES OF
GODS ONTO THE STAGE.
GREEK DRAMA (cont.)
THE MOST IMPORTANT GREEK PLAY-
WRIGHT WAS SOPHOCLES, AUTHOR
OF OEDIPUS REX, CONSIDERED BY
MANY TO BE THE MOST INFLUENTIAL
DRAMA EVER WRITTEN.
ROMAN DRAMA
THOUGH ROMAN DRAMA BASICALLY ADAPTED THE CONVENTIONS OF GREEK DRAMA, THE PLAYWRIGHT SENECA (1ST CENTURY C.E.) HAD A BIG INFLUENCE ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE 5-ACT PLAY & THE REVENGE TRAGEDIES (E.G., HAMLET) OF ELIZA-BETHAN ENGLAND.
MEDIEVAL DRAMA
DURING THE MIDDLE AGES (500-1350)
THE CLASSICAL TRADITION WAS
LOST, AND PLAYS BECAME VEHICLES
FOR RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION. THE
TWO MOST COMMON TYPES OF PLAYS
WERE MIRACLE PLAYS & MORALI-
TY PLAYS.
MEDIEVAL DRAMA (cont.)
MIRACLE PLAYS DRAMATIZED
BIBLE STORIES OR THE LIFE &
MARTYRDOM OF A SAINT.
MEDIEVAL DRAMA (cont.)
MORALITY PLAYS (SUCH AS THE 15TH-
CENTURY EVERYMAN) DRAMATIZED
ALLEGORIES OF THE CHRISTIAN
SOUL IN QUEST OF SALVATION &
EMPLOYED PERSONIFIED
ABSTRACTIONS SUCH AS SHAME,
LUST, MERCY, ETC. AS CHARACTERS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA
AFTER ITS BIRTH IN ANCIENT GREECE,
DRAMA’S NEXT GREAT PERIOD OF
DEVELOPMENT WAS IN ENGLAND DUR-
ING THE REIGNS OF QUEEN ELIZABETH
(1558-1603) & KING JAMES I (1603-1625).
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
EXEMPLIFIED BY THE PLAYS OF WM.
SHAKESPEARE, DEALING LARGELY
W/ THE ACTIONS, INTRIGUES, & RO-
MANCES OF KINGS, QUEENS, &
OTHER HIGHBORN CHARACTERS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
AS IN GREEK DRAMA, NO WOMEN
WERE ALLOWED ON THE STAGE.
PLAYS OFTEN BLENDED ACTION,
HUMOR, & VIOLENCE W/ POETRY
& PHILOSOPHICAL INSIGHTS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
EARLY PLAYS WERE PERFORMED
IN INNYARDS & OPEN SPACES
BETWEEN BUILDINGS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
THEATERS WERE CIRCULAR & ONLY
PARTLY ROOFED, WITH THE AUDI-
ENCE ON THE SIDES AS WELL AS IN
FRONT OF THE RAISED STAGE.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
THEATERS HELD UP TO 2500 PEOPLE
IN AN INTIMATE SETTING,
INCLUDING 500-800 GROUNDLINGS
(COMMON-ERS WHO STOOD IN THE
“PIT” AT THE FOOT OF THE STAGE).
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
THOUGH SCENERY & PROPS WERE
LIMITED, COSTUMES & SOUND EF-
FECTS WERE QUITE ELABORATE.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
STAGES INCLUDED A SECOND-
LEVEL BALCONY, DOORS AT THE
BACK FOR ENTRANCES & EXITS, A
CURTAINED ALCOVE, AND A TRAP
DOOR IN THE STAGE FLOOR FOR
THE ENTRANCES & EXITS OF
SPIRITS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
ONE CONVENTION WAS THE ASIDE:
COMMENTS DIRECTED ONLY TO
THE AUDIENCE THAT MAKE THEM
PRIVY TO A CHARACTER’S
THOUGHTS & THAT ALLOW THEM
TO PERCEIVE IRONIES & INTRIGUES
UNKNOWN TO OTHER CHARACTERS.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
ANOTHER CONVENTION WAS THE
SOLILOQUY (FROM THE LATIN
FOR “TALKING TO ONESELF”).
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
A SOLILOQUY, WHICH IS NOT PART OF
THE DIALOGUE OF THE PLAY, IS A
SPEECH DELIVERED BY A LONE ACTOR
ON THE STAGE FOR THE PURPOSE OF
REVEALING HIS OR HER THOUGHTS,
MOTIVES, & INNER NATURE.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
PROBABLY THE MOST FAMOUS
SOLI-LOQUY IS HAMLET’S “TO BE
OR NOT TO BE” SPEECH.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
IN ELIZABETHAN DRAMA, THE CHOR-US OF GREEK DRAMA EVOLVED INTO A PERSON WHO SOMETIMES SPOKE THE PROLOGUE & EPILOGUE OF A PLAY, PROVIDING AUTHORIAL COM-MENTARY AS WELL AS EXPOSITION REGARDING THE SUBJECT, TIME, SET-TING, ETC. OF THE PLAY.
ELIZABETHAN DRAMA (cont.)
SOME PLAYS HAVE WHAT IS CALLED
A CHORAL CHARACTER (E.G., THE
FOOL IN KING LEAR) WHO STANDS
APART FROM & COMMENTS ON THE
ACTION OF THE PLAY.
MODERN DRAMA
THE MOST POPULAR FORM OF
DRAMA IN THE 19TH CENTURY,
ESPECIALLY IN THE U.S. &
ENGLAND, WAS MELO-DRAMA.
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
MELODRAMAS ARE LOVE STORIES &
ACTION-PACKED, INTRIGUE-FILLED
PLOTS W/ HAPPY ENDINGS & FLAT,
STEREOTYPED CHARACTERS REPRE-
SENTING EXTREMES OF GOOD & EVIL.
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
THE LATE 19TH & EARLY 20TH CENTU-
RIES SAW THE RISE OF REALISM,
WHICH PRESENTS THE CRISES AND
CONFLICTS OF ORDINARY PEOPLE’S
EVERYDAY LIVES (WORK, FAMILY,
RELATIONSHIPS, ETC.).
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
THE PICTURE-FRAME STAGE BECAME
THE NORM, OFTEN REPRODUCING
SETTINGS IN REALISTIC DETAIL.
SCENERY & PROPS ARE IMPORTANT.
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
FOUR-ACT PLAYS BECAME THE
NORM, AND CONVENTIONS SUCH AS
ASIDES & SOLILOQUIES FELL INTO
DISUSE.
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
THE 20TH CENTURY ALSO SAW THE
RISE OF THE THEATER OF THE
AB-SURD, W/ ITS SEEMINGLY
UNINTELL-IGIBLE PLOTS &
IRRATIONAL BEHAV-IOR.
MODERN DRAMA (cont.)
IN WAITING FOR GODOT, FOR IN-STANCE, TWO TRAMPS AMUSE THEM-SELVES W/ AIMLESS CONVERSATION & MEANINGLESS ACTIVITY WHILE WAITING IN A WASTE PLACE FOR A PERSON NAMED GODOT WHO NEVER COMES (AND WHO MAY OR MAY NOT EXIST).
MAJOR TYPES OF DRAMA
TRAGEDY FOCUSES ON LIFE’S SOR-
ROWS & DIFFICULTIES, RECOUNTING
A SERIES OF IMPORTANT EVENTS IN
THE LIFE OF A SIGNIFICANT PERSON,
TREATED W/ SERIOUSNESS & DIGNI-
TY, AND CULMINATING IN AN
UNHAP-PY CATASTROPHE.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
THE BASIC STRUCTURE & PURPOSE
OF TRAGEDY WERE FIRST DEFINED
IN ARISTOTLE’S POETICS.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
ACCORDING TO ARISTOTLE, A TRAG-
IC HERO IS A GREAT MAN OR WO-
MAN WHO SUFFERS A REVERSAL OF
FORTUNE (LIKE OEDIPUS IN
OEDIPUS REX) B/C OF A WEAKNESS,
ERROR IN JUDGMENT, OR ACCIDENT.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
ARISTOTLE CALLED THIS ERROR ETC.
HAMARTIA, WHICH DURING THE
RENAISSANCE EVOLVED INTO THE
CONCEPT OF THE TRAGIC FLAW.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
ARISTOTLE ALSO SAID THAT WATCH-
ING THE HERO’S DOWNFALL (THE
CATASTROPHE) AND SEEING THE
DRAMA’S RESOLUTION (RESTORA-
TION OF ORDER), . . .
TRAGEDY (cont.)
. . . THE AUDIENCE EXPERIENCES
A CATHARSIS—I.E., RELIEF FROM
THE TENSIONS OF THE PLAY (A
PURGING OF “PITY AND FEAR”)
AND A SENSE OF HAVING GAINED
INSIGHT, ENLIGHT-ENMENT.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
TRAGIC HEROES AROUSE PITY B/C
THEY ARE NOT EVIL & B/C THEIR
MIS-FORTUNE EXCEEDS WHAT THEY
DE-SERVE; THEY AROUSE FEAR B/C
THE AUDIENCE RECOGNIZES
THEMSELVES IN THE HERO & THE
POSSIBILITY OF A SIMILAR FATE.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
PLAYS FROM ELIZABETHAN TO MOD-
ERN TIMES HAVE DEVIATED GREATLY
FROM THE ARISTOTELIAN NORM. FOR
EXAMPLE, SOMETIMES THE HERO IS
NOT A GOOD PERSON (MACBETH).
TRAGEDY (cont.)
ALSO, AFTER THE 18TH CENTURY,
TRAG-IC HEROES BEGAN TO BE DRAWN
FROM THE MIDDLE & LOWER CLASSES
IN WHAT ARE CALLED DOMESTIC
TRAG-EDIES, THUS LAYING THE
FOUNDA-TION FOR MODERN DRAMAS
LIKE DEATH OF A SALESMAN.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
COMIC RELIEF WAS ALSO INTRO-
DUCED INTO TRAGEDIES, AND THE
GENRE OF TRAGICOMEDY
(ESSENTIAL-LY A TRAGEDY W/ A
HAPPY ENDING) EVOLVED.
TRAGEDY (cont.)
SINCE MODERN TRAGEDIES DO NOT
ALWAYS FOLLOW THE CONVENTIONS
OF CLASSICAL TRAGEDY, SOME CRIT-
ICS ARGUE THAT THEY ARE NOT TRUE
TRAGEDIES & THAT THEIR PROTAGO-
NISTS NOT TRAGIC HEROES.
COMEDY
A COMEDY IS A PLAY OF A LIGHT,
AMUSING NATURE IN WHICH
CHAR-ACTERS OVERCOME
ADVERSITY TO ACHIEVE SUCCESS
& A HAPPY END-ING, OFTEN IN
THE FORM OF MAR-RIAGE.
COMEDY (cont.)
PROBLEMS ARE EITHER NOT VERY
SERIOUS OR ARE TREATED IN A
LIGHT-HEARTED MANNER,
CONVEY-ING THE SENSE THAT NO
GREAT DIS-ASTER WILL BEFALL
THE CHARAC-TERS.
COMEDY (cont.)
THE DISTINCTION IS OFTEN MADE
BE-TWEEN LOW COMEDY (WHICH
IS CRUDE, PHYSICAL, EVEN
VIOLENT) & HIGH COMEDY
(WHICH IS MORE THOUGHTFUL &
INTELLECTUAL IN ITS APPEAL).
COMEDY (cont.)
IN ROMANTIC COMEDY, LOVERS
MUST ENDURE HUMOROUS TRIALS
& TRIBULATIONS EN ROUTE TO A
LIFE OF HAPPILY EVER AFTER (A
MID-SUMMER’S MIGHT DREAM,
SLEEP-LESS IN SEATTLE).
COMEDY (cont.)
A COMEDY OF MANNERS IS A SAT-
IRICAL PORTRAYAL OF THE CONVEN-
TIONS & MANNERS OF A SOCIETY,
USUALLY THE DOMINANT ONE AT
THE TIME A PLAY IS WRITTEN.
COMEDY (cont.)
THE COMEDY OF MANNERS
DELIGHTS IN THE FAULTS & FOIBLES
OF HUMAN-ITY, BUT AT THE SAME
TIME IS MORE REALISTIC & CRITICAL
THAN ROMAN-TIC COMEDY.
COMEDY (cont.)
THE COMEDY OF MANNERS WAS
HIGH-LY DEVELOPED IN THE LATE
17TH CEN-TURY IN WITTY PLAYS
THAT EXPOSED THE HYPOCRITICAL
CONVENTIONS & RIDICULOUS
ARTIFICIALITIES OF HIGH SOCIETY.
COMEDY (cont.)
THE COMEDY OF MANNERS
EVOLVED INTO SATIRIC COMEDY,
WHICH RIDICULES THE VAIN &
FOOLISH, TREATING THEM W/
SARCASM & MAKING THEM SEEM
LUDICROUS & REPULSIVE.
COMEDY (cont.)
ANOTHER POPULAR FORM OF COM-
EDY IS FARCE, WHICH PRESENTS
EXAGGERATED CHARACTER TYPES
IN IMPROBABLE OR LUDICROUS
SITUA-TIONS, AND EMPLOYS SEXUAL
MIX-UPS, BROAD VERBAL HUMOR, &
A LOT OF ANTIC PHYSICAL ACTIVITY.