Bethany Hansen

B3

“I regard the theatre as the greatest

of all art forms, the most immediate

way in which a human being can

share with another the sense of

what it is to be a human being.”

Oscar Wilde

Dictionary.com: “an art form portraying a

dramatic event for entertainment uses”

Mimicry of human behavior containing plot,

climax, characters, and other thematic

elements

Used as a channeling of human sentiments

Thought to originate from the Greek god of

fertility and wine: Dionysus

Thespis became the first actor and is where

the term thespian comes from

Several years occurred before the invention

of the third or fourth actor

The Greeks held competitions for tragedies

to determine who had the greatest writing

skills

The Greeks also held these competitions for

comedies when they were invented later on

Romans developed theatre, frequently

copying Greek plots and having competitions

1564-1616

Wrote in plays in three categories: comedy,

tragedy, history

Wrote about 38 plays during his career

His literature was so famous, it is still used

as a learning guide for curriculum

Romeo and Juliet

One of Shakespeare’s most well-know play ever written, it is an

extremely popular piece of literature and used frequently in

modern theatres.

Several inventions led to the creation of film

such as: photography, chronophotography,

phosmotrope, and the kinematoscope

The first films were only a few seconds long

and of a simple activity such as sneezing

As technology increased, so did motion

picture

Eventually, movies became longer and plots

more complicated

Five major film studios know at the Big Five

Studios became extremely successful,

generating 90% of all fiction films made

during the 1920s

Warner Brothers

20th Century Fox

Paramount Pictures

A Radio Picture

Metro-Goldwyn Mayer

Film did not really become popular until the

1920s

It became an activity available to everyone

and not just the upper class

Technology continued increasing, and the

silent film became a thing of the past

When speaking film first came out, the

actors/actresses would not sound pleasant or

the camera would make excessive noise

when moving

The first musical was “The Black Crook” and

came in 1866.

The area of Broadway became a popular

place of entertainment because it was a busy

part of town in New York City where many

people lived.

As theatres began being built, the number of

shows steadily increased

Broadway Actors/ Actresses

Lillian Russell

Ethel Merman

Al Jolson

Fred and Adele Astaire

Gene Kelly

Carol Channing

Ethel Water

Composers/ Writers

George and Ira Gershwin

Leonard Bernstein

Cole Porter