Chapter 1: Theatre, Art, and Entertainment

Chapter 1Chapter 1

Theatre, Art, and Theatre, Art, and EntertainmentEntertainment

What is Art?What is Art?

A skillA skillFrom the Greek word - technē

An act of beautyAn act of beautyFrom a branch of philosophy known as

aestheticsA specific meaningA specific meaning

From an attempt to understand ourselves and the world around us

What is Art?What is Art?

“ “Art is a selective re-creation of reality according Art is a selective re-creation of reality according to an artist’s metaphysical value judgments. to an artist’s metaphysical value judgments. Man’s profound need for art lies in the fact that Man’s profound need for art lies in the fact that his cognitive faculty is conceptual, i.e., that he his cognitive faculty is conceptual, i.e., that he acquires knowledge by means of abstractions, acquires knowledge by means of abstractions, and needs the power to bring his widest meta-and needs the power to bring his widest meta-physical abstractions into his immediate physical abstractions into his immediate perceptual awareness.”perceptual awareness.”

Ayn Rand, aAyn Rand, author and philosopheruthor and philosopher

What are the basic qualities of art What are the basic qualities of art

that all works of art share?that all works of art share?

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Art is a Form of Human ExpressionArt is a Form of Human Expression

The word The word artart springs from the same root springs from the same root as the word as the word artificialartificial. .

Art is not the real thing but rather a Art is not the real thing but rather a human creative endeavor that involves human creative endeavor that involves the perceptions and imagination of an the perceptions and imagination of an artist who is trying to say something in artist who is trying to say something in his or her own particular way. his or her own particular way.

““In one sense the aim In one sense the aim of the scientist and the of the scientist and the aim of the artist are aim of the artist are the same since both the same since both are in pursuit of what are in pursuit of what they call truth; but the they call truth; but the difference between difference between them may be said to them may be said to consist in this, that consist in this, that while for science there while for science there is only one truth, for is only one truth, for the artist there are the artist there are many.”many.”

Joseph Wood Krutch,Joseph Wood Krutch,

author and philosopherauthor and philosopher

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Art Involves Subject and Art Involves Subject and MediumMedium

Spatial ArtsSpatial Arts ArchitectureArchitecture SculptureSculpture

Pictorial ArtsPictorial Arts PaintingPainting Line and color in two dimensionsLine and color in two dimensions

Literary ArtsLiterary Arts PoetryPoetry Novels and short storiesNovels and short stories

Performing ArtsPerforming Arts Performed by a personPerformed by a person

Art Makes You Feel Art Makes You Feel SomethingSomething

Paul Drinkwater/NBCU Photo Bank via AP Images

Michael Falco/The New York Times/Redux

Art Provides a Perception of Art Provides a Perception of Order Order

““It is the function of all art to give us some It is the function of all art to give us some perception of an order in life, by imposing perception of an order in life, by imposing order upon it.” order upon it.”

T. S. Eliot, poetT. S. Eliot, poet

““Life is very nice, but it lacks form. It’s the Life is very nice, but it lacks form. It’s the aim of art to give it some.”aim of art to give it some.”

Jean Anouilh, playwrightJean Anouilh, playwright

What is the Purpose of Art?What is the Purpose of Art?

““I am suspicious of I am suspicious of any theory of art any theory of art which says that art which says that art is just one thing is just one thing and that it can be and that it can be defined in a single defined in a single aim, function, or aim, function, or purpose.”purpose.”

Harold Taylor, Harold Taylor,

art philosopherart philosopher

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What is Theatre?What is Theatre?

The word theatre comes from the Greek word theatron meaning “seeing place.”

“A man walks across this empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for act of theatre to be engaged.”

Peter Brook, The Empty Space

What is Drama?What is Drama?

The word drama comes from the Greek The word drama comes from the Greek word word dran dran meaning “to take action, to do, meaning “to take action, to do, or to make”or to make”

Drama tells a story about people in conflictDrama tells a story about people in conflict

Both Theatre and DramaBoth Theatre and DramaShare Three QualitiesShare Three Qualities

They are live – no two performances are They are live – no two performances are the samethe same

They are about human beingsThey are about human beings

They are collaborative art formsThey are collaborative art forms

CommonCommonCategories Categories

of of TheatreTheatre

1. Commercial Theatre1. Commercial Theatre

Commercial plays Commercial plays offer safe themes, offer safe themes, plenty of laughs, plenty of laughs, and spectacle and spectacle designed to appeal designed to appeal to a majority of to a majority of people, thereby people, thereby filling lots of seats filling lots of seats and ideally making and ideally making lots of money.lots of money.

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2. Historical Theatre2. Historical Theatre

Presents dramas that uses styles, themes, and staging of plays from a particular historical period.

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3. Political Theatre3. Political Theatre

Allows Allows playwrights, playwrights, directors, and directors, and actors to express actors to express their personal their personal opinions about opinions about current issues, current issues, trends, and trends, and politicspolitics

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4. Experimental Theatre4. Experimental Theatre

It might break down It might break down barriers by barriers by eliminating the eliminating the distance between distance between actor and audience, actor and audience, trying out new trying out new staging techniques, staging techniques, or even questioning or even questioning the nature of the nature of theatre itselftheatre itself

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5. Cultural Theatre5. Cultural Theatre

Is designed to support the heritage, Is designed to support the heritage, customs, and POV of a particular customs, and POV of a particular people, religion, class, country, or people, religion, class, country, or community. community.

This theatre provides a window into a This theatre provides a window into a world that is different from their own world that is different from their own or by preserving the unique or by preserving the unique traditions of a particular society.traditions of a particular society.

““When you come into the When you come into the theater, you have to be theater, you have to be willing to say, ‘We're all willing to say, ‘We're all here to undergo a here to undergo a communion, to find out communion, to find out what the hell is going on in what the hell is going on in this world.’ If you're not this world.’ If you're not willing to say that, what you willing to say that, what you get is entertainment instead get is entertainment instead of art, and poor of art, and poor entertainment at that.entertainment at that.

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Art and EntertainmentArt and Entertainment Lets us see another’s POVLets us see another’s POV Requires active viewingRequires active viewing Is about self-examinationIs about self-examination Has great potential as an Has great potential as an

agent of social changeagent of social change Challenges the audienceChallenges the audience Is about edification, Is about edification,

transcendence, transcendence, contemplationcontemplation

Does not compromise for Does not compromise for public tastepublic taste

Reaffirms our own POVReaffirms our own POV Is directed toward the Is directed toward the

largest possible numberlargest possible number Makes no intellectual Makes no intellectual

demands on the viewerdemands on the viewer May examine life but May examine life but

does not lead to does not lead to criticismcriticism

Has little potential as an Has little potential as an agent of social changeagent of social change

Is about gratification, Is about gratification, indulgence, escapeindulgence, escape

Curtain CallCurtain Call

We need art and theatre because they help us We need art and theatre because they help us see life differently. see life differently. Entertainment allows us to Entertainment allows us to see life as see life as we see it, with our values and we see it, with our values and perceptions perceptions intact. intact.

Art, on the other hand, allows us to expand our Art, on the other hand, allows us to expand our experience, intensify our perceptions, challenge experience, intensify our perceptions, challenge conventional wisdom, and introduce another conventional wisdom, and introduce another frame of reference—that of the artist.frame of reference—that of the artist.