THEA 100 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Theatre Of The Ridiculous, San Francisco Mime Troupe, Peking Opera
Chapter 1: Anticipation
• Theatre transports you on a journey
• Show is not complete without the audience’s response (actors feed off of you)
• What is Live Theatre?
o Actor: performers take on outside persona
▪ Some degree of transformation
o Audience: those who agree to watch the performance
o Space: the space transformed for the performance
▪ Altered temporarily to reflect relationships between actors and audience
o Story: a tale told about the life of someone who has experienced or dreamed
something worthy of attention
▪ Not always a discernable plot (musical revue)
• Abstract nonlinear theatre (fill the gaps with own experiences)
o Doesn’t need to be in a fancy theatre per se
o Don’t always need a script
▪ Need “a board and a passion”
• A place to perform and the impulse to do so
o Public rallies can become theatre by speakers assuming character of another
• What Does Theatre Give?
o Diverts us (takes us out of everyday life)
o Gives us an “emotional workout” (actor’s feelings are contagious)
o Can illuminate some aspect of the human condition (tackling issues or talking
about the meaning of life)
o A way for the community to come together and share essential experiences
(proves that we are not alone – shared humanity)
o Gives us indelible memories (don’t forget a live performance)
• The Range of Theatre
o Powerful to act out and observe enactment
o Examples:
▪ The Bread and Puppet Theatre – political satire
▪ The Spiderwoman Theatre – comic devices to make serious points
▪ The New Globe Theatre – Shakespeare theatre replica
▪ The National Theatre of the Deaf – sign language and spoken
performances
▪ The Beijing Opera – gymnastic performances
▪ The Ridiculous Theatrical Company – gay literary satires
▪ The Access Theatre Company – dance pieces
▪ The Intertribal Theatre Company – military personnel training
▪ The San Francisco Mime Troupe – attack big government policies
▪ The National Theatre – “politically correct” professional production
▪ Ogun’s Mysteries – annual tale passed down through generation
▪ The Silken Phoenix – musical theatre that celebrates Asia’s greatest
women poets
• Mako – Godfather of Asian American Theatre
o Makoto Iwamatsu
