What Does Theater Mean
We explain what the theater is, its origin, elements that compose it and other characteristics. Also, types of theater and great plays.
What is the theater?
Theater is one of the oldest cultural and artistic activities known to mankind . It is one of the performing arts , that is, those that take place on a stage, and consists of the recreation of one or more stories of a different nature through actors, speeches , music and scenery.
The theater has been cultivated throughout history for very different purposes, but always understood as a tool to communicate ideas massively. In fact, the ancient Greeks used it as an instrument of religious and civic education , staging their myths and famous tragedies .
On the other hand, the avant - garde of the twentieth century also saw in the theater a field of experiments , in which they could subject the public to experiences and reflections of a different nature.
It is, therefore, a very versatile art form, which combines intellectual exercise with the representation of funny, moving, shocking situations, etc. There are very varied forms of theatrical representation, some of which do not even take place inside a theater, but on the street, and some even require the participation of the public.
Although both terms are often used synonymously , in the strict sense it is advisable not to confuse theater (stage performance) with dramaturgy (writing the theatrical text). The former is a stage genre, while the latter is a literary genre . Nor should we confuse the theater as an artistic genre, with the theater as a building in which these types of representations take place.
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Origin of the theater
Aunque distintas formas de representación teatral o escénica, como danzas chamánicas, bailes religiosos o ceremonias de todo tipo tuvieron lugar en la sociedad humana desde sus épocas más primitivas, el teatro como forma de arte proviene de la antigüedad clásica , específicamente de la Grecia antigua.
Eso no significa que no hubiera antecedentes importantes en culturas anteriores, como la egipcia. Por ejemplo, era común en el Imperio Medio la presencia de actores que, disfrazados con máscaras, relataban los mitos fundacionales de la muerte y resurrección de Osiris.
Sin embargo, fueron los griegos los primeros en cultivarlo profundamente: incluso la palabra «teatro» deriva del vocablo griego théatron , que traduce “sitio para contemplar” (del verbo theáomai , “mirar”, del que proviene también “teoría”). Las representaciones de la época se daban en un espacio central para la actividad cívica, y solían asistir los ciudadanos de todas las edades, como parte de su educación cívica, política y religiosa.
Según explica Aristóteles en su Poética , los griegos antiguos consideraban el teatro un lugar en el que podían purgarse las pasiones bajas del ser humano , a través de la puesta en escena de situaciones conmovedoras. Este proceso era llamado catarsis , y garantizaba que salieran del teatro mejores ciudadanos de los que entraban.
Inicialmente, estas representaciones eran rituales religiosos de culto a dioses específicos, como Dionisos. Posteriormente fue desarrollándose como un género artístico (“poético”, diría Aristóteles).
Thus, the great classical playwrights of Greece (Sophocles, Euripides and Aeschylus) used tragedy (and to a lesser extent, comedy ) as a way to challenge their culture and expose the cultural dramas of the time, central to the construction of the Western imaginary . Not for nothing are they still studied and performed today, and their influence can be found in the great playwrights of later times .
Theater features
The theater as an artistic form has the following characteristics:
- It consists of the staging, that is, the live representation, of some story or situations , in which different characters interact . This performance generally takes place on the stage of a suitable installation (a theater, amphitheater, auditorium, etc.), although it can also take place in other settings, public or private.
- It is generally performed before an audience or audience , which depending on the type of staging may be more or less involved in the piece, being passive spectators or having some degree of participation (real or simulated) in it.
- It requires the performance of professionals trained in representation (actors), who embody the different characters in the story and give them life. Formerly, these actors were only men and they used masks that illustrated the character of the character, something that still survives in oriental theatrical variants, such as the Japanese No Theater.
- The stories represented always take place in the presence of the public, that is, in a recreated present. Rarely does a narrator intervene to tell part of the story, although it is also possible.
- The theatrical space can contain scenographic material (decoration and setting), as well as props, or it can appeal to the imagination to provoke everything.
Theatrical elements
Every theatrical piece consists of the following elements:
- A stage. Which is the background on which the action takes place and which may or may not be identified with the real world. In it, the elements of the scenography are usually found, which are part of the decoration, and which add atmosphere to the representation. Many pieces, however, dispense with scenery and simply use the performance to elicit the background, the scenery, and even the props.
- Props. Which are objects with which the actors will interact: swords, flowers, trees, glasses, tables, and a long etcetera. They can be on stage, being real or simulated, or they can be aroused through acting and imagination.
- Actors. The most important thing in any theatrical piece, those who face all kinds of characters and carry out the play by representing the actions of the plot.
- The script. That is, the dramatic text that contains the indications to represent the play and that can be more or less obeyed by the director of the play.
Theater types
Since ancient times, the theater has been differentiated according to certain characteristics of its representation. Thus, it is often spoken of theatrical genres, among which major forms (longer and higher) and minor forms (shorter and more popular) are distinguished. Next, we will see them separately:
Major forms. In theory, those that are more demanding for the public and the actors, since they required long theatrical times and many acts.
- Tragedy . According to Aristotle, it is the genre that represents human beings better than they are, in order to later show their fall from grace. It is a genus born in ancient times and little cultivated today,
- Comedy . Aristotle defined it as a gender that represents human beings worse than they are, in order to laugh at them. This is particularly important when the taunt is aimed at the powerful. Comedy was also born in ancient times, but survives to this day.
- Tragicomedy. Originally known as "drama", it is supposed to be a middle ground between tragedy and comedy, in which elements of both genres can be recognized.
Minor forms. Those, therefore, whose representation requires less time. They are very abundant, but the best known are:
- Auto sacramental. Theatrical pieces whose theme revolves around the religious theme, specifically the Christian tradition. They were very common during medieval Europe.
- Side dish. A short piece of a comic type, which they performed in the intermissions of a major comedy (that is, the performance of which took longer).
- Farce. A short form of comedy that pushes the limits of reality to the absurd, making it grotesque.
- Monologue. A short theatrical piece in which there is a single character on stage, who speaks for himself or for the audience.
- Vaudeville. A light comedy whose plot is based on misunderstandings, misinterpretations and tends to be full of love scenes and musical numbers.
- Melodrama. A modified form of drama that reinforces its emotional content with the intervention of orchestral music, the forerunner of today's telenovela.
On the other hand, the theater can be classified according to what is necessary for its representation, in:
- Chamber theater. European theatrical variant with a small audience and a small, close stage, which seeks to bring viewers closer to the plot emotionally.
- Street theater. One that does not require a stage but is done outdoors, in public spaces or even in the crowd.
- Puppet Theater. As its name suggests, it is a variant (childish or not) that uses dolls instead of actors.
- Immersive theater. Those avant-garde variants that incorporate the public into the work, either as silent spectators but present on stage, or as involuntary participants in the plot.
Great plays
Some of the best known plays of all time are:
- Sophocles' Oedipus the King .
- The oresteia (3 pieces) of Aeschylus.
- Medea of Euripides.
- Lysistrata of Aristophanes.
- Hamlet by William Shakespeare.
- Life is a dream of Pedro Calderón de la Barca.
- Fountain Ovejuna de Lope de Vega.
- Don Juan Tenorio from José de Zorrilla.
- Moliere's imaginary patient .
- Fausto JW Goethe.
- The cherry garden by Anton Chekhov.
- Henrik Ibsen dollhouse .
- Bernarda Alba's house by Federico García Lorca.
- Eugéne Ionesco's bald singer .
- Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett.
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