AFRICAN-AMERICAN THEATRE PART 3
AFRICAN-AMERICAN THEATRE PART 4
PLAYWRIGHTS
GENRE/TRAGEDY/COMEDY
GENRE/TRAGEDY/COMED
100
---> WRITER, PLAYWRIGHT, POET ---> RUN LITTLE CHILLUN (1933) AND MULATTO (1935) PERFORMED ON BROADWAY
WHO WAS LANGSTON HUGHES?
100
---> 1960s-1990s WAS OUTPOURING OF A.A. THEATRE THAT REFLECTED CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUES OF THE TIME ---> AMIRI BARAKA (LeRoi Jones) WROTE DUTCHMAN IN 1964- VERBAL AND SEXUAL SHOWDOWN IN NY SUBWAY B/W A MIDDLE CLASS BLACK MAN AND WHITE WOMAN, SHE SEDUCES AND KILLS HIM ---> EFFECTIVE IN CAPTURING COMPLEXITY OF RACIAL PROBLEMS OF U.S. ---> BY 1970, THERE WERE OVER 125 THEATRE COMPANIES IN U.S.
WHAT WAS THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND WHO WAS A PART OF IT?
100
---> MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM (1984) ---> FENCES (1985) ---> JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE (1986) ---> THE PIANO LESSON (1990) ---> SEVEN GUITARS (1995) ---> JATNEY (2000)
WHAT PLAYS DID AUGUST WILSON WRITE?
100
---> FRENCH WORD MEANING CATEGORY/TYPE ---> CATEGORY OF ARTISTIC, MUSICAL, LITERARY COMPOSITION CHARACTERIZED BY PARTICULAR STYLE, FORM, CONTENT ---> OLDEST/BEST KNOWN GENRES R TRAGEDY/COMEDY
WHAT IS GENRE?
100
---> 19TH CENTURY ---> EVERYDAY PEOPLE ---> INDIVIDUAL IS HELPLESS VICTIM OF SOCIETY ---> WRITTEN IN PROSE: EVERYDAY SPEECH ---> BUT STILL ASKS SAME ?S OF LIFE
WAHT R THE COMPONENTS OF MODERN TRAGEDY?
200
---> PERFORMED A RECORD RUN OF 296 PERFORMANCES OF OTHELLO IN 1943
WHO WAS PAUL ROBESON?
200
---> SELF-PROCLAIMED BLACK FEMINIST (PAULETTE WILLIAMS) ---> NTOZAKE: SHE WHO HAS HER OWN THINGS AND SHANGE: SHE WALKS W/LIONS ---> IN 1975, SHE WROTE FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF ---> SERIES OF 20 POEMS PERFORMED BY 7 WOMEN SHOWN BY A COLOR, "LADY IN RED", "LADY IN PURPLE" ---> DEALS W/WOMEN ISSUES: LOVED, ABANDONMENT, RAPE, ABORTION, DOMESTIC VOLENCE
WHO WAS NTOZAKE SHANGE?
200
---> FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF (1975)
WHAT PLAY DID NTOZAKE SHANGE WRITE?
200
---> SERIOUS DRAMA INVOLVING OFTEN IMPORT. PEOPLE IN CALAMAITOUS CIRCUMSTANCES ---> PURPOSE: EVOKES FEAR/APPREHENSION IN AUDIENCE ---> MANY CONSIDER TRAGEDY LOFTIEST AND MOST PROFOUND FORM OF THEATRE ---> EXPLORES BASIC ?s OF HUMAN EXISTENCE
WHAT IS A TRAGEDY?
300
---> JOINED THE ZIEGFELD FOLLIES ----> ONLY BLACK PERFORMER ----> 1st BLACK PERFORMERS TO RECEIVE EQUAL BILLING W/WHITES
WHO WAS BERT WILLIAMS?
300
---> STUDIED UNDER LlOYD RICHARDS ---> ONE OF MOST SUCCESSFUL AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHTS OF ALL TIME ---> MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM (1984), FENCES (1985), JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE (1986), THE PIANO LESSON (1990), SEVEN GUITARS (1995), JATNEY (2000)
WHO WAS AUGUST WILSON?
300
---> ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP TO FREEDOM
WHAT PLAY DID WILLIAM WELLS BROWN WRITE?
300
---> DIFF. TIME PERIODS HAD RIGHT CONDITIONS 4 TRAGEDY ---> 2 GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR TRAGEDY THROUGHOUT HISTORY 1. IDEA THAT HUMAN BEINGS R CAPABLE OF EXTRAORDINARY ACCOMPLISHMENTS 2. IDEA THAT WORLD IS POTENTIALLY CRUEL/UNJUST
WHT R THE CONDITIONS FOR A TRAGEDY?
300
---> HUMOROUS DRAMA WHOSE CHARACTERS, ACTIONS, EVENTS ARE INTENDED TO PROVOKE AMUSEMENT ---> SUSPENSION OF NATURAL LAWS OF PROBABILITY AND LOGIC ---> DO NOT HSVE SAME CONSEQUENCES AS REAL LIFE
WHAT IS A COMEDY?
400
---> DURING 1920s, 20 PLAYS WERE PRESENTED ON BROADWAY W/BLACK THEMES, 5 OF THOSE WERE WRITTEN BY A.A. ---> SHUFFLE ALONG-HUGE HIT ON BROADWAY IN 1921 ---> BECAME MODEL FROM WHICH ALL BLACK MUSICALS WERE JUDGED ---> NATIVE SON BY RICHARD WRIGHT DIRECTED BY ORSON WELLS AT MERCURY THEATRE IN 1941 ---> VERY CONTROVERSIAL PLAY
WHAT IS COMMERCIAL THEATRE?
400
---> PLAYWRIGHT, DIRECTOR, AND HEAD OF THE PUBLIC THEATRE IN NYC ---> WROTE AND DIRECTED THE COLORED MUSEUM (1986), JELLY'S LAST JAM, ND BRING IN da' NOISE, BRING IN da' FUNK
WHO WAS GEORGE C. WOLFE?
400
---> A TRIP TO COONTOWN (1898)
WHAT DID BOB COLE AND WILLIAM JOHNSON WRITE?
400
1. TRAGIC HEROES/HEROINES: EXTRAORDINARY PERSON (KING/QUEEN/NOBLE) STANDS AS A SYMBOL FOR SOCIETY 2. TRAGIC CIRCUMSTANCES: HERO CAUGHT IN SET OF TRAGIC CIRCUMSTANCES TRAPPED BY FATE 3. TRAGIC IRRETRIEVABILITY: HERO SUFFERS SERIES OF REVERSALS: NO TURN BACKS, NO WAY OUT 4. ACCEPTANCE OF RESPONSIBILITY: HERO ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR ACTIONS, WILLING TO SUFFER, HERO RECOGNIZES FLAW/FAULT THAT LEADS TO DOWNFALL 5. TRAGIC VERSE: LANGUAGE IS VERSE (RHYME IN METER) B/C IT DEALS W/LOFTY IDEAS
WHAT R THE COMPONENTS OF A TRAD. TRAGEDY?
400
---> IDEA/CONCEPT TURNS RULES OF SOCIETY UPSIDE DOWN ---> VERBAL HUMOR, CHARACTERIZATION, & COMIC SITUATIONS ARE EXAGGERATED
WHAT IS COMIC PREMISE?
500
---> 1st BLACK DIRECTOR ON BROADWAY ---> DIRECTED LORRAINE HANSBERRY'S A RAISIN IN THE SUN (1959) ---> IMMEDIATE HIT AND 1 OF MOST SUCCESSFUL PLAYS OF DECADE ---> LATER BECAME HEAD OF YALE SCHOOL OF DRAMA ---> BY 1930s, HE NURTURED TALENTS OF MOST SUCCESSFUL BLACK PLAYWRIGHTS
WHO WAS LlOYD RICHARDS?
500
---> WAITING FOR GADOT ---> ENDGAME
WHAT PLAYS DID SAMUEL BECKETT WRITE?
500
---> WHEN ALL ELEMENTS R COMBINED, PRODUCES 2 CONTRADICTORY REACTIONS 1. THE HEROES R DAMNED IF THEY DO, DAMNED IF THEY DON'T---> WORLD IS CRUEL 2. BUT A SPARK OF HOPE EXISTS
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF A TRAD. TRAGEDY?
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