If you’re a newcomer to theatre – here’s some language to learn!
Dramaturgy – the art or technique of dramatic composition and theatrical representation
- Ideological approach
- How the theme organises the elements
- For writing – it is the composition in a way it works
- How all aspects of drama work together
Catharsis – The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions
- We feel fear when we empathise with the character - we can imagine the same thing happening to us
- Catharsis is achieved by evoking the emotions of pity + fear in the audience
- Achieving satisfaction through a satisfactory resolution (right is rewarded, evil is punished, loss is grieved, etc.)
Tragic Hero – The central character of a play, film, etc., depicted as a noble figure who experiences a tragic downfall
- Noble hero - good but not perfect
- Falls from a position of affluence/power/grace to one of ignominy (reversal of fortune)
- A character that is like us but slightly better than us (not so far above us we can't empathise - we can look up to them)
- Pity is revoked by normal people (fundamentally decent humans to sympathise with the characters) - can be flawed characters
- Has a hamartia (a fatal error/flaw) - instrumental in their own downfall
- Pride can get us in trouble
- Characters are flawed - that's why there is a play in the first place
- Catharsis wouldn't happen if the character is too perfect - its too unrealistic - no pity, no catharsis
Comedy – Professional entertainment consisting of jokes and sketches, intended to make an audience laugh
- Relatable characters
- Got events that aren't life-threatening
- Sticky, and awkward - potentially embarrassing situations
- All's well that ends well
- What forms the "arc" - if nothing happens soon
Well-Made Play (Freytag’s Triangle) – Elements of Dramatic Structure
Exposition: given the circumstances of a protagonist
Stasis: this situation is stable
Inciting incident: event that sets the plot in motion; the ‘major dramatic question’ soon follows
Rising action: pursuing objectives, encountering obstacles (presented by an antagonist)
Complication: things get worse and worse
Midpoint: the major event halfway through
Falling action: choices made in relation to the midpoint crisis
Catastrophe: the worst moment for the protagonist/s
Resolution/Denouement: protagonist’s new normal or a new world without them
Fichtean Curve
Rising action
Crises Crises Crises Crises
Climax
Falling Action
- Begins immediately with rising action, followed by a series of fast-paced obstacles
Character Arcs
The Change Arc
- Aka "the hero's journey"
- The protagonist changes from an unlikely hero/heroine, or even villain/underdog, into a saviour + hero (even if inner strength was always there, somewhere deep within …)
- Involves radical change which can stem from external circumstances or inner qualities (i.e. Cinderella's innate goodness), but in the end, their life is changed in some significant way
- The goal
- The lie/lack
- The truth
- Virtuous - good will be rewarded eventually
The Growth Arc
- The protagonist overcomes an internal conflict (weakness, fear, insecurities, the past etc.) whilst facing challenges in their external environment
- Grows into a more enlightened, often better (though sometimes worse - Breaking Bad!) individual
- Growth (development), not change, is brought about by enlightenment. The character ends differently, but not necessarily happier or better - perspective
The Fall Arc
- Tragedy
- Where the protagonist dooms him/herself and/or others, & declines into insanity, immorality or death
- Examples: Oedipus, Hamlet, Macbeth, etc.