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Theater History Review

Total questions: 25

Worksheet time: 13mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What was one of the first types of theater to emerge in the ancient world?

a)

staged readings

b)

pantomime

c)

morality plays

d)

improv

2.

Which culture performed play trilogies in a competitive atmosphere?

a)

Egyptians

b)

Medieval Europe

c)

Ancient Greece

d)

Romans

3.

Where does the word "tragedy" come from?

a)

the Greek "tragos" - meaning goat song

b)

the Greek "tragis" - meaning drama

c)

Shakespeare invented it

d)

dues ex machina

4.

Which of these is not an Ancient Greek tragedy?

a)

Medea

b)

A Midsummer Night's Dream

c)

Antigone

d)

Oedipus Rex

5.

What were the 3 original types of plays?

a)

comedy, tragedy, and satyr

b)

tragedy, satyr, and drama

c)

trick question - only tragedy and comedy

d)

medieval, greek, and roman

6.

What kind of theatrical space were Greek plays often performed in?

a)

proscenium

b)

box theater

c)

open-air theater

d)

opera stage

7.

What is a main characteristic of Roman Drama?

a)

often written about the history of Rome

b)

plays were imitations of Greek theater, typically made fun of the original form

c)

many were "closet dramas" meant to be read rather than performed

d)

all of the above

8.

What were "mansions" in Medieval Times?

a)

platforms where plays were performed in churches

b)

houses for the actors as they traveled

c)

large houses for the rich to live in

d)

the name for the plays themselves

9.

What are the major types of Medieval Theater?

a)

religious and non-religious

b)

liturgical, mystery, miracle, and morality

c)

liturgical, miracle, morality, and ampitheater

d)

miracle and morality

10.

Why was theater so important in Medieval Times?

a)

it provided an escape from the hard times of the peasants

b)

it communicated messages from the church to society and so was used for more than mere entertainment

c)

it established morality plays, which still continue to teach lessons in various formats today

d)

it helped to establish traditions on holidays such as Christmas, Easter, etc.

11.

What does it mean to project while acting?

a)

to talk really loudly

b)

to speak quietly

c)

to cast images on a skrim for a background

d)

to speak in a way that your voice clearly carries to the audience

12.

What does it mean to "cheat out" while acting?

a)

to open up your body position so the audience can see more of you

b)

to close your body position so the audience can see less of you

c)

to turn your back to the audience

d)

to stand directly facing the audience

13.

"Acting is all about...."

a)

reacting

b)

memorizing lines

c)

pretending

d)

making tons of money doing car commercials

14.

To memorize lines in a monologue, you should...

a)

Break it down line by line and learn each line by itself, then put it all together

b)

Practice from the beginning through the line you're currently working on, repeating until you have it

c)

Just look over it all together once

d)

trick question, you shouldn't memorize a monologue - you should improvise every time

15.

What does "renaissance" mean?

a)

rebirth

b)

noble

c)

the arts, especially theater

d)

improv

16.

What was a characteristic of Elizabethan theater?

a)

it was performed "in the round"

b)

acting was often over-the-top

c)

men played women's roles

d)

all of the above

17.

The theater most of Shakespeare's plays were performed at was:

a)

The Rose

b)

The Renaissance

c)

The Globe

d)

a colloseum

18.

What is Shakespeare's birth day/death day?

a)

October 1st

b)

July 4th

c)

April 2nd

d)

April 23rd

19.

According to Shakespeare, what types of scenes should be performed off-stage?

a)

moments of great sorrow and great joy

b)

moments of great violence and great joy

c)

nothing - all should be performed on stage

d)

moments of great violence

20.

How many plays did Shakespeare write?

a)

100

b)

37

c)

27

d)

10

21.

What were the major types of plays Shakespeare wrote?

a)

histories, tragedies, comedies

b)

tragedies and comedies

c)

histories and sonnets

d)

farce and commedia

22.

Which of these is NOT a famous line from a Shakespeare play?

a)

"All that glitters is not gold"

b)

"To be or not to be, that is the question"

c)

"In a nutshell"

d)

"All the world's a stage and all the men merely players."

23.

What is the name of Shakespeare's wife, whom he married at age 18?

a)

Natalie Portman

b)

Anne Hathaway

c)

Rosalind Capulet

d)

Queen Elizabeth

24.

According to Liev Schrieber, when reading Shakespearean monologues, what should you do?

a)

read to the end of each line

b)

ignore all punctuation

c)

read to the end of each thought

d)

say it in a silly accent

25.

In theater, what does it mean to "call for line?"

a)

sneak a peek at your script on stage when you forget a line

b)

the stage manager will give you the next word or two so you can continue

c)

the stage manager will give you the whole line so you can continue

d)

have someone else on stage tell you your line