Final Vocab Flashcards
(32 cards)
The Shuberts
3 brothers, Lee, Sam, Jacob - Producing organization - own 17 Broadway Theatres
Melodrama
a genre which aims to emphasize emotion - one characteristic is stock characters/stereotypes
Vaudeville
a genre of theatrical entertainment that consists of multiple, unrelated acts - a variety show
Actor’s Equity Association
American labor union that represents Actors and Stage Managers in live performance
Tin Pan Alley
collection of NY song writers/publishers who dominated in the early 20th century - name is reference to the sound of many pianos compared to banging on tin pans
The Nederlander Organization
largest operator of theatre and music venues in the US - Owns 9 Broadway Theatres (among many other theatres in other parts of the US)
ASCAP
American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, protects the copy and licensing rights of musical artists (particularly in live performance); they collect a fee when someone wants to do a song and pay the artists a royalty
George M. Cohan
composer/lyricist/actor/playwright/performer/producer (mainly writer, producer, performer); known for his extreme American patriotism and understanding of the national identity; one of the early members of ASCAP
Provincetown Players
group of writers and artists who went vacationing in Provincetown, Massachusetts to present their plays on the veranda of a cottage; PURPOSE: provide a venue for American playwrights and new plays (outside of the commercial theatre
The Pulitzer Prize
award for achievements in 5 categories (newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition in the US); win a certificate /$15,000 cash prize
American Theatre Wing
NYC-based organization “dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre” according to the mission statement; Jonathan Larson grant to support young playwrights
The Theatre Guild
NY Theatrical society whose original purpose was to produce NON-COMMERCIAL works by American and FOREIGN playwrights; produced PORGY & BESS and OKLAHOMA!
Burlesque
genre of variety show entertainment featuring female striptease and bawdy comedy; an older definition exists in the realm of parody/mockery
The West End
theatre district in Central/West London - name was establishes to distinguish the nice parts of London
The Hairy Ape
A 1992 expressionist play by Eugene O’Neil about a steamship laborer searching for a sense of belonging in industrial America
Showboat
the first book musical (to merge singing, dancing, acting with plot/character) by Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern; about a performing troupe on a boat; changed musical theater forever but was not capitalized on until 7 years later with the creation of OKLAHOMA
The Broadway League
league for owners, operators, producers, and general managers; the national trade association for Broadway theatre; founded to prevent ticket scalping
Anything Goes
musical with music/lyrics by Cole Porter; story follows madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from NY to London
The Group Theatre
theatre collective formed in 1931 by Harold Clurman, Lee Strausberg, and Cheryl Crawford; pioneers of the American acting technique, derived from teachings of Stanislavsky; naturalistic, highly disciplined artistry
Waiting for Lefty
1935 play by Clifford Odets; series of vignettes framed by a meeting of cab drivers who are planning a labor strike; first of Odets to be produced by the Group Theatre
Harold Clurman
founding member of the Group Theatre; American theatre director and drama critic; directed over 40 plays (including many of those at the Group Theatre like Awake and Sing! By Odets)
The Federal Theatre Project
New Deal program to fund theatre and other live artistic performances during the Great Depression
Porgy and Bess
English opera by George Gershwin w/ libretto by DuBose Heyward and Ira Gershwin; featured a cast of classically trained AA singers
Mulatto
play by Langston Hughes; one of the earliest Broadway plays to combine father-son conflict with race issues
