The Theater Experience

Edwin Wilson was educated at Vanderbilt, the University of Edinburgh and Yale. At the Yale Drama School he received his Master of Fine Arts Degree as well as the first Doctor of Fine Arts Degree awarded by Yale. He has taught theater at Yale, Vanderbilt, Hunter College, Hofstra, and currently directs the Center for Advanced Study in the Theater Arts at the CUNY Graduate Center. He was the theater critic for the Wall Street Journal for twenty years. He is the author of The Theater Experience and co-author with Alvin Goldfarb of the Anthology of Living Theater and Theater: The Lively Art, 4th edition.

Part 1 - THE AUDIENCE Chapter 1 - The Audience: Its Role and Imagination The Relationship Between Performer and Audience The Special Nature of Theater: A Contrast with Film The Chemistry of Performer-Audience Contact Theater as a Group Experience Psychology of Groups How Audience Makeup Affects the Theater Experience The Separate Roles of Performers and Spectators How Should the Audience Be Involved? Audience Participation through Direct Action The Imagination of the Audience Tools of the Imagination: Symbol and Metaphor The "Reality" of the Imagination The Imaginary Worlds of Theater Realism and Nonrealism Distinguishing Stage Reality from Fact Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 2 - Background and Expectations of the Audience Background of Individual Spectators Background of the Period Theater and Society Greek Theater and Culture Elizabethan Theater and Culture Modern Theater and Culture Background Information on the Play or Playwright Expectations: The Variety of Experiences in Modern Theater Broadway and Touring Theater Resident Professional Theaters Alternative Theaters: Off-Broadway and Elsewhere Children's Theater College and University Theaters Multiethnic, Multicultural, and Gender Theaters Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 3 - The Critic and the Audience Theatrical Criticism What Is Criticism? Preparation for Criticism Critical Criteria Descriptive and Prescriptive Criticism Fact and Opinion in Criticism The Reviewer and the Critic Getting Started in Theater--Mel Gussow, Critic The Audience's Relationship to Criticism: Two Issues The Audience's Independent Judgment Analysis and Overanalysis Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 4 - Stage Spaces Creating the Environment Theater Spaces Proscenium Stage Arena Stage Thrust Stage Created and Found Spaces All-Purpose Theater Spaces Special Requirements of Theater Environments Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Play Synopsis: A Raisin in the Sun Play Synopsis: Fefu and Her Friends Play Synopsis: King Oedipus Part 2 - THE PERFORMERS AND THE DIRECTOR Chapter 5 - Acting: Offstage and in the Past "Acting" in Everyday Life Imitation Role Playing Acting in Life versus Acting Onstage Photo Essay: Audra McDonald Stage Acting: A Historical Perspective Physical Demands of Classical Acting Vocal Demands of Classical Acting Performing in Classics Today Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 6 - Stage Acting Today The Acting Experience Challenges of Acting Today The Development of Realistic Acting Performers' Training Today Synthesis and Integration Judging Performances Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 7 - The Director and the Producer The Theater Director Evolution of the Director: A Historical Perspective The Director and the Script Getting Started in Theater--Zelda Fichandler, Director The Director and the Production The Director's Power and Responsibility The Producer or Manager The Commercial Producer Noncommercial Theaters Completing the Picture: Playwright, Director, and Producer Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Play Synopsis: Death of a Salesman Play Synopsis: The Three Sisters Part 3 - THE PLAY: TYPES OF THEATER Chapter 8 - The Text: Subject, Purpose, and Perspective Subject Focus and Emphasis Purpose Viewpoint What Is Point of View? The Dramatist's Point of View Society's Point of View Viewpoint and Genre Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 9 - Tragedy and Other Serious Drama Tragedy Traditional Tragedy Modern Tragedy Heroic Drama Bourgeois or Domestic Drama Melodrama Getting Started in Theater--Emily Mann, Playwright-Director Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 10 - Comedy and Tragicomedy Comedy Characteristics of Comedy Techniques of Comedy Forms of Comedy Tragicomedy What Is Tragicomedy? Modern Tragicomedy Theater of the Absurd Absurdist Plots: Illogicality Absurdist Language: Nonsense and Non Sequitur Absurdist Characters: Existential Beings Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 11 - Musical Theater Background Drama and Music The Appeal of Music and Dance Types of Musical Theater A Brief History of the American Musical Antecedents The 1920s and 1930s: Musical Comedies The 1920s and 1930s: Advances in Musicals Musical Theater of the 1940s and 1950s Musicals from the 1960s through the 1990s Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 12 - Theater of Diversity African American Theater Background of African American Theater African American Theater in the Middle and Late Twentieth Century Getting Started in Theater--August Wilson, Playwright Asian American Theater Background of Asian Theater Contemporary Asian American Theater Hispanic Theater Native American Theater Feminist Theater Gay and Lesbian Theater Performance Art Fringe Theater Festivals Postmodernism and Culturally Diverse Theater Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Play Synopsis: M. Butterfly Play Synopsis: The Way of the World Play Synopsis: Fences Part 4 - THE PLAYWRIGHT: DRAMATIC CHARACTERS AND DRAMATIC STRUCTURE Chapter 13 - Dramatic Characters Types of Characters Extraordinary Characters Representative or Quintessential Characters Stock Characters Characters with a Dominant Trait Minor Characters A Narrator or Chorus Nonhuman Characters Using Dramatic Characters Effectively: Juxtaposition and Interaction Juxtaposition of Characters Major and Minor Characters Orchestration of Characters Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 14 - Conventions of Dramatic Structure Essentials of Dramatic Structure The Form of Drama: Plot versus Story The Subject and Verb of Drama: People and Action The Crucible of Drama: Conflict Structural Conventions: The Rules of the Game Limited Space Limited Time Strongly Opposed Forces A Balance of Forces Incentive and Motivation Creating a Dramatic Structure The Opening Scene Obstacles and Complications Crisis and Climax Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 15 - Dramatic Structure: Climactic, Episodic, and Other Forms Climactic Structure Characteristics of Climactic Structure Significant Periods of Climactic Structure Episodic Structure Characteristics of Episodic Structure Significant Periods of Episodic Structure Combinations of Climactic and Episodic Form Ritual and Pattern as Dramatic Structure Rituals Patterns Serial Structure Experimental and Avant-Garde Theater Special Structures Getting Started in Theater--Richard Foreman, Director, Playwright, and Designer Segments and Tableaux as Structure Structure in Musical Theater Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Play Synopsis: Waiting for Godot Play Synopsis: Ghosts Play Synopsis: A Streetcar Named Desire Part 5 - The Designers: Environment, Visual Elements, and Sound Chapter 16 - Scenery A Brief History of Stage Design "Stage Sets" in Everyday Life Scenery for the Stage Objectives of Scene Design Aesthetic Aspects of Scene Design The Scenic Environment Mood and Style Realistic and Nonrealistic Scenery Locale and Period The Design Concept The Central Image or Metaphor Coordination of the Whole Scene Design and Popular Entertainment Practical Aspects of Scene Design The Physical Layout Materials of Scene Design Special Effects Getting Started in Theater--Robin Wagner, Scene Designer The Process of Scene Design Elements of Design Steps in the Design Process Photo Essay: The Designer Prepares a Production The Scene Designer's Collaborators Designing a Total Environment Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 17 - Stage Costumes Costumes in Everyday Life Costumes for the Stage Objectives of Costume Design The Process of Costume Design Getting Started in Theater--Jess Goldstein, Costume Designer The Costume Designer at Work Other Elements Makeup Hairstyles and Wigs Masks Coordination of the Whole Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Chapter 18 - Lighting and Sound Stage Lighting A Brief History of Stage Lighting Objectives and Functions of Lighting Design Achieving the Objectives: The Lighting Designer Getting Started in Theater--Peggy Eisenhauer, Lighting Designer Sound in the Theater Sound Reproduction: Advantages and Disadvantages The Sound Designer Sound Reproduction and Sound Reinforcement Sound Technology Summary Exploring Theater on the Web Play Synopsis: Mother Courage and Her Children Epilogue: Integrating the Elements and Predicting the Future The Audience: Integrating the Elements Observation and Assimilation Observing the Elements as Parts of a Whole The Overall Effect: What Does Theater "Mean"? The Modern Theater: Different Purposes, Different Experiences The Future: What Lies Ahead? Summary Appendix A - Technical Terms Appendix B - Major Theatrical Forms and Movements Appendix C - Historical Outline Notes Select Bibliography Index