No tragedies from the 6th century BCE and only 32 of the more than a thousand that were performed in during the 5th century BCE have survived. [29] [30] [g] We have complete texts extant by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. [31] [h] The origins of tragedy remain obscure, though by the 5th century BCE it was institutionalised in competitions ( agon) held as part of festivities celebrating Dionysus (the god of wine and fertility). [32] [33] As contestants in the City Dionysia's competition (the most prestigious of the festivals to stage drama) playwrights were required to present a tetralogy of plays (though the individual works were not necessarily connected by story or theme), which usually consisted of three tragedies and one satyr play. [34] [35] [i] The performance of tragedies at the City Dionysia may have begun as early as 534 BCE; official records ( didaskaliai) begin from 501 BCE, when the satyr play was introduced. [36] [34] [j] A theatre company is an organisation that produces theatrical performances, [4] as distinct from a theatre troupe (or acting company), which is a group of theatrical performers working together. [5] The city-state of Athens is where Western theatre originated. [7] [8] [9] [c] It was part of a broader culture of theatricality and performance in classical Greece that included festivals, religious rituals, politics, law, athletics and gymnastics, music, poetry, weddings, funerals, and symposia. [10] [9] [11] [12] [d] Through the 19th century, the popular theatrical forms of Romanticism, melodrama, Victorian burlesque and the well-made plays of Scribe and Sardou gave way to the problem plays of Naturalism and Realism; the farces of Feydeau; Wagner's operatic Gesamtkunstwerk; musical theatre (including Gilbert and Sullivan's operas); F. C. Burnand's, W. S. Gilbert's and Oscar Wilde's drawing-room comedies; Symbolism; proto- Expressionism in the late works of August Strindberg and Henrik Ibsen; [68] and Edwardian musical comedy.

Goldhill, Simon (1997). "The Audience of Athenian Tragedy". In Easterling, P. E. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Greek Tragedy. Cambridge Companions to Literature series. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp.54–68. ISBN 0-521-42351-1. In its most basic form, stagecraft is managed by a single person (often the stage manager of a smaller production) who arranges all scenery, costumes, lighting, and sound, and organizes the cast. At a more professional level, for example in modern Broadway houses, stagecraft is managed by hundreds of skilled carpenters, painters, electricians, stagehands, stitchers, wigmakers, and the like. This modern form of stagecraft is highly technical and specialized: it comprises many sub-disciplines and a vast trove of history and tradition. The majority of stagecraft lies between these two extremes. Regional theatres and larger community theatres will generally have a technical director and a complement of designers, each of whom has a direct hand in their respective designs. Because of the turmoil before this time, there was still some controversy about what should and should not be put on the stage. Jeremy Collier, a preacher, was one of the heads in this movement through his piece A Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage. The beliefs in this paper were mainly held by non-theatre goers and the remainder of the Puritans and very religious of the time. The main question was if seeing something immoral on stage affects behavior in the lives of those who watch it, a controversy that is still playing out today. [61] Carlson, Marvin (1993). Theories of the Theatre: A Historical and Critical Survey from the Greeks to the Present (Expandeded.). Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-8154-6. Equity, for many kind of performing artists as well as designers, directors, and stage managers in the UK [105]

Women's Lives Surrounding Late 18th Century Theatre". English 3621 Writing by Women . Retrieved August 7, 2012. Spolin, Viola (1999) [1963]. Improvisation for the Theater (3rded.). Evanston, Il: Northwestern University Press. ISBN 0-8101-4008-X. Deal, William E. (2007). Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-533126-4.

Beacham, Richard C. (1996). The Roman Theatre and Its Audience. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-77914-3.

Having been an important part of human culture for more than 2,500 years, theatre has evolved a wide range of different theories and practices. Some are related to political or spiritual ideologies, while others are based purely on "artistic" concerns. Some processes focus on a story, some on theatre as event, and some on theatre as catalyst for social change. The classical Greek philosopher Aristotle, in his seminal treatise, Poetics ( c. 335 BCE) is the earliest-surviving example and its arguments have influenced theories of theatre ever since. [17] [18] In it, he offers an account of what he calls "poetry" (a term which in Greek literally means "making" and in this context includes drama— comedy, tragedy, and the satyr play—as well as lyric poetry, epic poetry, and the dithyramb). He examines its "first principles" and identifies its genres and basic elements; his analysis of tragedy constitutes the core of the discussion. [83] Roach, Joseph R. 1985. The Player's Passion: Studies in the Science of Acting. Theater:Theory/Text/Performance Ser. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan P. ISBN 978-0-472-08244-5.

Leach, Robert (1989). Vsevolod Meyerhold. Directors in Perspective series. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-31843-3. Leach, Robert, and Victor Borovsky, eds. 1999. A History of Russian Theatre. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. ISBN 978-0-521-03435-7. Styan, J. L. (2000). Drama: A Guide to the Study of Plays. New York: Peter Lang. ISBN 978-0-8204-4489-5. Musical theatre may be produced on an intimate scale Off-Broadway, in regional theatres, and elsewhere, but it often includes spectacle. For instance, Broadway and West End musicals often include lavish costumes and sets supported by multimillion-dollar budgets.Melodrama – A melodrama is full of strong emotions. You will see the struggle of the hero or heroine and their quest to overcome adversity. Don't worry, though; it usually ends on a happy note!

Tragicomedy – When you can't choose between a tragedy and a comedy, why not experience both in one performance? Plays are a piece of written literature popularly performed in a theatre setting. Although plays are available in written format, what better way to enjoy them than seeing the characters and story brought to life on stage? From magnificent West End plays to small productions in community and regional theatre, schools, and universities, many consider plays of high importance in art, literature, and entertainment. London is home to a multitude of theatres that put on the best possible productions - comedy, tragedy, and everything in between. Mitter, Shomit. 1992. Systems of Rehearsal: Stanislavsky, Brecht, Grotowski and Brook. London and NY: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-06784-3. Brown, Andrew (1998). "Greece, Ancient". In Banham, Martin (ed.). The Cambridge Guide to Theatre (Rev.ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 441–447. ISBN 0-521-43437-8. Under the patronage of royal courts, performers belonged to professional companies that were directed by a stage manager ( sutradhara), who may also have acted. [44] [48] This task was thought of as being analogous to that of a puppeteer—the literal meaning of " sutradhara" is "holder of the strings or threads". [48] The performers were trained rigorously in vocal and physical technique. [49] There were no prohibitions against female performers; companies were all-male, all-female, and of mixed gender. Certain sentiments were considered inappropriate for men to enact, however, and were thought better suited to women. Some performers played characters their own age, while others played ages different from their own (whether younger or older). Of all the elements of theatre, the Treatise gives most attention to acting ( abhinaya), which consists of two styles: realistic ( lokadharmi) and conventional ( natyadharmi), though the major focus is on the latter. [49] [m]Regarded as the North's premier receiving venue, the iconic Alhambra Theatre attracts the very best in star names and live entertainment to the city of Bradford. Some forms of improvisation, notably the Commedia dell'arte, improvise on the basis of ' lazzi' or rough outlines of scenic action (see Gordon 1983 and Duchartre 1966). All forms of improvisation take their cue from their immediate response to one another, their characters' situations (which are sometimes established in advance), and, often, their interaction with the audience. The classic formulations of improvisation in the theatre originated with Joan Littlewood and Keith Johnstone in the UK and Viola Spolin in the US; see Johnstone 2007 and Spolin 1999. Taxidou notes that "most scholars now call 'Greek' tragedy 'Athenian' tragedy, which is historically correct". [25]