Life = Routine + Drama

If your life is only routine, it would be too boring.

If your life is only drama, it would be too temperamental.

A balance of both, and you have yourself an exciting yet orderly life.

How does drama mirror real-life situations?

Drama is a combination of miserable and blissful happenings. In drama, these are the
performances of an actor and an actress. They act or express distressing parts like; they are
enduring pain and heavy feelings that make tem sob. However, they also act delighted like;
cracking up some shaggy dog stories so that it would be something creative and different.

Likewise, in life, it is also like a drama. There are parts that are sad and happy. And we are the
characters, the actors and the actresses. We act or perform the episode of our lives. We handle
it. For instance, where there’s a conflict, we shed a tear, having solidarity and making a move.
But in the end, we share happiness and enjoyment in our lives.

But the most important thing between drama and the reality of our lives are the lessons that we
learned from our mistakes. In drama, it isn’t always having a happy ending. It could be tragic one.
Just like in our lives, it’s result would probably a disaster if we would take the wrong path. And I
believe if we take the right one, there are no regrets at al. We will be happy eternally.

THE BENEFITS OF DRAMA AND PLAY

1. Drama builds confidence
2. Drama helps concentration
3. Drama helps develop language and communication skills
4. Drama encourages children to cooperate
5. Drama supports numeracy skills
6. Drama helps children to understand the world around them
7. Drama develops emotional intelligence
8. Drama assists physical development
9. Drama develops creativity
10. Drama nurtures friendships
 What are the types of theatre stages and auditoria?

Theatres have evolved with different internal layouts according to the types of productions presented
there. The most common types of stage arrangements are listed below.

Proscenium stages

Proscenium stages have an architectural frame, known as the

proscenium arch, although not always arched in shape. Their stages
are deep and sometimes raked, meaning the stage is gently sloped
rising away from the audience. Sometimes the front of the stage
extends past the proscenium into the auditorium. This is known as an
apron or forestage. Theatres containing proscenium stages are known
as proscenium arch theatres and often include an orchestra pit for live
music and a fly tower for the movement of scenery and lighting.

Thrust stages

As the name suggests, these project or ‘thrust’ into the auditorium with
the audience sitting on three sides. The thrust stage area itself is not
always square but may be semi-circular or half a polygon with any
number of sides. Such stages are often used to increase intimacy
between actors and the audience.

Theatres in-the-round

These have a central performance area enclosed by the audience on all

sides. The arrangement is rarely ‘round’: more usually the seating is in
a square or polygonal formation. The actors enter through aisles or
vomitories between the seating. Scenery is minimal and carefully
positioned to ensure it does not obstruct the audience’s view.

Black-box or studio theatres

These are flexible performance spaces which when stripped to their

basics are a single room painted black, the floor of the stage at the
same level as the first audience row. Usually these spaces allow for the
temporary setup of seating in a number of different configurations to
enable a wide variety of productions to be presented.

Arena theatres

Arena theatres are large scale auditoria and have a central stage area with audiences on all sides, similar
to theatres in-the-round. The stage area is usually rectangular, more like a sports arena, with tiered
seating.
Platform stages

These usually consist of a raised rectangular platform at one end of a room. They can either have a level
or raked sloping floor. The audience sit in rows facing the stage. Platform stages are often used in multi-
purpose halls where theatre is only one of the space’s uses. Where the stage is open and without
curtains, they are sometimes known as end stages or open stages.

Hippodromes

Hippodromes are similar to circuses and have a central circular arena surrounded by concentric tiered
seating. Deep pits or low screens often separate the audience from the arena.

Open air theatres

These are outdoor theatres that do not have a roof, although

sometimes parts of the stage or audience seating will be covered.
These stages may make use of the natural light as it changes
during the day, particularly sunset.

Site-specific theatre

Site-specific theatre is usually performed in a non-traditional theatre space such as a pub, home or
warehouse, often reflecting the history, atmosphere or experiences of a particular location.

Promenade theatre

This involves the audience moving from place to place following the actors and performance.

Different Types of Drama.

Greek Drama

 For several Centuries beginning around 530 B.C.E Playwrights competed during religious
festivals relating to Dionysus, God of Wine and Fertility.
 Plays came to be performed in large outdoor Amphitheaters (The word Theater comes
from the Greek word for “Seeing Place)
 Actors wore stylized masks that symbolizes their characteristics.

 Another convention of Greek drama was the chorus, which danced & sang between scenes in the
orchestra (The round area at the foot of the amphitheater.
 
 T h e c h o r u s r e p

commentary on the play and clues to what was to come.

 Another convention was the Deux Ex Machina (God From The Machine)- An elaborate
mechanism for lowering actors playing the roles of Gods onto the stage.
 The most important Greek Playwright was Sophocles, author of Oedipus Rex, considered by
many to be the most influential drama ever written.

Roman Drama

 Though Roman drama basically adapted the conventions of Greek drama, the playwright
SENECA (1st Century C.E) has a big influence on the development of the 5-act play & the
revenge tragedies (E.G., Hamlet) of Elizabethan England.

Medieval Drama

 During the middle ages (500-1350) The classical tradition was lost, and plays became vechicles
for religious expression. The two most common types of plays were Miracle Plays & Morality
Plays.
 Miracle Plays Dramatized bible stories or the life & martyrdom of a saint.
 Morality Plays (such as the 15th-Centruy Everyman) dramatized allegories of the Christian soul in
quest of salvation & employed personified abstraction such as shame, Lust, Mercy,
Elizabethan Drama

 After its birth in ancient Greece, drama’s next great period of development was in England during
the reigns of queen Elizabeth (1558-1603) & King James I (1603-1625)
 Exemplified by the plays of William Shakespeare, dealing largely with the actions, intrigues &
romances of kings, queens & other highborn characters