Topic Theatre

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Theatre I. Learn the following vocabulary , look up the words you don’t know in a dictionary. Make up your own situations with them. Shows go to the theatre to see a drama performance/play a puppet show an opera a ballet a musical comedy a musical a circus performance Genres

a comedy

a tragedy a romantic comedy a farce Buying

to book/to buy tickets at the ticket office

Tickets

for an evening performance /a matinee[΄mætΙneΙ]

for a first night /an opening night an entrance ticket tickets for/sit in… Interior

the stalls/the orchestra stalls To sit in the fifth row of the stalls the boxes the pit the balcony

Frequently used

Who is in the cast tonight?/that evening

2 phrases Staging a performance

The company and other people creating a performance

People offering services In the theatre At the theatre

The Settings

What is on tonight? The house is sold out/the house is full to stage a performance written by a certain playwright to be on stage/to run /to have a long/ a short run to have rehearsals /a dress rehearsal the artistic director of the theatre the director the producer the leading actors/actresses who star in the performance to act in the leading/supporting role/to perform the role of…/ the part of.. a costume designer a make-up designer a stage manager a stage hand a set designer a prompter a choreographer a lightning engineer a sound engineer a conductor a musician a composer a ticket-taker an usher/an attendant a cloak-room attendant to be a great theatre-goer a spectator to leave one’s clothes and heavy bags in the cloak-room to get a label to take opera glasses to have a snack at a theatre café/refreshment bar to walk in the lobby to buy a programme / a booklet to take one’s seats when the bell rings the curtain rises/is raised the curtain falls/is dropped/drops the interval to receive several curtain calls to applaud loudly There was great applause after each act. The scenery was exceptionally beautiful/incredibly realistic They used the surround volume system to create the effect of presence and give an emotional colouring to the performance. To be especially beautiful in the footlights To stand in the wings To get ready in the dressing rooms To appear on the stage

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Sharing one’s Impressions of the production and the acting

This performance/ this actress/ is much spoken about exciting brilliant striking to give a marvelous/magnificent/fantastic/terrific performance The direction is unusual/original/extraordinary. boring primitive disgusting vulgar spectacular thrilling to be first-rate to be moving /touching to make/to produce a deep impression on sb to leave much to be desired to be at one’s best /at one’s worst to have a strong emotional impact on sb to have a cathartic effect to drive sb to tears to feel like crying/ laughing to receive good/bad reviews in newspapers to be close to the book The acting was natural This actor overacted too much. The actress burnt herself out on stage. The actor put his heart and soul into the role. The actress caught the spirit of the character very well. The actor revealed the emotional state and the inner world of the main character. to be exceptionally good at varying one’s voice His face was very expressive. to manage to penetrate into the inner world of the character to be a success/a failure to succeed in bringing the character to life This actor/actress is charismatic and creates a special atmosphere/aura around him/her. This performance is unforgettable. When I saw that performance, it burnt into my heart / it struck me immensely. I had a really good time/I enjoyed the play greatly.

Points to discuss. Use your active vocabulary while talking about the theatre. 1. How do you choose a performance? Do you choose a certain playwright, a certain play, a genre, a actor/actress, a director, a theatre etc? Which of these factors are the most important for you? 2. Do you read reviews before seeing a performance? Do you follow the advice of your friends/parents? Do you choose the performance by yourself? 3. What are you favourite genres/ Moscow theatres/actors/actresses/?

4 4. Where do you prefer to sit in the theatre? 5. Who are the people who create a performance? What qualities should they possess? 6. What do you usually do when you come to the theatre? Does the atmosphere of the theatre put you in a special mood? 7. Give a list of top ten Moscow actors and actresses. Account for your point of you. 8. Give a list of the most striking Moscow performances and account for your choice. 9. What’s your attitude to commercial theatre projects? Are their quality worse than the one of repertoire theatre performances? 10. Will the theatre be ever ousted by the cinema or TV? Which form of entertainment do you prefer? 11. What makes a good actor/actress? Do they have an easy life in Russia? 12. What is your attitude to TV versions of performances shown on TV, channel Culture, for example? 13. What is your attitude to modernised versions of classical plays? Account for it. 14. Write a review of a performance that struck you/ or that you didn’t like very much. Be ready to give a presentation of this performance in class. If you have the programme or the booklet about the performance, bring it to class. Examples of reviews. Review One Three comrades

Not long ago I saw one of the most striking performances of the Sovremennik theatre “Three comrades”, an adaptation of Remarque’s famous novel . I was impressed by the direction of Galina Volcheck . The artistic director caught the spirit of the novel very well and represented it on stage. The performance was close to the book. That night Chulpan Hamatova was in the cast. She performed the role of Pat Holman. Chulpan gave a marvellous performance of a person who is seriously ill with TB, who understands that her days are numbered, and wants to forget about it. She doesn’t give up, she wants to live and to love. Her cheerful nature and ability to love attracts Robby and his friends. Pat brightens his love and brings joy and meaning into his life. He, in his turn, loves the girl tenderly and looks after her despite her catching disease. His love to Pat is self-denying. Chulpan’s acting is amazing. Her voice is powerful and her face is very expressive. She wonderfully reveals the emotional state of the character . She puts her heart and soul into the role and charges the audience with electricity. That is why Moscow theatre-goers starting talking about her as a talented theatre actress in 1999 after the first-night of “Three comrades”. Since then she has played a number of interesting roles, but Pat remains one of her best ones. For Galina Volchek the idea of true friendship is also important. You can’t help admiring the three fiends who stand by each other in trouble, whatever happens. At the end Otto even sells his favourite car to get a big sum of money and to give Robby an opportunity to spend the last days of Pat’s life with her in the sanatorium which is expensive. The acting of Sergey Yuskevich is magnificent in the scene, where he parts with his car for the sake of his friend. The performance is also a strong protest against fascism which destroys people’s lives. Lenz, one of the friends, is killed by fascists because of his ideas. The performance is wonderfully staged. The scenery and the music create the necessary atmosphere- sometimes the atmosphere of sadness and sometimes the atmosphere of joy. The soundtrack tos the performance is marvellous. Galina Volchek also uses the surround volume system to create the atmosphere of Berlin( trams, cars, etc). the sea, the forest. For example, you can here the sound of the cuckoo bird who promised Pat that

5 she would live 100 years. But unfortunately the girl died in the sanatorium and Robby ‘s life was empty again. The end of the performance is powerful when you see the three friends and Pat flying somewhere up in the car when they were all alive and happy. This performance preaches the ideas of true love and friendship which are stronger than everything else. Discussion points: Use the vocabulary in bold while talking about the performance. 1) What is the performance “Three comrades” about? 2) What can you say about the acting? 3) What can you say about the direction? 4) What is the message of the performance?

Review two Into the whirlwind By Eugenia Ginzburg “This is not a play you just watch, but a play you experience”/LA Times/ One of the most striking performances of the Sovremennik theatre is the adaptation of Eugenia Ginzburg’s astonishing autobiographical novel about her eighteen years in Stalinist camps, staged by Galina Volchek, the artistic director of the theatre. It is one of the best productions of Galina Borisovna Volchek. When the Sovremennik theatre toured America and performed on Broadway, “Into the Whirlwind” got very good reviews in American newspapers and Galina Volchek was awarded a prestigious prize for this production and for her adaptation of A. Chechov’s ”Three sisters” And it’s no wonder that the performance was so hailed in America. First, it touches upon a problem, which can’t leave you indifferent. Second, the performance features 35 actors and actresses, including such stars as: Marina Neyolova, Liya Akhedzhakova, Nina Doroshina, Lilia Tolmacheva, etc. All of them burn themselves out on stage and closer to the end of the performance look extremely exhausted. Both actors in leading and in supporting roles reveal the tragedy of people who were tormented in a Siberian Stalinist camp. For example, our star Marina Alexandrova performs a minor role of a German dancer who managed to escape from a Hitler concentration camp, but found herself in a Stalinist one. And she gives an unforgettable performance, though her role is a supporting one. Of course, Marina Neyolova in the leading role is absolutely marvelous. Her acting is extremely emotional and has a cathartic effect on the audience. One can’t forget the impression produced by her voice in the monologue uttered when her character was sentenced to prison absolutely for nothing:” Ten years and for what, ten years and for what?!” Third, the direction of Volchek is brilliant. Everything is well thought of. On entering the theatre you plunge directly into that epoch, you hear the songs and melodies of that time, see the portraits of the Soviet leaders in the lobby. It creates the effect of presence. Later, when performance starts, they heighten this effect of presence by various means. For example, they use the surround volume system to reproduce the sound of the clicking bars, they also direct the lights from the lamp to the audience, when they show the scene of Eugenia’s interrogation. She suffers from the lights of the lamp directed into her face. The spectators suffer with her. So you can also appreciate the contribution of light and sound engineers to the success of the performance. On the whole, it’s a brilliant performance that sticks in your memory and burns into your heart. Discussion points: Use the vocabulary in bold while talking about the performance. 1) What is the theme of the performance?

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British and American theatres Theatre in London Most British cities have a theatre, but London has the greatest number. There are over 50 theatres in London’s West End, the area in London with most theatres , and about 35 smaller fringe theatres. A successful play may run for months, even years. In recent years, musicals have been very successful. About 5 million people, many of them tourists, go to see a musical every year in London. Going to the theatre is not only popular, but also expensive. Not many young people can afford to go. It is possible to get cheaper tickets by going to afternoon performances called matinees or by buying stand-bys, half-price tickets which are sold half an hour before a performance starts. Britain has a long tradition of drama. British theatre began in the thirteenth century , before the time of Shakespeare, with a serious of short stories from the Bible called The Mystery Plays. Even today, every four years in York and Chester, ordinary people still perform these plays. Acting, both by amateurs and professionals, is still very much alive in Britain. The most famous British theatres are the National theatre and the Barbican. The Royal Shakespeare Company performs both at the Barbican and in Stratford-on-Avon, where Shakespeare was born. These theatres receive money from the government so that they can perform several plays a year. In spite of this money from the government , many theatres including the National Theatre and the Barbican find it difficult to survive. There are many smaller theatre groups in Britain . Some of them receive money from the government to perform plays which are contemporary and experimental. Opera and ballet life is also interesting in Britain. Several first –class orchestras are based in London. Opera of the highest quality is performed in London. The Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in central London is leased by the government to the Covent Garden Opera House trust, which receives a government grant. Seasons of opera are performed there and also of ballet by the Royal ballet , which has in recent years been one of the most successful British ventures in the arts. (From “Highlights by L.V. Kvedchenya ) I Learn the vocabulary in italics and make your own situations with it. II Discussion points: 1) What kind of tickets are available in London? 2) What do theatres do to survive? 3) What theatre companies are popular in Britain?

British theatre London’s theatreland buzzes with action in the early evening.

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Film and TV drama have their roots in the theatre, and theatre has long been important in British cultural life. After all, the most celebrated creative export of all time is Shakespeare. Actually Shakespeare, although uniquely talented, was not the only dramatist of his time; he had competition from Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson and others. The theatre flowered quickly and gloriously in the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. It was suppressed briefly by the Puritans,in the 17th century, but since then it has been a vibrant and popular art form right up to the present day.

Most periods have had their great playwrights: William

Congreve, Oliver Goldsmith, Sheridan, Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, Harold Pinter. Even when, as in the mid 19th century, there was a lack of major dramatists, the theatre thrived on European drama or revivals of classics. Cinema has not destroyed live theatre, as some thought it would. Theatre-going actually increased during the 20th century, the age of film. In London today there are over 100 theatres, which is more than any other city in the world, including New York. Of course, the audiences are not all Londoners; the majority are foreign tourists. But the British are still very theatre-minded, and there are no fewer than 17,000 amateur theatre groups in the country. Every school does drama — the school play is an institution, and can be extremely well-produced with good lighting, music and costumes. The theatre and the cinema have a sort of symbiotic relationship, with many actors, directors and writers doing both. Sir Anthony Hopkins, Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson all had careers on the stage before going into films. The theatre writer Tom Stoppard wrote the screen play for the hugely successful “Shakespeare in Love”. Actors in the theatre quite often go into films for the money and fame, and later come back to the stage for the pleasure and artistic satisfaction of it. So Hollywood stars like Nicole Kidman or Dustin Hoffman occasionally appear in small London theatres. ( Information is taken from: “British life and institutions by Mark Farrel). Discussion points:

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Use the vocabulary in bold while talking about the text: 1) What is the history of British theatre? 2) Prove that British people are theatre-minded on the basis of the text. 3) What kind of relationship exists between cinema and theatre? 4) Can you see any advantage of theatre over film, or is theatre just old-fashioned? American Theater Theater in the United States has been strongly influenced by European drama, but the "musical" is of truly American origin. The musical is a play with spoken lines, songs, and dances. It was not until the 1940s and the production of "Oklahoma" that musicals began to change in style and content. Although the basic plot of "Oklahoma" presented an uncomplicated love story, the characters in the play seemed more like real people, and, instead of the routine dancing, ballet was introduced. Since "Oklahoma" many successful musical plays have appeared on the American stage. No longer just light and amusing, they often deal with serious themes, accompanied by sophisticated music and dancing. One example is "West Side Story", a modem version of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet", the story of young lovers who die tragically. Set in New York City, it portrays tense and hostile relationships between Puerto Ricans and native New Yorkers. Another highly successful musical play was "My Fair Lady", the musical version of a play by the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw. The first important American playwright of serious, nonmusical drama was Eugene O'Neill, who wrote deep and sensitive analyses of human relationships. O'Neill remains this country's most important dramatist, and his plays are performed frequently. Other notable modern American playwrights include Thornton Wilder, Lilian Hellman, Tennessee Williams, Edward Albee, and Arthur Miller. These names are only a few from the long list of contributors to the contemporary stage. The American palywright who is most widely known today is Arthur Miller. His play "Death of a Salesman" has been performed in countries throughout the world.

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This work captures with sympathy and understanding the heartbreak of an unsuccessful man who cannot manage the forces in his life. Two important developments in recent years are the "theater of the absurd" and the "black theater". There are also some controversial experiments with electronic music and lighting, body movements to replace spoken words in expressing ideas, and even spontaneous audience participation in some performances. Black theater presents plays about black people, written by black playwrights, and performed by black casts. Originally, drama about blacks carried messages of protest against racial prejudice. Today, although this theme of protest is still present, black theater is increasingly concerned with blacks as individual human beings and their problems as ordinary people. In recent years theatrical performances by blacks have increasingly stressed black music: spirituals, gospelsinging and jazz and ragtime melodies. New York City is the theater center of the United States. Most important new plays are produced there. For years young actors, actresses, and playwrights have gone to New York, hoping to find success. The New York theater world is divided into two parts. One centers around Broadway, which is one of the city's most important streets. Almost all the large commercial theaters are located on or near Broadway in the midtown area. Most Broadway theatergoers seem to prefer musicals and sophisticated dramas or comedies featuring one or two highly paid stars.The other New York theater division, off-Broadway, has no definite geographic location. Off-Broadway theaters are found throughout the city in buildings once used as garages, offices, and stores. Rents are low, and there is just space enough for small audiences. Sometimes there is no raised stage. Then the cast performs in the center of the room, surrounded on all sides by the audience. This arrangement is known as "theater-in-the-round". Many theater groups are active outside New York. There are professional companies in almost every major city. Some of them follow repertory schedules. Different plays are performed several times by the

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same group of actors within a period of a few weeks or months. There are also traveling acting companies that tour throughout the country. In addition, there are nonprofessional university and community theater groups. Unlike many other countries, there is no nationally subsidized theater in the US. Some acting companies receive financial help from the National Endowment for the Arts, foundations, and a few communities. However, many theater groups suffer from lack of adequate financing. Frequently commercial theaters must charge very high prices for tickets in order to pay production costs and to make some profit. As a result, many people who love the theater cannot afford to go often. ( Н.Д. Токарева, В. Пеппард “What it is like in the USA). Discussion points: 1). Summarize the contents of the text about American Theatre using the vocabulary in the bold. 2) Make up lists of famous American playwrights and famous American plays. 4) What kind of genres are popular in the USA? 5) Do theatres receive financial help from the government? 6) What can you say about the black theatre? 7) Describe the difference between Broadway and off-Broadway theatres. 8) Are musicals popular in Russia? What is your attitude to them? 9) In what ways are Russian, British and American Theatre different? What feautures do they have in common?