Although Othello is a tragic play in nature, Shakespeare's subtle use of comedy in the play's various scenes adds effect to its overall tragic downfall. In a standard comic play, one would expect a story of love and courtship with some deceptive twist of plot, all worked out to a happy en...

The plays in ancient Greece were made up of several genres. One of these genres was comedy. Comedy came from two main factors, the major one being known as the "Choral Element" which has ceremonies to encourage fertility at the Festival of Dionysus. The second influence was from Sicilia...

Problem of Genre in Drama When a reader thinks of a play that has been labeled a comedy he thinks of light-hearted and happy plots. The reader would not think of family tension, arguments or even perversion. The genre of comedy takes on the responsibility of making the audience laugh and walk awa...

In 500 B.C., Greek theatre was the most popular form of entertainment. It is important to understand that drama began in the Greek world as a form of religious ritual, but it was good entertainment especially if it contained a lot of blood or gore. Greek drama was not only performed in the theatre b...

COSTUMES AND MASKS IN GREEK DRAMA Greek Drama originated at the beginning of the 5th Century. It began as religious festivals and continued on to purposes such as entertainment and dealing with political, social, moral or ethical issues of the time. There were many famous Greek Playwrights such ...

Beginning with acts such as Abbott and Costello, and episodes of "I Love Lucy," humor is often the result of a misunderstanding. In the movie, "Arsenic and Old Lace," the plot combines murder and insanity. "Arsenic and Old Lace," seemingly outlines a mystery or drama, however with the additi...

What's A Black comedy Turns Green Welcome to Hollywood's version of Ireland! A happy place where the grass is always greener on the other side! The plot of this amusing tale takes place around two local Irishmen who start work on a film set as extras, this film set is temporary home t...

A Midsummer Night's Dream is an excellent, humorous play written by Shakespeare. It is highly characteristic of Shakespeare, bringing several subplots into one masterful story. I have seen this play presented in a classical format and I found it thoroughly entertaining. Directed by Robin McKee, ...

"To what extent can 'Under Milk Wood' be considered a 'play for voices'?" Under Milk Wood When most people think of a play, they think of dressing up and going to the theatre; costumes; romance and comedy; ice cream at the interval and, of course, pantomimes. D...

When I go and see a movie the three things that motivate me the most are the story, the stars, and the reputation. "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" is a perfect example. The story seamed really good and funny to me, a chick flick. The stars were Matthew McConaughey, and Kate Hudson, who were...

In the plays, As You Like It, by William Shakespeare and, A Raisin In The Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, there are various dramatic techniques that are employed by the playwrights. Some of the techniques developed in both of the plays include contrast, satire, irony, sarcasm, parody, music and dance...

Throughout history numerous playwrights have brought about many contributions to the theatrical world. As I have discovered throughout my three semesters of Dramatic Literature, playwrights have different approaches to theatricality. Some of the plays we have read seem like gibberish when being re...

The theatre in the City Dionysia was a great semi-circle on the slope of the Acropolis, with rows of stone seats. The front row consisted of marble chairs; these were reserved for the priests of Dionysus and the chief magistrates. Beyond the front row was a circular space called the orchestra, where...

Max Reinhardt can be described as one of the greatest theatrical directors in history. A great innovator and a master of spectacle, he staged gigantic productions full of pageantry and color. Reinhardt became one of the first theatrical directors to achieve widespread recognition as a major creativ...

n the history of the play's criticism, the problem of its genre produced the most controversy. I submit here that this critical conflict is based on confusion: the discourse meaning (textual) and the interpretative meaning (contextual) have been mistakenly separated. I regard the monologic understa...

Realization of Death in Wit Vivian Bearing is the main character of the play Wit, which revolves around her dealing with cancer in a hospital environment with no true friends and little human contact. The play is ironically named after the large amount of wit Vivian tosses out in her dialogue, ...

The misfortune of man was a topic of great interest for the great men of Antiquity. One man who was interested in tragedy was Aristotle. This great philosopher considered tragedy a great deal, and took it rather seriously. He took it so seriously, in fact, that he created criteria to determine w...

Modern drama began by turning toward realism and away from the fantasy of nineteenth-century melodrama and farce. Realism gave rise to various innovations that served to express the dramatist's vision of what reality is. These attempts to be " more real than real" can be called expressionism. ...

A Comical Review of Blithe Spirit Blithe Spirit written by Noel Coward was first published in 1941. Noel Coward was known for his sophisticated comedies of modern life (Seymour, Smith 261). It is sophisticated yet hilarious to the readers. Seymour and Smith stated that Coward's plays...

Greek Theatre There have been many artistic achievements that have had a substantial role in shaping outlooks and tastes for cultures and generations for 1000's of years. Of all the different kinds of productions the Greeks have established, the tragedy is the most extraordinary of t...

A critique on Thirty Three Swoons In the play Thirty Three Swoons, which is a collection of four farces written by Anton Palovish Chekhov. The play consists of these short productions in order, Swan Song, The Bear, The Proposal, and The Wedding. Each of them their own unique plays that pokes...

THE EVIDENCE WHEN the first performance of Hamlet ended, a column of people streamed into Maiden Lane and then dispersed, radially through the fields and thoroughfares of Southwark, eastward to London Bridge, northward along Horseshoe Alley to the fleet of wherries waiting on the Thames. A litter ...

"Drama and Theatre in their content and style reflect the society from which they spring" The issues and happenings of contemporary Australia are reflected in contemporary Australian Theatre, the same way as Shakespeare was reflected in Elizabethan Theatre in the 18th Century. The idea ...

Very early in history, the Greeks began to collect poems that had been written in honor of their brave ancestors. These poems were often recited in public and almost everyone in the city would come to listen. Many people think that Greek entertainment evolved from these poems, but actually it did ...

Lady Windermere's Fan, A Well Made Play The tradition of the well-made play emerged in the nineteenth century. It was also called "piece bien faite", meaning 'Second Empire Drama'. It was first made popular by the works of Eugene Scribe and Victorien Sardou of France. T...