MA-Education-SEM-IV-Paper-Theatre-Education-in-English-1-1-munotes

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INTRODUCTION OF INDIAN THEA TRE
Unit Structure
1.0 Objectives
1.1 Concept of Theatre
1.1.1 Meaning
1.1.2 Nature
1.1.3 Significance
1.2 Component of Theatre
1.2.1 Space
1.2.2 Audience
1.2.3 Time
1.2.4 Performance
1.3 Forms and style of Theatre
1.3.1 Comedy an d Tragedy
1.3.2 Melodrama
1.3.3 Musical Theatre
1.3.4 Street Theatre
1.3.5 Folk Theatre
1.4 Let Us Sum Up
1.5 Unit End Exercise
1.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
• Explain the meaning of theatre
• Discuss the nature of theatre.
• Analyses the significance of theatre .
• Describe the component theatre
• Discuss the different forms and style of theatre. munotes.in

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2 1.1 CONCEPT OF THEA TRE
1.1.1 MEANING
Theatre is a cooperative kind of performance art that uses live performers,
usually actors or actresses, t o present the experience of a real or imagined
event in front of a live audience in a defined location, usually a stage. This
sensation can be communicated to the audience through gesture,
conversation, song, music, and cotillion. To enhance the physicalit y,
presence, and proximity of the encounter, rudiments of art such as painted
décor and stagecraft such as lighting are used. The exact location of the
performance is also denoted by the term “theatre,” which is derived from
the Ancient Greek (théatron, “a place for watching”), itsel f from (“ to
see”," to watch ","to observe" ).
Modern Western theatre is heavily influenced by ancient Greek theatre,
from which it derives specialised vocabulary, division into stripes, and
many of its themes, stock characters, and plot rudiments. Patrice Pavis, a
theatre artist, describes theatricality, dramatic language, stage jotting, and
the uniqueness of theatre as identical concepts that distinguish theatre
from other performing arts, literature, and trades in general.
Thea tre is a collaborative art form that expresses meaning via the use of
words, voice, movement, and visual rudiments. Theatre includes not only
live extemporised and scripted work, but also dramatic forms analogous to
film, television, and other technologica l media. Due to the diminishing
influence of current theatrical media, theatre has significant importance in
the lives of residents. Scholars cannot attain media expertise until they
understand and have hands -on involvement with theatre. Theater is about
the exploration and settlement of abecedarian mortal dilemmas, and it is
built on understanding and presenting interpersonal relationships. Theatre
work allows researchers to reflect on essential aspects of life while also
strengthening their sensitivity to and understanding of the perspectives of
others. The broad, global base of theatrical literature or force ranges from
classical forms comparable to Japanese Kabuki and Shakespeare, to folk
forms comparable to traditional puppetry, to contemporary forms
comparable to animated cartoons and pictures.
Quality theatre education is also broad -based, going beyond acting
instruction to enhance scholars’ skills in fields ranging from specialist
theatre to commanding, and from examining the creative and literal
surroundings of force to developing their own extemporised or scripted
workshop.
Merriam -Webster defines a theatre as “an outdoor structure used for
theatrical performances or specs in ancient Greece and Rome.”
“A structure, room, or outside structure with row s of seats, each row
normally further back than the one in front, from which people might
observe a pe rformance or other endeavour,” - According to the Cambridge
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3 1.1.2 NATURE
The Nature of Theatre
Ancient solemnities were solely appropriate for theatrical liar and
denigration. By using theatrical jargon (play, show, acting), it implies that
theatre is the product of adults. Theatre was seen as not only a legitimate
source of amusement, but also as a true depiction of mortal geste.
Similar events such as road festivals and processions are staged (scripted,
scripted, or planned). A performs B for C in many genres of theatre. There
is no plot, dialogue, or conflict in theatre. Theatrical entertainments
include improvised scenes, pantomimes, vaudevil le sketches, musical
plays, and spoken drama. They can also be short or long. Others consider
the content of theatre to be its ability to elicit thought or action on
important subjects.
The opposite component of theatre, performance, is conversely complex.
The performance takes occur in a variety of settings, ranging from a
structure designed expressly for theatrical performances to a road,
demesne, or café. It may allow the audience to encompass the participants.
A musical requires additional musicians, pl ayers, vocalists,
choreographers, and hop Popular versions such as Phantom of the Opera.
The third category of the theatre is the audience. This live three -way
commerce is a characteristic feature of theatre and a primary cause of
performance differences f rom night to night. Off -Broadway and
indigenous theatres, with smaller costs and admission prices, can take
fewer risks and seek a more focused audience than Broadway. Although
these three rudiments – script, performance, and followership – can be
discusse d separately, they interact and affect each other in practise.
Theater elicits a wide range of reactions. Theatre is a sort of art, and art
isn’t necessarily cosy or soothing. It regularly asserts its right to look at
the world in uncomfortable ways and to challenge our ways of looking at
ourselves and the conventions of the culture that has created the way we
see the world. Divide the deals into two categories: “ beneficial “ and “
good “. Unfortunately, in contemporary days, the word art has come to be
regarded as a value judgement. Popular culture and toilet culture Popular
culture would presumably include forms of expression such as gemstone
music, TV sitcoms, advertising art, and musical comedy; potty forms
would include the types of music commonly hear d in musicale halls,
visual art displayed in galleries and galleries, and many of the theatrical
products seen in not -for-profit or indigenous theatres. It employs easily
recognisable character types, scenarios, and dramatic tropes, manipulating
them with enough ingenuity to be humorous but generally without posing
troubling problems that confront the followership’s values and
hypotheticals. As Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot premiered in the
1950s, many critics were unable to connect to a play with no d iscernible
plot other than two tramps waiting for someone who never appeared. The
reaction of many to this groundbreaking play was summarised in one of
the play’s speeches: “nothing comes, nothing goes.” It’s a disaster.” munotes.in

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4 Can imagined experience be used to know and understand? Shakespeare
responds in As You Like It (Act II, Scene 7): “All the world’s a theatre,
and all the men and women merely performers.” A “willing suspense of
incredulity,” as Samuel Taylor Coleridge put it, Although we know that
the happ enings of a play are not real, we agree not to dismiss them for the
time being. This sense of involvement is sometimes referred to as
empathy. Art is valuable for its ability to improve the quality of life by
bringing us pleasure, expanding our comprehensi ons, increasing our
perceptivity to others and our environment, and recommending that moral
and societal projects should take precedence over materialistic
pretensions.
1.1.3 SIGNIFICANCE
1. Mortals Theatrical performance is a universal artistic marvel th at exists
in all societies around the world. Only mortal humans make theatre.
Understanding theatre allows us to better understand what it is like to be
mortal.
2. Expression through Tone The theatre teaches us how to communicate
more effectively. It impro ves our ability to communicate our studies and
passions to others, allowing us to perfect our connections and the world
around us.
3. Understanding of Oneself We learn about ourselves through theater. It
assists us in comprehending how our minds and the mi nds of others
function. It allows us to see how our surroundings influence who we are
and who we will become.
4. History Theatre is an excellent method to learn about history. Rather of
understanding history by reading it in a good text, theatre brings his tory to
life right before our eyes. Learning about history is made more enjoyable
by the use of theatre.
5. The Body Theatre serves to remind us that, in this ever -changing digital
age, there is a mortal body at the heart of every digital sale. Accounting
for the body in future design will enable us to create technology that
works for us rather than against us.
6. Globalization The arts help us comprehend people from other cultures.
We may learn a lot about people from many societies around the world by
studying their performing traditions. By doing so, we can learn to be less
ethnocentric and more accepting of others.
7. Tone - commissioning Every facet of our daily life is influenced by
performance. Performances are used to build power connections.
Understa nding how performances occur around us can assist us in
celebrating and taking control of the power dynamics that affect us.
Changes in Society The theatre is an artistic venue in which society
examines itself through a magnifying glass. The theatre has tr aditionally munotes.in

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5 been regarded as a laboratory in which we can research and strive to solve
societal problems.
9. Education theatre is an excellent learning tool. Going to the theatre
exposes us to people, places, and ideas that we would not otherwise
encounter . Literacy becomes more enjoyable when learned in a dramatic
context.
10. 10. Creativity The arts aid in the development of our creativity. As our
educational system places a declining focus on wisdom, technology,
engineering, and arithmetic, we must not o verlook the importance of art.
11. Theatre Increases Empathy and Community Connection. Theatre
exposes us to new perspectives that we may not have previously
considered or feared. The way that theatre examines conversation,
harangue, and character helps us to use our empathy muscles.
Understanding theatre, in other ways, helps us grasp what it means to be
mortal. Watching a live theatre production can raise our empathy for the
groups depicted in the play, which can lead to changes in altruistic
behaviour.
12. Being incontinent either before or after seeing a live theatre product.
The actors’ stations shifted toward ethnic demarcation, income inequality,
welfare, commercial regulations, wealth redivision, and affirmative action.
They also increased their char itable contributions following the
performance.
13. While passing through the theatre, we are not only engaging with the
actors in front of us, but also with the other theatregoers in the room.
Participating in theatre connects us to a community of like -minded and
enthusiastic individuals and can frequently aid those who feel isolated or
depleted in their academic or professional environments.
14. The theatre serves as a mirror. Have you ever heard the expression “all
the world’s a stage?” Theatre is more t han just entertainment; it raises a
glass to society and promotes soul -searching. By monitoring what happens
in front of us, we can learn something new about ourselves and the world
we live in. Numerous forms of theatre are moralistic and intended to
educa te, with moral instruction as a secondary goal. There are numerous
theatre genres that exist solely to encourage their audiences to reflect and
examine.
Divergent thinking, or the ability to think in multiple directions, is fostered
by the process of theat re and drama education. Creating theatre is
frequently a process of discovery, whether it’s figuring out where the story
goes or how the story is told and what it means for the characters.


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6 1.2 COMPONENTS OF THEATRE
1.2.1 SPACE
The use of theatre to expr ess mortal needs, desires, solicitations, and fears
predates written history. It’s always been a multifaceted and multimedia
endeavor. The earliest records on delve walls and in ancient form show
that performance included a combination of music, cotillion, and
reproduction oracting. The performance’s ambitions were previously
spiritual, social, educational, and amusing. Due to the number of artists,
the complexity of media, and the followership conformation customary in
the theatre, the conditions of produc t and event of the theatre moment are
also more complicated than numerous other art forms.
An examination of the theatre’s audience, artists, and media can provide a
thorough description of the medium and highlight the characteristics that
set it apart fro m other art forms. A live pantomime and a live audience are
the only elements required for a theatrical product. Nonetheless, the most
important theatrical moment involves a large number of additional artists,
technicians, and business workers. The materia ls used in the creation of
décor, costumes, lighting, and sound are all examples of theatre media.
The distinguishing characteristics of a theatre audience are that it is live
and made up of numerous individuals who bring a variety of perspectives
to the p erformance. Theatre can take place in various of settings, from
enormous and beautifully adorned houses to road corners. Although
theatrical performances are typically held in facilities specifically intended
for the purpose, the essential requirement for theatre is a live pantomime
and a live audience —not a structure.
Theatre performance spaces are classified into four types: proscenium
theatres, thrust theatres, arena theatres, and set up spaces.
During the Italian Renaissance, proscenium theatres, often known as
picture frame stages, emerged. By peering through the “picture frame” of
the proscenium bow, the audience anticipates the theatrical event. Like in
a movie theater, all followership members are seated on one side of the
bow, and all actors and sc enic spectacle are framed within or just in front
of the bow. The primary advantage of the proscenium theatre is that it
conceals or “masks” the actors and décor used for other scenes and the
ministry’s scenic specifications. The proscenium frame conceals areas
above, below, and to the sides of the stage from view of the audience.
The apron is the region of the stage bottom in front of the proscenium.
Because descriptions of stage regions are presented from the perspective
of an actor facing the followershi p, right means in the path of the actor’s
privilege, but the followership’s left wing. Upstage and downstage are
Renaissance terminology for when the stage bottom was placed on a rake,
or pitch, to prop follower sight lines and the vision of perspective pa inted
on the décor. In these historic theatres, the back of the stage was more
forward than the front, and we now refer to staging sections further away
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7 Most theatres have traps, or areas of the stage bottom that can be remo ved
to lower and raise actors and décor. The apron in some theatres lowers to
form a symphony hole, which is used in musical slapstick. The bodies are
located on each side of the stage, hidden from the audience by the
proscenium, and are where décor is sto red, lights are placed, and actors
wait to enter. Above the stage is typically a cover garret, where additional
lighting is installed and décor, such as painted backgrounds, can be
suspended and lowered to the stage’s bottom or raised out of sight of the
audience. Apartments, drops, platforms, carts, trees, and battens are some
of the introductory scenic and lighting rudiments put above in the cover
garret, off -stage in the bodies, or in the stage traps. Flats are typically
composed of oil stretched over a rustic frame and painted to resemble
interior or exterior walls, trees, or other somewhat flat items. Drops are
big pieces of fabric suspended from pipes and usually painted to represent
geography, an interior, or another situation. A scrim and a cyclorama are
similar to drops in that they are both big, suspended pieces of cloth, but
each has its own unique feature. . A scrim is a woven fabric that appears
opaque when illuminated from the front but translucent or transparent
when illuminated from the back. A cyclorama is used in conjunction with
lighting instruments because it is white and can be projected with any
colour light to change the colour and pattern of the scenic background.
Platforms are typically made of wood and arranged at varying heights;
they may represent the alternate bottom of a house, an advanced sundeck
of a boat, or simply a separate location from the scenario on the stage floor
that the audience must witness concurrently. A cart is just a moving
platform on a bus or track. Lighting ins truments are typically suspended
above the stage, over the followership in front of the stage, and/or in the
body from the sides of the stage. Battens are horizontally positioned pipes
for lighting instruments, while trees are vertically placed pipes.
Teas ers, a type of curtain, are commonly employed to conceal all of these
buildings from the followership’s view. Legs are lengthy black curtains in
the body that conceal objects. To conceal objects suspended over, borders
are hung from pipes in the cover garr et. The design of the proscenium bow
is echoed by a combination of two legs, a border, and the stage bottom.
Between the proscenium bow and the upstage wall, most theatres have
three sets of teasers. As a result, actors and décor can enter through any of
four gaps on either side of the stage. These gaps are numbered from
downstage to upstage; for example, an actor entering the stage from the
right -bone would enter from stage right between the proscenium bow and
the stage right. The main drape is the large c urtain that is frequently drawn
as the audience enters; in some theatres, it is quite elaborate, with painted
or woven images.
The theatre’s followership area is known as the house. Directions in this
space are stated from the perspective of the followers hip when facing the
stage; so, house right refers to a sitting followership member’s right. The
smallest region of followership seating in the United States is known as
the symphony, and symphony seats are often the most valuable. Larger munotes.in

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8 theatres usually h ave at least one deck, and many older theatres feature
boxes along the sides of the auditorium on the deck position(s).
A thrust theatre features audience members on three sides of the stage,
with one side reserved for high ornamentation. It’s also known a s “three
quarter round.” The thrust stage was popular in Ancient Greece and
Elizabethan England; the main advantage of this form of stage is that it
puts the actor in close proximity to the audience. Three frontal rows on
each of the three sides of the sta ge means that many more audience
members will be close to the actors. The areas for décor storehouse and
the styles of hiding scenic ministry, on the other hand, are greatly reduced.
Altitudinous décor (walls, backgrounds) can only be used on one side of
the stage where no bone is seated. . On the thrust stage, theatrical vision is
greatly reduced because most followership members will not see a framed
theatrical event but will see both events on the stage and across the stage
to followership members seated opposite.
Thrust theatres regained popularity in the twentieth century. The Guthrie
Theatre in Minneapolis (see print), the Olivier at the Royal National
Theatre in London, and the Festival Theatre in Stratford, Ontario are all
well-known venues with thru st stages at the moment.
In a thrust theatre, the most common words for the corridor of the
proscenium stage are the same, or slightly modified. Over and downstage,
for example, are relative to the one wall with no followership seating.
Some phrases do not apply; for example, there are rarely fly cocklofts or
corpses in a thrust theatre. The vomitorium, a structure for players’
entrances that originated in ancient Roman theatres, is a new structure that
is frequently constructed up. This is a ramp that begi ns beneath the
followership seating and leads to the thrust stage’s downstage end; there
are frequently two vomitoria, one leading to each downstage corner. It’s
used to transport actors and props on and offstage.
Followership members are seated on all cor ners of a square or indirect
stage on an arena stage. It is the earliest type of performance area,
stretching back to ancient rites predating written history. Although no
comparable structures exist at the moment, the indirect symphony set up in
the remain s of ancient Greek theatres point to ancient performance
traditions prior to the construction of gravestone theatres. An arena theatre
maximises the connection between players and audience while reducing
the possibility of theatrical vision. Many arena the atres were built in the
second half of the twentieth century, including the Arena Stage in
Washington, D.C. and the Circle in the Square in New York City.
Different theatrical arrangements suited to diverse types of plays or
different playing styles have b een examined by twentieth -century theatre
interpreters. Max Reinhardt, a German director, was among the first to
advocate for a theatre complex with many types of theatres, such as a large
proscenium or thrust house and a smaller arena stage, and to imply that
various plays require different types of theatres. Similar theatre complexes
can be found in New York’s Lincoln Center, London’s Royal National munotes.in

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9 Theatre and Barbican Center, Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre, and Chicago’s
Goodman Theatre. A similar twentieth -century approach is to construct a
flexible theatre in which the followership and stage areas can be
reconfigured to produce any of the three beginning configurations. The
Loeb Center for the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge is an
example. The blac k box theatre (similar to what we have at Geneseo) is a
simple result of the theatre artist’s desire to make the space fit the product.
It’s simply a room painted black, in which followership seating, stage
platforms, lighting, and décor can be placed anyw here in the room and
changed for each play.
Some theatre artists take a more radical approach than transforming a
black box theatre to fit a theatrical product; they find a space that was not
originally built as a theatre. This is referred to as a setup sp ace. Similar
artists have staged theatrical productions in edifices, megacity locations,
pastoral fields, cotillion clubs, and road corners. The roadhouse
performance is analogous to a “set up space,” in that audience members sit
at tables and order food a nd drink, and the stage area is generally a new
bone that must accommodate the food service. A set up space can also
refer to a structure that has been modified from its original purpose to
support ongoing theatre product. Many of New York City’s Off -Off-
Broadway theatres are housed in former storage facilities or churches. Set
up spaces also progress to environmental staging, in which the space for
the actors and the space for the followership are not easily distinguished.
In a roadhouse, for example, a so ngster may come and perform at (or on)
your table, or actors may use the same entrances as the followership.
Environmental performances can be instigative because you never know
what will happen next or where it will occur.
Theatres provide space for a var iety of different conditioning required in
the production of a play, regardless of the shape of the stage and
followership space. Consider the real product seen by a following to be
simply the tip of a dramatic icicle. Dressing and makeup apartments for
actors, a green room where actors stay when not onstage, scene, makeup,
and costume shops where décor and costumes are erected or acclimated,
storehouse space for décor, costumes, and lights, light and sound cells
from which technicians run lights and sound during performances, a box
office where the public can buy tickets, are examples of other space
conditions , a or lobby in which the followership can relax and buy
refreshments during intervals, and office space for executive staff similar
as marketing lab or force.
1.2.2 Followership/ Audience
Along with pantomime, followership is one of the two basic aspects of a
live theatrical performance. The performing arts exist in a finite space and
time; hence, a performance, which is a work of art in theatre, has a finite
actuality in time. It starts, and then it’s over. Another, analogous piece of
art may be created the following night, but the different followership and
variances in the players themselves will result in a distinct work of art.
Compare this aspect of the performing arts to oil; different cults may flock munotes.in

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10 to the Louvre from time to time, or century to century, but the artwork
remains constant in time and is unaffected by the passage of time.
In a live performance, the audience interacts to the player s, who respond
to the audience in a continuous circular cloverleaf. Actors will remark
about “feeding off” a cult’s energy, especially in comedy, and gripe about
cults that don’t respond in tangible ways. Actors’ performances will
change dramatically from one night to the next, owing in large part to
audience feedback. Consider the variances in your reactions to a movie
you’ve seen several times; the circumstances of your watching will make
the movie and your reaction to it feel different —but there’s no liv e
exchange between you and the characters in this situation. Members of the
following will also prompt one another’s comments. Large cults are more
likely than small cults to laugh or note out loud, in part because of the
obscurity, and in part because oth er people’s responses encourage and
magnify your own.
You may laugh harder, cry harder, leap in your seat, or reply publicly in
front of a huge, engaged audience. Again, if the majority of your followers
enjoy a commodity that you despise, it may reinforce your own negative
reaction to hear favourable reactions all around you.
Theatre emerged from ceremonies that blended spiritual, social,
educational, and cultural goals in ancient times. The cult was heavily
involved in these rites. Like ancient cults, the atre cults congregate with
individual prospects, a diversity of product knowledge situations, and a
variety of specific tastes. For the duration of the performance, each
followership will build a collective identity. Although followership
members continue to participate in some ways in the performances they
see, followership geste moment conventions limit their participation.
You may laugh harder, cry harder, leap in your seat, or reply publicly in
front of a huge, engaged audience. Again, if the majority of your followers
enjoy a commodity that you despise, it may reinforce your own negative
reaction to hear favourable reactions all around you.
Theatre emerged from ceremonies that blended spiritual, social,
educational, and cultural goals in ancient times. The cult was heavily
involved in these rituals. Like ancient cults, theatre cults gather with
individual prospects, a variety of product knowledge situations, and a
variety of specific tastes. For the duration of the performance, each
followership will fo rm a collaborative identity. Although followership
members continue to participate in some ways in the performances they
attend, followership geste moment conventions limit the types of
participation in the performance that was typical of ritual. Cult hail , laugh,
boo, and perhaps note aloud, but they are hesitant to offer indispensable
consummations, sing along, or get up on stage and cotillion.
Some styles of theatre that encourage audience participation continue to be
popular at the moment; examples incl ude children’s theatre, magic shows,
and improve comedy. munotes.in

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11 While ritual performance has long been a part of mortal history, each of us
has our own stories of performance. Children learn by acting out stories,
games, effects they observe grown -ups perform, an d effects they invent;
amusement is an abecedarian method of mortal literacy. As adults, we
spend less time literally acting out our ideas and much more time
vicariously passing on new stories, solicitations, or dreams. When you see
a play, read a book, or go to the movies, a large part of the enjoyment
comes from your empathy for the characters and your vicarious experience
of the characters’ circumstances.
Film supporters have supported psychoanalytic propositions in order to
construct a more complicated model of spectatorship, or how we relate to
a filmic event, which is BROADLY relevant to theatre as well. The first
type of spectatorship is based on Freud’s concept of “scolopophilia,”
which literally means “joy in seeing.” When used to cult, this idea
indicates a voyeuristic link between followership and event, which may be
more suitable to film than to some kinds of theatre, which can be more
participative than voyeuristic. Scopophilia proposes that the dramatic
action unfolds magically in front of the s pectator, unaffected by
followership reactions, but offers the viewer the illusion of participating
in, or even controlling, the happenings of the drama. Consider how we
often identify with a film’s idol, shrinking back when a commodity
threatens him or fe eling a sense of power when he defeats a foe. We’d be
disappointed if he didn’t win the heroine’s heart in the end.
A different idea stems from Lacan's "glass stage," which is more ’ul“y
defined in psychoanalysis. We see ourselves literally in the glass an d
figuratively in other people like us (mama or pater) and imagine ourselves
to be like those we see in the glass, who are generally more important than
ourselves, especially given that this stage describes children around the
age of two. However, film sup porters argue that imagining ourselves as
more capable than we are continues to shape us, primarily through our
interactions with characters in narratives. This explains why we are drawn
to characters in similar genres as action filmland or loves, in which we
identify with —and possibly literally model our movements after —the
superhuman abilities of an action idol or the extremely seductive, poised,
and talented romantic idol or heroine.
A critic or critic serves as a member of the audience with specialised
understanding of theatre. The good critic is trained in theatre literature and
product and will appraise a product for the general public; he or she may
resort to his or her body of knowledge, but only as a help in describing a
product to a general audienc e.
The function of critic has existed for centuries in Europe, but as a job in
and of itself, it is relatively new. At the moment, the Broadway reviewer
writing for the main New York newspapers wields considerable power
over the fate of a product. If the c ritics’ predictions are correct, the general
public will not see a show in sufficient numbers for it to be profitable.
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12 his or her job isn’t to promote a specific product, but, by judging the
quality of products, he or she should serve the art form generally.
1. A critic examines a theatrical product in one or more of the following
ways in a review. The reviewer places the product in a context that should
help the audience comprehe nd the more subtle features of the play. For
example, the critic may focus on the relationship between this play and a
playwright’s body of work, expand on a play’s literal environment, or
explain the product’s performance style in cultural or literal term s.
2. The critic investigates the pretensions of the particular performance
under consideration. One Hamlet product may take a completely different
approach to performance than another.
3. The critic assesses the success of the pen and the playwright’s wor k.
4. The critic debates the value of the cultural platoon’s effort. For
example, a staging of a popular Broadway musical comedy that adds no
new interpretation may be largely amusing but not as artistically
worthwhile as a different product that rewrites or updates some music and
lyrics, finds stars who will interpret the characters in a new way, and hires
a director who applies a completely new unifying concept that makes the
musical particularly relevant to us at the time.
Most major newspapers, radio st ations, television stations, and magazines
employ either a theatre critic or a trades critic who may cover several
performing arts.
The academic critic is another type of critic. These researchers may have
less influence on the success of particular theatr ical products, but they may
have a greater influence on the history of the art form. These critics
compile play textbook compilations; assess actors, directors, and creators
for technical followership of theatre interpreters and scholars; and study
play te xtbooks and performance textbooks in their creative contexts for
technical followership. These are the critics who educate you about theatre
in university classrooms, choosing which plays you read and influencing
your taste and the terms of analysis you ap ply to dramatic events. In other
words, these critics contribute to determining which plays and artists are
passed down from generation to generation, as well as what artistic issues
are embodied in the theatre.
1.2.3 TIME
The theatre’s duration should be 40 twinkles to 1 hour and 40 twinkles. It
also depends on the age group. The duration of the drama should be 40
twinkles if it is for small children, and 1 hour and 40 twinkles if it is for
adults. If it takes longer than expected, people lose interest in it and its
effect.
1.2.4 PERFORMANCE
Theatre, in a broad sense, displays certain introductory qualities piecemeal
from all the diversity. It consists of a performance (content) by an actor or munotes.in

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13 pantomime on a specific location or space that is seen by a gr oup of
people or followership at a specific moment. It relates to substance,
location, pantomime, followership, and time in the theatrical sense.
Theatrical performances feature a certain theme. It may be based on
violent amusement, cotillion, music, or a reflection of a society’s culture,
past or present, or what is observed in everyday life. On stage, the actors
are enacting the tone of the followership. This gives the followers a sense
of participation. Also, the art of theatre is concerned with expressi ng the
actors’ most profound studies and passions about the story or theme
they’re creating, so that the audience can participate in the event. Various
theatre activists have voiced their opinions on how to rank the
introductory factors of theatre. So far as the followership can discern, the
dominant expression is almost always that of the actor as the most vital
aspect of the performance. The actor is the focal point of any theatrical
performance. The author relies on the actor to bring his textbook to lif e for
his audience. As a result, followership is dependent on the actors because
the ideas or content are completely manifested through them, whether
through words, gestures, or deeds. The dramatic art (in any of its forms)
derives its substance from the a ctor’s unoriginal gift and the quality to
which the gift is assigned by the society that develops and rewards it. The
majority of Asian traditional theatres focus on the performer. The actor is
the one who conveys the subject to the audience. The actor in Asian
theatre must be a songster, cotillion, acrobat, and mime. Every gesture he
makes must be charged with significance and correspond to accepted
tradition. Most of the time, the actor is also the lyricist, songster, cotillion,
choreographer, or director . The pantomime must be performed by a
professional artist who adheres to the canons of the theatre form. As a
result, the vision of a director, which is essential in western theatre, is less
important in traditional theatre stripes.
The actors and other a ctors must be capable of dominating tone, and the
actor must have an exceptionally good voice. As a result, Western
historians frequently referred to it as “actor’s theatre,” owing to its
emphasis on the greater aesthetic of entered structure. Womanish
impersonation is also a subset of acting. Because theatre is a collaborative
art form, “performance is always performed ‘for’ someone.” Most trades,
including theatre, rely on audience response to recognise and validate
performance. If the house isn’t full, i t loses its power. When a
performance is going well, members of the audience tend to dominate
their separate personalities over those of the crowd. As a result, the
performance is valued more as an event in which the audience and the
followers actively par ticipate and create.
Space is also required for theatre performances. The shape, size, and type
of space can vary depending on the theatrical product. For each new scene
or performance, the space could be reshaped and redecorated. Several
theatrical artist s and services are used in the space’s articulation and
shaping.
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14 1.3 FORMS AND STYLE OF THEATRE
Drama is known as the mother of all trades since it is utilised to instruct,
educate, and entertain people. The kind of writing intended for theatre
performanc e in which actors take on the roles of the characters, perform
the suggested action, and speak the written speech. The word drama
derives from the Greek meaning “to act, do, or perform,” and drama can
be said to have began in the very subtle and diverse me anings of “to
perform.” Drama is a major genre of literature. As a refined form, it is
intended for the theatre because characters are assigned parts and act out
their roles as the action unfolds on stage. . It is difficult to separate drama
from performan ce because drama brings life gests truly to followership
during a stage performance of a play. Thus, drama is presented through
dialogue.
What’s drama?
Drama is the recreation of life. Drama differs from other kinds of
literature due to its distinct qua lities. It is read, but it is primarily written to
be performed, so the ultimate goal of dramatic composition is for it to be
delivered on stage in front of an audience. This suggests that it serves as a
means of communication. It has a communication syste m to communicate
with its followers. This communication is conveyed through the use of
actors.
1.3.1 A) COMEDY

One of the oldest kinds of drama is comedy. Comedy emphasises the
absurdity of mortal creatures and their inability to change. In everyday
conversational English, the words comedy and comic refer to anything
amusing or amusing. When we talk about a comedy, we usually mean a
play with a lighthearted tone.
Ancient comedy, according to Aristotle (who speculates on the subject in
his Poetics), began with the komos, a curious and dubious spectacle in
which a company of gleeful males allegedly sang, danced, and gambolled
rollickingly around the image of a largephallus. However, it provides a
whole new meaning to the phrase “stand -up routine” ( If this proposition is
true.”) The linking of the origins of comedy to some kind of phallic ritual
or jubilee of cheerfulness appears both presumptive and applicable,
because for the majority of its history —from 14th century onwards — munotes.in

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15 From Aristophanes to Seinfeld, comedy has always been about a high -
spirited celebration of mortal fornication and the victory of concupiscence.
Tragedies usually take place on the battlefield or in a palace’s great hall;
comedy is more likely to take place in a bedroom or bathroom. On the
other hand, it is not true that a film or scholarly work must have sexual
humour or be hilarious in order to be classified as a comedy. All that is
required is a joyful conclusion. In fact, since at least Aristotle, the
introductory formula for comedy has had more to do with plot and
character conventions than with a demand for lewd jokes or cartoonish
plunges. In essence, a comedy is the story of a sympathetic primary
character's rise in wealth. The term "comedy" is typically applied only to
stage play s or films that cause a stir in the film industry. Grammer
Gurton’s Needle by John Still was the first true comedy, but Ralph
Royster Doyster, produced by Nicholas Udall, is the comedy with a
regular plot divided into acts and scenes. Comedy, like tragedy, can be
traditional or romantic in style and design. Slapsticks that follow classical
rules are known as classical slapsticks, while those that do not follow
classical rules are known as romantic slapsticks. The classical form was
espoused by Ben Jonson an d the Restoration playwrights; and the
Romantic by Shakespeare and the “ University Wits ”. History
Astophanes, the absurd playwright and sardonic author of the Ancient
Greek Theater, composed 40 slapsticks beginning in 425 BCE, 11 of
which survive. Aristo phanes’ comedy evolved from earlier womaniser
plays, which were frequently largely stag. The sole surviving
exemplifications of the womaniser plays are by Euripides, which are
important after exemplifications but not indicative of the kidney. Comedy
began in ancient Greece with bawdy and ribald songs or recitals about
phallic processions and fertility carnivals or gatherings. Aristotle stated in
his work Poetics around 335 BCE that comedy began with Phallic
processions and the light treatment of the otherwi se base and unattractive.
He also claims that the origins of comedy are obscure because it was not
taken seriously from the start. Aristotle taught that humour was typically
beneficial to society because it produced happiness, which for Aristotle
was the i deal state, the end result of any effort. Aristotle believed that a
comedy did not have to have sexual humour. A comedy revolves around
the lucky appearance of a sympathetic character. Farce, romantic comedy,
and lampoon are Aristotle’s three orders or sub genres of comedy. On the
opposite side, Plato taught that comedy destroys the tone. He believed that
it elicited an emotion that overpowered cognitive tone control and literacy.
In The Republic (Plato), he says that the state’s Guardians should avoid
horse laugh because “naturally, when one abandons himself to violent
horselaugh, his condition provokes a violent response.” Plato believes that
comedy should be tightly controlled if one wants to achieve the ideal state.
Aristotle identified Comedy as one of th e original four stripes of literature
in Poetics as well. Tragedy, grand poetry, and lyric poetry are the other
three stripes. Aristotle defines literature in general as a mimesis, or
reproduction of life. Comedy is the third type of literature, and it is the
most distant from pure mimesis. The most authentic mimesis is tragedy,
followed by grand poetry, comedy, and lyric poetry. According to munotes.in

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16 Aristotle’s concept, the kidney of comedy is determined by a specific
pattern. Slapsticks begin with low or base cha racters seeking insignificant
points and end with some achievement of the points that either lightens the
original baseness or reveals the point’s nullity.
DESCRIPTION OF COMEDY
When we talk about a comedy, we usually mean a play with a
lighthearted tone and a pleasant ending. A comedy, in the most common
erudite operation, is a work in which the material is named and managed
primarily to interest, involve, and regale us the characters and their
confusions engage our enjoyable attention rather than our pr ofound
concern, we’re made to feel confident that no great disaster will suffice,
and the action generally turns out happily for the principal characters
“Comedy is a drama in which the characters are placed in more or less
amusing situations, the movement is light and frequently gleeful, and the
play concludes in general good will and happiness.” W.T. Young
Variety of Comedy There are several different categories of English
comedy: 1) Comedy Romance 2) Mores comedy 3) Biting Comedy 4)
Farce 5) Humorous Com edy 6) New -Age Comedy 7) Dark comedy or
woeful comedy
Romantic satire The phrase "romantic comedy" refers to a sort of drama in
which love is the central focus and results in a joyful ending. The romantic
comedy is arguably the most well -liked of all ludic rous genres, whether on
stage and in film. The phrase "romantic comedy" is intentionally
ambiguous; it refers to a type of drama in which love is the central focus
and results in a joyful ending. Shakespeare created romantic comedies
based on modern comedy .
These plays typically centre on romantic relationships involving a
stunning and idealised heroine. Although these relationships don't always
proceed smoothly, they ultimately succeed and result in a happy marriage.
The main distinguishing feature of this kidney is a love story in which two
empathetic and compatible suckers are united or conformed. In a typical
romantic comedy, the two leads are usually young, likeable, and
supposedly meant for each other. However, some complicating
circumstances (such as class differences, maternal hindrance, a former gal,
or a swain) keep them apart until they overcome all challenges and get
married. There is almost always a marriage -bells, fairy tale -style happy
ending. Exemplifications are crucial Guys and Dolls, Sleepl ess in Seattle,
Ado About Nothing, sarcastic humour Sarcastic comedy makes fun of
political or philosophical theories, or it also criticises deviations from the
social order by demeaning those who disobey its mores or moral
standards. Greek playwright Aris tophanes, who lived between c. 450 and
385 B.C., is regarded as the first master of sarcastic comedy. His plays
made fun of his time's political, philosophical, and academic issues. The
topic of parody is stupidity and fatal vice. Cornetists, culprits, con jurers,
deceivers, wheeler -dealers, two -timers, hypocrites, and fortune -
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17 fools, and cuckolds who function as their all -too-willing victims. Sarcastic
slapsticks differ from other forms of humour in that they follow the
progress of a main character's fortune. however, in this instance, the main
character ( like nearly everybody differently in the play or story)
Farce A farce is a style of humour meant to elicit simple, hearty
laughter —or, as they say in the theatre, "gut laughs" —from the audience.
To do this, it frequently uses exaggerated or caricatured types of
characters, places them in dubious and absurd circumstances, and freely
incorporates sexual mix -ups, vulgar language, physical commotion, and
slapstick. Farce has zaniness, slapstick humour, and absurd improbability
as defining characteristics. Farcical characters tend to be fantastical or
absurd and are typically much more silly than those in other types of
humour. In addition, f arcical narratives usually feature outrageous
concurrency and seemingly never -ending problems. Complex absurd plans
involving false identities, disguises, and deception are the norm.
exemplifications
Laughter humour - The "comedy of Humours" is a crucial su bgenre of
English comedy that Ben Jonson created and popularised. The term
"humours" refers to bodily fluids that mediaeval medicine associated with
various colourful sorts of mortal disposition depending on where in the
body they were ascending. Therefore , a person who has transcended their
blood would be described as "sanguine," but someone who is overly numb
would be described as "apathetic," and someone who has too much choler
(unheroic corrosiveness) would develop a sad bone. Each of the main
character s in Jonson's "Comedy of Humors" has a preponderance of
humour rather than being a well -balanced existence, giving him a
distinctive deformity or curious demeanour. Jonson elaborates on his
claim in the "preface" to the play Every Man in His Right Mind.
literary Comedy - The novelettish comedy of the 18th century was
essentially a reaction against the Restoration era's Comedy of Mores.
Characters from the middle class who enjoy all the benefits of mortal
virtue are forced to suffer in the novelettish comedy, and those who don't
uphold the same virtue feel their pain or sympathy. The purpose of
novelettish slapstick was to mock human vices and extol human virtues.
These slapsticks are essentially nothing more than moral slapsticks in this
regard. For instance, consider the protracted lyric "retribution" by Oliver
Goldsmith. Jeremy Collier, who lived from 1650 to 1726, authored a piece
titled "Against the Permissiveness of the Comedy of Mores," especially
those by Congreve and Vanbrugh.
comically awful There are many plays that don't entirely adhere to the
comedic spirit or capture the pitiful emotions. Even though they appear
happy in the hallway, they also highlight some negative aspects of life.
However, these plays are typically categorised as slapsticks as w ell.
Shakespeare's Measure for Measure and Eliot's The Cocktail Party, for
instance, are both slapstick comedies, but they have very little in common
with the English slapstick genre's central theme. The terms "tragi -
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18 describe these productions. Shakespeare's more recent trage -slapstick
plays, such The Winter's Tale and Cymbeline, follow a pattern where the
narratives include an unexpected release from detention. Black is a phrase
used in conte mporary play.
B) TRAGEDY

Tragic plays are a significant component of western drama. It establishes
an atmosphere that highlights the serious intent. There might or might not
be some absurd relief at times. An extraordinary but flawed person
experiences tragedy and, most often, death in an idol. The purpose of
reality, the nature of fate, morality, and social or intellectual relationships
are among the issues raised by this donation.
Tragedy's ORIGIN Greek dramatisations were reportedly performed as
early as the seventh century B.C. Dramatizations of the Dionysus, the
Greek God of wine and fertility, carnivals were presented as choral
performances with dance and singing. Dramatic competitions were started
in 534 B.C. Thespis won the first competition of it s kind for tragedy. The
fifth century B.C. was the most significant time period in ancient Greek
drama. Tragedies were played in multi -day carnivals as a part of the
recurring religious and civic celebrations. The fashionable tragedies
received rewards in vibrant forms, including scapegoats. The Greek term
"tragaoidia," which translates to "scapegoat song" (tragos = scapegoat,
aeidein = song), is where the name "tragedia" comes from. Tragic
literature was typically sombre, poetic, and philosophical.
These t ragedies had their roots in folklore. In general, the main character
was commendable but flawed and faced a difficult moral decision. The
tragedy typically concluded with the character's demise after he struggled
against hostile forces and lost. The traged ies were presented as incidents
separated by choral odes, during which the chorus moved in a leftward,
rightward, and centre pattern to the music. To convey the character's
identity, the actors wore masks. Reputable Greek tragedians Aeschylus,
Sophocles, a nd Euripides were among them. These playwrights typically
created triplets, or sets of three plays. Three significant Greek tragedies
are Medea by Euripides, Aeschylus' Oresteia, and Sophocles' Oedipus
Rex. Greek drama fell off starting in the third centur y BC. Livius
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19 But for the time being, only Lucius Annaeus Seneca's tragedies remain.
Comedy was more popular in Rome than tragedy. The plays of Seneca had
a real impact during the Renaissance. Recently, western dramatists have
adopted a number of Senecan techniques, including the five -act structure,
the unfolding plot, flowery language, the subject of vengeance, magic,
ghosts, etc. According to Nicoll, drama in England has developed on its
own. However, it went through sim ilar phases to the Greek drama. The
liturgical services are where it first appeared. Mystifications and Miracle
plays were the first forms of dramatisation. Later on, the Morality Plays
appeared. The pauses came next after these. The drama finally made an
appearance in England in the sixteenth century. Written by Thomas Hardy
in 1562, Gorboduc was the earliest English tragedy.
Shakespeare, Webster, and other writers were made possible by Thomas
Kyd and Christopher Marlowe. The Poetics by Aristotle, which is the most
important and significant essay on play, was written in the fourth century
B.C. The article came about after a thorough examination of the Greek
plays of his period. In this article, he has discussed the characteristics and
purposes of tragedy in particular and poetry in general.
Description of a tragedy Now let's look at Aristotle's description of
tragedy. "Tragedy is the recreation of an action that is grave, complete,
and of a particular magnitude; in language stretched with each kind of
cultur al ornamentation, with the various kinds being set up in separate
corridors of the play; in the form of action, not of story;causing a good
catharsis of these emotions through pity and terror. The two basic aspects
of tragedy —its nature and its purpose —are summarised in the paragraph
below. According to the description, tragedy is a reproduction, just like
any other kind of art. However, it is a replication of an activity that is
serious in nature, has a particular scale, and is finished ( i.e. has a defini te
morning, middle and an end). The language is cultural and is made up of a
variety of beautifiers that have been erected in the tragedy's vibrant
hallway. The most crucial aspect of tragedy is that it is presented to the
audience live and in action rathe r than being read aloud.
The goal of a woeful performance is to leave the audience feeling
comforted rather than unhappy and to provide what is referred to as
"woeful pleasure" by causing a catharsis of pity and anxiety. According to
Aristotle, certain emo tions like pity and terror are underutilised in
cultivated life. Tragic events therefore aim to evoke these emotions and
allow them to flow in order to promote mental peace. This serves as the
fundamental tenet in the selection of the terrible idol. Compon ents of
Tragedy Plot, character, setting, permission, diction, spectacle, and song
are some of the basic components of tragedy. Stage instructions and the
scene are now considered as the foundational elements of a tragedy. These
fundamentals are present in the narrative as well, but there are some
differences.
Tragic events take the form of action, but the novel is written in narrative
form. In general, there is no length restriction on the new. Any drama,
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20 hours. The " Three proportion " that should be observed in a play is
described by Aristotle. First, there is the "Unity of Time," according to
which a tragedy should contain a complete action that will be shown in
"one revolution of the S un or slightly further," i.e., the events should not
take place over the course of more than a day. This naturally introduced
the "Unity of Place," in which the action took place in a single area or
location. Given that there were no other options for tran sportation, this
was inevitable.
All of these have a significant impact on how a tragedy's plot develops and
its characters are defined. The final outcome of a novelist's work depends
on no one in particular, whereas a dramatist must rely on the actor, sta ge
director, and numerous other people. Like a novelist, the dramatist cannot
directly address his audience; he can only do so through the character who
serves as his prophet.
1. Plot: A plot is the association of events, incidents, occurrences, and
situation s into a cogent, satisfying structure and it's rendered towards
the achievement of specific emotional and cultural goods, i.e. a plot
takes into account character traits, how events are connected to one
another, and their dramatic effect. In actuality, a p lot is more than a list
of events. By using genuine speech and stage action, the unimportant
is ignored and the significant is maintained and clearly communicated
to us. The basic framework of play is provided by Gustav Freytag in
his book fashion of the D rama (1863). It is shaped like a pyramid.
Tragic plays have the following structure with all other plays. every
playIt needs an introduction to set up the scene or explain the
circumstances from which the action will take place; a complication
(or Rising A ction) during which it advances or becomes more
involved; a climax (or Crisis) when things turn bad; and a denouement
(or Falling Action) which resolves the complication and catastrophe
that determines the character's fate. The first act or thereabouts of a
five-act tragedy is usually dedicated to the exposition. The second Act
and a portion of the third depict the building tension, the third Act's
climax and denouement, as well as the rest of the fourth and a portion
of the fifth Act's final catastrophe. E ach phase is substantially shorter
in length. Plot, in Aristotle's opinion, is a tragedy's essence. Plots come
in two flavours: simple and sophisticated. In a straightforward
storyline, there is no peripeteia (situational reversal) or anagnorisis,
and the action unfolds as a continuous whole ( recognition or
discovery). A complex storyline, however, is one in which the
alteration is accompanied by a change in either the situation or the
recognition, or both. Surprise is the foundation for situation reversal
and realisation. However, Aristotle gives stories based on violent or
torturous episodes a very low rating since they show a lack of skill in
the minstrel's craft. Additionally, Aristotle opposes the usage of
subplots. typically when subplotsThe length of each phase is
significantly decreased. According to Aristotle, the core of a tragedy is
its plot. There are two types of plots: straightforward and complicated.
Simple plots do not involve peripeteia (situational reversal) or
anagnorisis, and the action t akes place in one continuous sequence ( munotes.in

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21 recognition or discovery). However, a complicated plot is one in which
the alteration is accompanied by a change in the circumstance, the
recognition, or both. The cornerstone for situation reversal and
realisation i s surprise. However, because they display a lack of ability
in the minstrel's trade, Aristotle assigns stories centred on violent or
excruciating situations a very low ranking. Aristotle is also against the
use of subplots. often when subplots

2. Characters : Characters are the individuals who advance the plot.
After the storyline, characterization is a crucial component of a play.
Aristotle refers to it as "morality," a system of moral standards.
Characters are evaluated based on their actions and words, as w ell as
what other characters have to say about them. When we tie them to the
play's overarching subject, we get to understand them in their true
context. The character was conceived differently in Aristotle's time
and in current times. Aristotle, a member of the classical tradition, saw
the community as the centre rather than the individual. However, a
character is now viewed favourably. He transitions from prosperity to
adversity during the tragedy due to some "hamartia" (misinterpretation
or

3. Diction : It refers to the verbalization of meaning. It is the verbal
interaction between the tragic characters. It is commonly referred to as
conversation, moves the action along in rhyme or prose, and raises a
glass to what the playwright is trying to say. The relati onships between
the characters are revealed. Excursions and soliloquies are also crucial
components of dramatic speech because they aid in character
comprehension.

4. Setting : The action's general location and literal time are referred to
as the setting. Th e specific physical location in which an event or
scene occurs is referred to as the work's setting. e.g. The overall
backdrop of Macbeth is mediaeval Scotland, whereas the scene where
Macbeth has a problem with the witches takes place is a dreadful
tourna ment. The physical environment plays a significant role in
creating the mood of a work. Setting also refers to the portable pieces
of cabinetry or packages on the stage when used in reference to
theatrical products. It does occasionally take into account w here the
actors are placed in a scene.

5. Stage I nstructions : They are recommendations made by the dramatist
to the patron often in the play's script. They were easy to understand
and numerous in older theatre. They create a connection between the
dramatist and the anthology. Typically, in Greek play, the Chorus
served this purpose. The stage directions of ultramodern plays are
voluminous, intricate, and provided in great detail. They assist the
dramatist in creating the precise ambiance.

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22 6. Conflict : This ter m refers to a conflict or rivalry of some sort. A
conflict is necessary for a drama to exist. There are two sorts of
conflict: internal and external. It may be a disagreement between two
people, studies, or concepts. It might be mental, physical, or
intell ectual. When an existence must choose between two acts of
righteousness, which is for him the most difficult and demanding
experience, Hegel notes that this is when the most definitive struggle
that gives the mortal life its majesty is defined. Conflict is portrayed in
drama in all of its complexity and from a wide range of viewpoints.
Shakespeare seems to favour internal conflict above exterior conflict,
but his plays have many external conflict sequences. The struggle in
today's ludicrous scenario centres around

7. The C horus , which consisted of fifty people, was a crucial component
of Greek drama. It serves as a judge and performs an interpretive role.
Greek tragedies had a cast of characters who moved, danced, and sang
together while intermittently interje cting odes and breaks into the
action to further the conversation and the plot. One of the great goods
the chorus created in Greek tragedy was the ability to "combine,
harmonise, and consolidate for the spectator the passions awakened in
him by the sight o f what was going on the stage." It served as a judge
or a narrator as well. The conduct that should be off -stage is recited,
particularly acts of violence, war, etc.

8. Thought : The ability to state what is realistically possible under the
circumstances.

9. Song: In Greek tragedy, it held the top spot among embellishments.

10. Display : Although it has a unique emotional pull, this corridor is the
least culturally diverse. The stage medium, not the minstrel's art, is
what determines the spectacular goods.
Tragedie s can be classified into the following categories:
1. Classical or Greek Tragedy: Aristotle's Poetics is based on an analysis
of the Greek tragedies by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. Therefore,
the Poetics does a good job of describing the qualities of Greek tragedy.
The adherents of these myths were aware that the stories in these tragedies
were based on them. As a result, they didn't really surprise anyone. The
plays had a significant theological and moral component because they
were a part of the religious carnivals. Nemesis, or fate, was dominant.
Even though the subjects were usually shocking and awful, the Greek
tragedy, to the best of its ability, avoided displays of gruesome violence on
the stage. The play featured up to five or six characters . The chorus, which
consisted of fifty people, recited similar occurrences. a guy of
extraordinary character, yet with a defect that ultimately brought him to
ruin. Slaves and women were not seen suitable protagonists for tragedies.
There was no blending o f the absurd with the tragic, therefore the
tragedies were "pure tragedies," adhering to the Unity of Action. Triplets, munotes.in

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23 or a set of three acts, were how Greek tragedies were performed.
However, a "Satyr play," which was independent of the tragedy and
frequ ently crudely ridiculous in nature, would usually follow serious
plays.
2. Elizabethan/Renaissance Tragedy : England, a little later than other
European countries, experienced the Renaissance or reanimation of art in
the middle of the sixteenth century. The English dramatists' imaginations
were stimulated by the Renaissance's rise in classical restatement, which
combined with the English mediaeval legacy of mystifications and
Morality plays. Seneca has a significant impact on tragedy in particular.
Senecan p ractises, including their five -act framework, unfolding narrative,
and flowery language
The Renaissance dramatists openly embraced themes of retribution,
magic, ghosts, etc. In the field of tragedy, Thomas Kyd, Christopher
Marlowe, and other University Wit s prepared the way for Shakespeare,
Webster, Tourneur, and others. The Renaissance dramatists, unlike the
Greeks, did depict violent situations on stage. Shakespeare is this era's
most well -known dramatist. Shakespeare made alterations to the form and
characters even though he adhered to the Greek tragedy's core themes. The
miserable idol has a driving passion or interest that, in unusual
circumstances, turns into his miserable excrescence. Shakespeare's
characters are destined rather than the luck of the d raw, however there is a
little amount of chance and coincidence in his downfall. as opposed to
exterior conflict
Tragedies of the time were composed in blank verse and focused on
notable individuals, numerical values, etc. Under the influence of Seneca,
Thomas Kyd (Hieronemo, The Spanish Tragedy) and Webster (The
Duchess of Malfi, The White Devil) created horror dramas that frequently
featured ghosts, witches, and murders.
3. The Heroic Play : The Restoration Tragedy A unique byproduct of the
Restoration era is the Heroic play ( 1660 - 1700). It was commonly
accused of being artificial, alien, and unnatural. It materialised as a result
of the spiritual needs of a worn -out, disheartened, and decadent quality. In
contrast to the demoralised life that prevailed i n the times, it produced a
dream -world filled with love, virtue, and greatness. It covered topics like
love, honour, and duty. It's a manufactured universe that can be
fashionable designated as "heroic" for the promoter and his conviction that
he has compl ete control over his actions and environment. The Heroic
Play exhibits additional similarities to the Epic in terms of character, style,
and particularly the use of heroic metre.
The heroic drama demonstrates difficulties similar to how two brothers,
two m usketeers, or two men that love the same lady. These cause the idol's
fortune to take unexpected turns. The heroic play typically had a joyful
ending because the writer wanted to show the idol as a role model. As a
result, he ultimately received a prize. I n contrast to Greek or
Shakespearean tragedies, the tragedy has lyrical justice. The blank verse munotes.in

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24 tragedy uses the blank verse as the metre rather than the heroic brace,
which is another way to interpret this type of play. John Dryden produced
comparable He roic dramas. His All for Love, which was based on Antony
and Cleopatra by Shakespeare, is a well -known heroic play.
4. Domestic Tragedies : In the eighteenth century, these tragedies were
common. It focuses on the domestic daily activities of typical middle -class
people and demonstrates how family life and happiness are ruined if either
the husband or the wife veers off the road of virtue. Because of the
increase in soppiness, tragedies of this kind flourished. There is a
deliberate attempt to downplay the r hetorical style of the heroic play in
order to make it ordinary and everyday. The authors considered that
similar circumstances provided an opportunity for the expression of
sentiments, hence fate played a significant role in this kind of tragedy. The
most significant writer of home tragedy was George Lillo. His 1973
publication, The London trafficker or The History of George Barnwell.
1.3.2 MELODRAMA

During the 1800s, one of the most well -liked theatrical genres was
psychodrama. Melodrama's goal was to a muse a cult through the use of
comedy, stock characters, exaggerated acting, and music. They combined
violence, love, and saccharinely in brief, action -packed sequences. To
advertise its fashion prowess, they employed lavish backdrops, entrancing
music, ex aggerated acting, and enticing followership commerce ( hissing,
booing, cheeringetc.). There were many causes (environments) for
Melodrama's potential to be fashionable. The Industrial Revolution had
begun in Europe in the nineteenth century.
Many people p ut in incredibly long hours of labour in risky and noisy
enterprises. These individuals lacked significant plutocracy, and many of
them were illiterate. Life wasn't easy. The theatre was one of the only
ways to get away. Every city had a large number of th eatres, and cheap
tickets made it easy for people to enjoy a show without worrying about
their troubles. They desired excitement, passion, and risk -taking. They
desired the triumph of the good people and the punishment of the villains.
They desired to witn ess the idol's and the heroine's subsequent love story
and happy ending. Venues grew larger and larger as theatre became so
popular. Some theatres have a maximum capacity of,000. Every stage munotes.in

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25 effect has to be exaggerated because of the large stages ( especi ally for the
poorest people who had the cheapest seats ; farthest from the stage).
Many people work extremely long hours in dangerous and noisy
environments. These people were largely ignorant and lacked significant
plutocracy. Life was not simple. One of the few escape routes was the
theatre. Every city had a sizable selection of theatres, and affordable
tickets made it simple for people to watch a performance without stress.
They yearned for risk -taking, passion, and excitement. They desired the
vindicati on of the righteous and the condemnation of the wicked. They
wanted to see the subsequent love story and triumphant conclusion
between the idol and the heroine. Due to the popularity of theatre, venues
grew increasingly larger. The maximum seating capacity in some theatres
is,000. Every stage effect needs to be blown up because. As a result,
motion and gesture were exaggerated and larger than life, and dramatic
items like lightning and explosions were included. The extravagant
amusement style contributed to the evening's action -packed and dramatic
entertainment. The name "psychodrama" is derived from the words "air"
and "drama," and music plays a key role in this. According to the musical
tempo, the actors would act out of character, easily revealing their
personalities and emotions.
Stock Figures Characters in melodramas weren't supposed to be very
lifelike. Instead, they were easily recognisable to everyone and
stereotypical. They consist of "prevailing characters" and A idol'
attractive, powerful, tenaciou s, honest, and trustworthy. a champion.
beautiful, brave, innocent, and exposed. a bad guy. Evil, cunning, morally
bankrupt, dishonest, and dishonest.
ORIGINS
Novelettish books that were widely read in both England and France in the
18th and 19th centurie s resurrected the psychodrama technique. It is
possible to interpret these dramatisations and novels as a mirror of the
issues raised by the French Revolution, the artificial revolution, the
transition to modernization, and moral canons with regard to fami ly, love,
and marriage. A common plot device for class conflict in many plays
involved a young woman from the middle class who was subjected to
unwanted sexual advances from an aristocratic miscreant. The post -
industrial revolution anxieties of the middle class, who were terrified of
both aristocratic power brokers and the underprivileged working class
"mob," were reflected in the psychodrama.
Psychodrama, which was popular in the 18th century, featured spoken
enumeration together with brief musical interlu des. Similar workshops
often alternated between music and verbal dialogue, and occasionally
pantomime would also be accompanied by music.
Scenes from J.E. Eberlin's Latin academy play Sigismun dus provide the
best examples ( 1753). Pygmalion by Jean -Jacques Rousseau, whose
textbook was written in 1762 but was first presented in Lyon in 1770, was
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26 written by Rousseau, but Horace Coignet wrote the majority of the music.
In Germany, about 30 further monodramas were created during the final
three years of the 18th century. The term "duodrama" could be used when
there were two actors involved. Particularly popular were Georg Benda's
duodramas.
Most British theatres were forbidden from presenting "serio us" drama
following Charles II's English Restoration in 1660, but they were still
allowed to produce comedies or musical plays. Only two London theatre
companies were authorised by letters patent issued by Charles II to stage
"serious" drama. In the end, o ne theatre in each of a number of additional
English towns and cities received further letters patent. In order to
circumvent the prohibition, other theatres performed dramatisations that
were underscored by music and used the French word "psychodrama."
Finally, all theatres were able to stage drama thanks to the Theatres Act of
1843.
By the end of the 19th century, the term "psychodrama" had nearly been
reduced to a single type of salon entertainment that consisted of more or
less rhythmically spoken words (often poetry), occasionally more or less
legislated, and at least some dramatic structure or plot that was
accompanied by musical incident ( generally piano). It was despised as a
kidney by writers and musicians from lower social classes ( presumably
also why nearly no consummations of the kidney are still flashed back ).
Probably at the same period, the term started to be associated with the idea
of cheap overacting. Plays exhibit the immense maturity of operas. The
appropriate music conveys and intensif ies the emotional pressures.
Characters prostrate or give in to larger -than-life events such as war,
treason, monumental love, murder, vengeance, filial strife, or comparable
grandiose situations in mature plots. Most characters are simplistically
drawn, w ith distinct lines delineating good and evil, and character
development and cleverness of plot are both provided. Events are planned
to show how the character's traits affect them emotionally and how they
affect other people.
1.3.3 MUSICAL THEATRE

Musica l Theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs,
spoken dialogue , acting and dance. The story and emotiona l content of a
musical – humor, pathos , love, anger – are communicated through words, munotes.in

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27 music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an
integrated whole. Although musical theatre overlaps with other theatrical
forms like opera and dance, it may be distinguished by the equal
importance given to the music as compared with the dialogue, movement
and other elements. Since th e early 20th century, musical theatre stage
works have generally been called, simply, musicals .
Although music has been a part of dramatic presentations since ancient
times, modern Western musical theatre emerged during the 19th century,
with many structur al elements established by the works of Gilbert and
Sullivan in Britain and those of Harrigan and Hart in America. These were
followed by the numerous Edwardian musical comedies and the musical
theatre works of American creators like George M. Cohan at the turn of
the 20th century. The Princess Theatre musicals (1915 –1918) were artistic
steps forward beyond revues and other frothy entertainments of t he early
20th century and led to such ground breaking works as Show
Boat (1927), Of Thee I Sing (1931) and Oklahoma! (1943).
Some of the most famous musicals through the decades that followed
include My Fair Lady (1956) , The Fantasticks (1960), Hair (1967), A
Chorus Line (1975), Les Misérables (1985), The Phantom of the
Opera (1986), Rent (1996), The Producers (2001), Wicked (2003) and
Hamilton (2015).
1.3.4 STREET THEATR E

Without a specified paying audience, street theatre is a type of theatrical
performance and donation in outdoor public locations. These areas can be
found anywhere, including in shopping malls, parking lots for councils or
universities, and recreation al areas at road corners. They are particularly
prevalent in outdoor areas with dense populations of humans. The
performers that do road theatre range from after to organised theatre
organisations or groups that wish to try out different performance settin gs
or promote their more well -known work. When there were no other means
of information, such as TV or radio, it served as a source of information
for the populace. At the moment, road plays are utilised to communicate
with the audience. Street play is tho ught to be the most unpolished form of
acting.
In reality, most types of popular entertainment, including religious passion
plays and a variety of other genres, have their roots in street acting, munotes.in

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28 making street theatre possibly the oldest form of theatre. P layers who once
performed professionally in variety theatres, music halls, and vaudeville
now frequently do so in the many renowned road performance venues
around the world. Notable performers who started their careers as road
theatre players include Robin Williams, David Bowie, Jewel, and Harry
Anderson.
People who may not have ever attended traditional theatre or who may not
have been eligible to do so can now do so thanks to street theater. Anyone
and everyone who wants to watch and support the followers is a part of the
followership.
Socially conscious performance artists may decide to take their work on
the road as a way to directly challenge or interact with the audience. As an
example, the multimedia artist Caeser Pink and his troupe of actors known
as The Imperial Orgy presented a piece titled Our Daily Bread that invited
participants onto the streets of New York's financial district to
ceremoniously lay Wonder Bread loaves along the sidewalks, each bearing
a message from Satan offering to buy people' s souls in exchange for
material goods. When police were called and children who smelled like
bombs were brought in to check the bread for traps, the performance
caused a stir.
Other artists could view performance for a paying, theater -going audience
as be ing unrepresentative of the audience they are attempting to reach, and
may view performing for "the man on the road" as a more well -liked kind
of dispersion. In order to put them in a setting that is as near to their
original setting as possible, several c ontemporary road theatre interpreters
have researched pre -existing road and popular theatrical traditions, such as
Carnival, commedia dell' arte, etc. in great detail.
Whatever the motivation, the road offers a unique set of opportunities not
found in a tr aditional theatre setting. According to Sue Gill of Welfare
State International, performing road theatre is not inferior to performing
internally or merely replicating what you do on stage.
In the 1960s and 1970s, organisations including Lumiere and Son, J ohn
Bull Perforation form tackle, Exploded Eye, and Natural Theatre
Company created a character -based travelling theatre. Unannounced
performances with characters acting out a pre -written script while
appearing stunning or fantastical or simply engaging on lookers in
conversation were included. They didn't intend to deceive in the Candid
Camera sense; instead, they invited the audience to act along with them.
No amount of testing or planning could dictate what would happen.



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29 1.3.5 FOLK THEATRE

Folk thea tres are starting to appear as previously indicated, the patronage
of the courts caused the Sanskrit theatres to proliferate and achieve their
peak in the first 10 centuries after their founding. Gradual deterioration of
Sanskrit theatres was caused by cha nges in the cultural and political
landscape in the tenth century. The decline of Sanskrit theatres is
attributed to north -western irruptions, much like Mahmud of Ghazni's,
which weakened the fiefdoms in India's north and eventually resulted in
the connect ion of the Mughal conglomerate in the fifteenth century. The
Sanskrit court theatres couldn't withstand this time of political upheaval.
New language norms also emerged during this time. In India's pastoral
corridor, new languages and learned traditions be gan to emerge around
this period. As a result, the court language Sanskrit's exclusivity was
probably another factor in the gradual decline of the country's theatrical
traditions. Traditions and rituals, however, never completely disappear but
rather take on new shapes. All over India, theatre has appeared in a wide
range of indigenous languages. It left the courts to become a real presence
in the community and fulfil their needs.
Folk theatres emerged in such a wide diversity that some of them remain
unrec orded today.
A theological movement known as Vaishnavism (12th century) that placed
an emphasis on devotion to God in the form of Krishna, a reincarnation of
Vishnu, also played a role in the development of folk theatres. Making the
lives of Gods and expre ssing religion via performative forms thereafter
gained a status of religious saint. Many examples of folk theatre that is
connected to religious experience include the Ramlila and Raslila in the
north, Ankiya Nat in Assam, BhagavataMela in Tamil Nadu, Das havatara
in Maharashtra, Krishnattam in Kerala, and Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh.
Other folk traditions that emerged from conversational languages had
more cyclical origins and were practised for social pleasure. Bhavai in
Gujarat, Jatra in Bengal, Bihar, a nd Orissa, Nautanki in Uttar Pradesh,
Swang in Haryana and Punjab, Sumang - Leela in Manipur, and
Yakshagana in Karnataka are a few examples of these. These folk forms
were developed in their original communities and each had unique
characteristics. The San skrit tradition's basic musical elements, cotillion munotes.in

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30 dances, rituals, stylistic donations, and stock characters were adapted by
folk theatres at the same time and incorporated into fresh socio -artistic
contexts.
These forms relied more on extemporizations t han on predetermined
textbooks, in contrast to the Sanskrit dramatic tradition, which was based
on academic texts. Since the subjects of traditional theatre were typically
derived from myth and legend, no authorship could be established through
a form. The y would be available to the entire population and performed in
public arenas. Most of these genres shared elements of pageantry,
spectacle, and stylization with Sanskrit theatre. Some of these styles
continued rituals and elaborate overtures from Sanskrit theatre.
Dramatizations like Kathakali and Krishnattam, for example, were better
suited to the term "cotillion" than other art forms. Others, like Tamasha in
Maharashtra and Bhavai in Gujarat, were accustomed to dialogue, humor,
and caricature.
Folk theatr e performances included music and cotillion, which had
numerous dramatic purposes. Many of these folk forms had an artistic,
non-realistic approach to theatre, which required the use of conventions,
expensive makeup, and lavish costumes. Crowns, masks, and headdresses
in the style of the Yakshagana, Krishnattam, and Terrukuttu are used, and
faces are painted with features and colours appropriate for different kinds
of characters. The performances typically involved the audience and were
informal community a ctivities.
Following are some ways that Balwant Gargi distinguishes between
Sanskrit and folk theatres in his important work Theatre in India: In order
to appeal to a sophisticated audience of courtiers, Sanskrit play used a
primarily elaborate language th at had little bearing on everyday life. Their
lives are infused with folk theatre in all of its varied manifestations. It has
evolved, changed, and adapted in order to adapt to the shifting societal
conditions.
Folk theatres had a far wider audience since they were more adaptable,
casual, and participatory than Sanskrit theatre. Each of these theatrical
subgenres has an own history of development and integration into local
cultures.
The study of these dramatic forms is unavoidably a study of change and
endu rance, as well as the rehabilitation of traditions to meet current
demands. These forms are actually symbolic of a vibrant and cooperative
life since they have developed layers of significance over the course of
centuries. They serve as a record of the dai ly lives of the common people
in India's vibrant regions, making them important for tracing the country's
artistic history.
1.4 LET US SUM UP
Theatre is a collaborative performance art form that employs live actors or
actresses to portray the experience o f a real or imagined event before a
live audience in a particular setting, typically a stage. The players can use munotes.in

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31 gesture, voice, song, music, and dance to share this experience with the
audience. We have learned about the idea of theatre during this lesso n,
including its relevance, nature, and meaning. Space, time, performance,
and audience are all crucial elements of theatre. Learn more about each of
these elements and how crucial they are to the performance of the play.
Furthermore, we learned about seve ral theatre genres, including
melodrama, musical theatre, street plays, and folk plays, as well as the
history and features of comedy and tragedy.
1.5 UNIT END EXRECISE
1. Give an account of the tragedy theatre.
2. What are the important componen t of the theatre?
3. Explain the meaning and nature of theatre?
4. How theatre is significant in education and social life ?
5. Explain the importance of melodrama and folk theatre ?


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32 2
HISTORY OF INDIAN THEATRE
Unit Structure:
2.0 Objectives
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Rituals and Myths from regions of India
2.3 NatyaShastra
2.4 NavRas
2.5 Foundation of Indian Theatre
2.6 Classical Indian Theatre -Kathakali, Yakshgaan
2.7 Let Us Sum Up
2.8 U nit End Exercise
2.0 OBJECTIVES:
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
 Explain the rituals and myths from regions of India.
 Discuss the Natya Shastra as a origin of Indian drama.
 Analyses the NavRas and its relation with drama.
 Describe the foundat ion of Indian Theatre particularly.
 Discuss the Classical Indian Theatre Kathakali and Yakshgaan.
2.1 INTRODUCTION:
Theatre is a branch of performing arts related to the presentation of plays
and musicals. Its scope is worldwide and its influence is profo und. The art
of theatre is concern about live performance by actors, in that the action is
precisely planned to create a coherent and significant sense of drama in a
time space audience framework. Theatre includes in varied contents and
forms as sanctioned by the socio -political and geographical milieu through
human activity. There are different opinions related to the aim of theatre.
Some have viewed that theatre is goal -oriented with a serious purpose
while others stressed theatre as a medium of impartin g entertainment,
education and still few see no reason why theatre should not be
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33 Theatre in general term is inclusive of all the elements that contribute to a
performance of dramatic nature.Theatre is indeed complex and because of
its complicated nature it can be understood and discussed intelligently
only by beginning with an analysis of the term and its definition. The word
theatre has its roots in “ Theomaf which means, “to see” and also from
“theatron ” whic h literally signify “the auditorium or space ” for the
audience. To start with the root words; when one goes to be a part of the
play, it is almost the same as to see a theatre, so a word taken from the
Greek synonymous for a “ place for seeing. ”
As one sit in an auditorium or any space the meaning of theatre refers to
“a place”or “ hearing’ too. Theatre also denotes “ one or more human
beings act” which means "thedoing of a deed”. Therefore, through the
three components “to see" “to hear' within the “action or deed', complete
the theatrical act. “The audience for theatrical events was known as ‘ those
who see ’ clearly implying that seeing a performance was as important as
hearing if.
2.2 RITUALS AND MYTHS FROM REGIONS OF INDIA:
There are many interpretations rega rding the origin of theatre. Most of the
scholarstake help of anthropological studies in imagining and
understanding the state of thehuman beings in the ancient times. Since
times immemorial, when man started believing the existence of supreme
forces beyon d him, it led to the practice of worshipping or pleasing these
supreme forces through rituals. Although theatre as an art form emerged at
a comparatively late stage in man’s cultural evolutions but it is generally
believed to have its roots in primitive re ligious rituals. There were patterns
in the behaviour of primitive societies that could justify as pre theatrical.
The various patterns showed the mental state of the people experiencing
the unpredictable mysterious cycles. They undertook rituals, which we re
an appeal to those they believed to control the various elements for their
welfare guidance and safety.
In the beginning ritual activity was confined to simple imitation of either
the phenomenon or objects observed associated with them. Those persons
or main performers involved directly in the celebration of the rites wore
the forms of nature, religious characters or emblems associated with the
God. The actor, or the medium was possessed and believed that the God
took possessions at the height of ecstasy . So, such solemn rites of
observance and performance were not only a mere imitation but also
transfiguration.
There were other rites known as grotesque rites chiefly involved with
giving honour, respect and thanks for all the help as well as blessings the y
received.
On such occasions, the community used to spontaneously participate and
react to the performances and celebrations. Scholars viewed the earliest
western theatre forms to be closely connected with the solemn rites since
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34 origins. It all began with simple imitation but in the process the rites and
rituals became a part of the rigid tradition. And still today many such
traditional forms mainly in India preserved and cherished th e linkage with
ancient religious origin.
A closer look at the dances as early theatre developed from religious
dances and rituals divulged that theatre was closely affiliated with nature.
The mysterious and unknown environment comprehend them to establish
contact with those sources of power in nature that seemed most destructive
like extreme heat, cold, drought, flood and storm.
Thus, the human body emulated and further simulated these activities of
nature in body language, gesture and rhythmic movements. T he dance
steps were simple imitation of the nature’s events, which constitute the
soul of all ritual activities. Emotions were later supplemented to it. In its
course of growth, the dances were refined, specified and a strict code of
conduct was formed. Fu rther it became more stylized. The performance
was not individualistic as the community participated by forming
processions, executing certain steps and rhythms or by clapping and
chanting. They assisted in the transformation though they themselves were
not transformed.
The transition from tribal communities towards a society organized by the
specialisation and division of labour had imposed massive bodily and
mental restraints on man. It has however challenged all of the arts to serve
not merely as a means of man’s self -expression but also to become an
integral part of his cultures as they evolved. The transformation from the
dance rituals to genres of make believed action with dialogue and formal
narrative was difficult to examine, as there was little effo rts to record the
events and details of the changing social order. The people, however,
preserved their rich experiences and transmitted verbally or orally to the
next generations. The succeeding generation inherited the traditions with
spontaneous innovat ions and modifications, as an immediate response to
their present needs. The rituals underwent alteration with the gaining
prominence of various fundamental principles of drama, dance,music,
songs, costumes, mimetic action and community participation. Many of
these elements within the ritual performances and ceremonial environment
led to the growth of theatre. Thus, theatre and rituals existed together from
the very beginning and theatre was an important component of the
primitive belief system of human civ ilization. Theatre,therefore, endured a
long process of development, giving birth to theatrical genres emergence
of western theatre
Thus, in the west, theatre emerged as a whole mode of entertainment.
Egyptian, Greek and Roman theatre emerged from the pra ctices mainly
dealt with rituals, burials ceremonies, processions, commemorations of
dead pharaohs, pageantry, renewal of fertility, musical dancing
performances and gladiatorial contests. Most of the theatre experts and
historians looked upon the Greek th eatre as distinct source for the
emergence of western theatre and western drama. Theatre re -emerged later
in the religious festivals of medieval Europe. The religious biblical munotes.in

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35 performances (mainly performed by priest in churches to subvert the
Pagan rites) loosened the supervision of the church and extended to the
common people. The content of the play became secularised and by 19th
century theatre turned democratic or at all events more middle class
oriented.
Today, die term ‘Theatre’ has become extremely popular. As the usage of
theatre is ever increasing, a body of scholars and experts are working on
critical analysis andcommentary, which is confounding to a common man.
For an understanding of theconceptual richness and sharper articulation of
the western theatre, it is vital to understand the closeness and
distinctiveness of theatre and drama as two different art forms. Theatre
and drama are interdependent and at the same time can exist
independently. Theatre exists as a performing art form when the actor
expresses his inner feelings and thoughts by using the medium of spoken
words, sounds, body movements, music, poetry, dance and mimes to the
audience in a time and space framework. On the other hand, drama can
prevail as a literary art form or as a perfor mance text in which the writer
expresses an idea or thought by using the medium of literature. Although,
the difference between drama and theatre is sometimes blurred. “In
general, it may be said that drama or the written text can be read and
studied in so litude where theatre covers everything to do with the
corporate activities of play going, and play representation, including the
text”.
Theatre, apart from the building, of presentation of plays in front of an
audience also amalgamated all the elements, wh ich undertake that
presentation. Yet, theatre and drama are interdependent as one is
meaningless if isolated from the other. But each theatre form has its own
elements of drama. The intimate nexus of Drama and Theatre and yet its
differences have always po sed certain problems in determining the
concept of Theatre.
Drama emerged with the performance of the plays written by Sophocles,
Aeschylus etc in the 5th century B.C., whereas the existence of ritualistic
pre theatrical forms were traced to prehistoric ti me. They still survived in
many parts of Asia and Africa in the traditional theatre forms. Drama has
been used to mean “all written plays regardless of their genre or forms”.
Drama is a play that is specifically written for achieving total action
derived b y the transaction of audience and actor. The Western theatre or
popularized as Aristotelian model of theatre in which written play and
spoken words predominate is coined as “Drama Theatre” by the noted
scholar of theatre Darko Survin.
2.3 NATYASHASTRA
Introduction:
Dramatic literature in India is an age -old genre in the literary world.
Itshistory dates back to Rig Veda, which is the most ancient among
Indianliterary productions and the oldest of the Vedic collections. Drama munotes.in

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36 in India isas old as the Indian c ustoms and it has, at least, one of its main
roots in proto ballad poetry. The evolutionary evidence of Indian
dramaturgy is seen inVedic era down through the epic, puranic , Buddhist
and Jaina literature and,we are obligated to map out the origin of old
Indian epics in it. Like the wayballads afforded the essential basis for
developing the epics, drama took itsroots from the dramatic elements of
the same ballads in which stories of godsand demi -gods in sacrifices and
feasts were narrated.
Drama in India had begun its journey with the Sanskrit plays. A.
L.Basham, a prominent historian, has opined that “the origin of Indian
theatre isstill obscure. It is certain, however, that even in the Vedic period
dramaticperformances of some kind were given, and passing r eferences in
early resources point to the enactment at festivals of religious legends” .
Vedic collections have presented a lurid picture of dramatic theatre and in
them are found the Samhita which has fifteen hymns written in a dialogue
form, invested wit h the principle materials for drama. According to the
legend, Mahendra and other gods went to Brahma, the Creator, with an
entreaty that he creates a pastime that would be shared by all mankind.
The Creator had extracted the words from the Rigveda , music a nd songs
from the Sama Veda , the quality of acting from the Yajur Veda and
aesthetic flavour from the Atharva Veda and composed the Natya Veda
dealing with the poetics of theatre. Indian natya is said to have a unique
beginning, having a unique feature and well-sealed in Nātyaśāstra .
Nātyaśāstra -Indian dramatic traditions are preserved in the Nātyaśāstra ,
the oldest ofthe texts of the theory of drama, whose authorship has been
believed to beBharata Manu. Nātyaśāstra claims for the drama divine
origin and a closeconnection w ith the sacred Vedas themselves. We can
clearly perceive from Nātyaśāstra that Bharata is not only familiar with the
Vedas and their status inthe hierarchy of knowledge, but is also acquainted
with the content, substanceand form of each. He has also recogniz ed the
authority of the Vedas and thishas virtually enabled him to carve out the
theory of his own by basing onthem. K. Vatsyayan has commented on
Bharata’s Nātyaśāstra in thefollowing words:
Important is the fact that he identifies pathya , the articulated spokenword,
not just the word ( sabda ) from the Ragveda . The incantedword, the
spoken word and its transmission, is a fundamentalpremise. So, also is the
case with identifying the Yajurveda as thesource of ritual and body
language and gestures. Vedic yajna as aper -formative act is considered as
a base (Vatsyayan 12 -14).
The Nātyaśāstra of Bharata is the principle work of dramatic
theory,encompassing dance and music, in classical India. It is believed to
have beenwritten during the period between 200 B.C.E. and 200 C.E.
“The Natyashastra is the outcome of several centuries of th eatrical practice
byhereditary actors, who passed their tradition orally from generation
togeneration. It is in the form of a loose dialogue between Bharata and a
numberof munis who approach him, asking about nāyaveda ” (“Natya
Shastra”) munotes.in

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37 The Nātyaśāstra discusses a wide range of topics, from issues of
literaryconstruction, to the structure of the stage ( mandapa), to a detailed
analysis ofmusical scales and movements (murchhanas), to an analysis of
dance formsthat considers several categories of body movements and their
effect on theviewer. It posits that drama has originated because of the
conflicts that arosein society when the world declined from the Golden
Age (Kŗta Yuga) ofharmony, and, therefore, drama has always represented
a conflict and itsresolution. Bharata’s theory of drama refers to bhavas, the
imitations ofemotions that the actors perform, and the rasas (emotional
responses) thatthey inspire in the aud ience. The eight basic bhavas
(emotions) are: love,humor, energy, anger, fear, grief, disgust and
astonishment. By observing andimagining these emotions, the audience
experiences eight principle responses,or rasas: love, pity, anger, disgust,
heroism, awe, terror and comedy. The textcontains a set of precepts on the
writing and performance of dance, music andtheater and, its primary
dealing on stagecraft has influenced Indian music,dance, sculpture,
painting and literature as well. Therefore, the Nātyaśāstra isconsidered the
foundation of the fine arts in India.If drama is born of the divine, it has a
causal origin of a happening in notime, a revelation, an intuitive
experience. It has a form and structure and, theprimary sense perception of
sound a nd speech are its tools. “It deals with thevisible and audible,
employs body and language (gestures), speech, music,dress, costume and
an understanding of psychic states, which involuntarilyreflect themselves
in the physical body, e.g., tears, horrificatio n, etc., toexpress and convey
meaning and emotive states” (Vatsyayan ). Bharata hasdrawn the
inspiration from his familiarity with structure and detailedmethodology of
the yajna in conceiving and visualizing his theatricaluniverse.
He has brought forth the metaphor of bija(seed) to explicate his theoryof
aesthetics. The tree grows from a seed and, flowers and fruits, in which
iscontained the seed; the parts distinct and different from each other but
areinextricably related, having something from the same so urce. Theinter -
relatedness and interdependence of the part and the whole is basic
andfundamental. The process of growth, the proliferation of each part
beingdifferent and distinct, and yet developing from the unitary source,
isfundamental. Bharata has acce pted and assimilated this concept not only
as acentral principle but also as an enunciation of the process of
artisticexpression and communication. The metaphor is not watertight and,
therefore,is not to be extended literally and this is an invisible found ation
of the text of Nātyaśāstra . Theatre is an organism just as life is an
organism in whichdifferent parts make up the complete whole and they are
inextricably linked,though each organ is distinctly different from the other.
K. Vatsyayan has also made an intensive scrutiny o n the text ofBharata’s
Nātyaśāstra . He has explained that “the Nātyaśāstra does not referto either
purusa or to the elements explicitly. However, a close reading of thetext
makes it clear that the structure of ‘drama’ is in itself a purusa , a
structureof dif ferent parts and limbs where each part is related to the
whole. Thephysical, psychical, individual, social, horizontal and vertical
dimensions areinterconnected” (Vatsyayan ). The concept of Nātyaśāstra ,
therefore, is ofthe same kind with the concept of purusa. Different parts of munotes.in

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38 the body make upthe whole man and absence of a part makes an
incomplete man. In short, bodyand mind are interdependent. They are
mutually effective and affective.Intellection is vital in man but senses,
feeling and sensibility are elemental.
Moving further into the text and context of the Nātyaśāstra , the
bookwhich has been divided into thirty six chapters, can be regrouped into
threesections for the purpose of explicating the art and its form. The first is
artisticexperience, then the artistic content or states of being, the modes
ofexpres sion through word, sound, gesture, dress, decorations and
methods ofestablishing correspondences between physical movement,
speech andpsychical states, as also the communication and reception by
the audience orreaders and, lastly the structure of the drama tic form,
popularly translated asplot.
2.4 NAVRAS
In Indian aesthetics , a rasa ( Sanskrit : रस) literally means "nectar, essence
or taste". It connotes a concept in Indian arts about the aesthetic flavor of
any visual, literary or musical work that evokes an emotion or feeling in
the reader or audience but cannot be described. It refers to the em otional
flavors/essence crafted into the work by the writer and relished by a
'sensitive spectator' or sahdaya, literally one who "has heart", and can
connect to the work with emotion, without dryness. Rasas are created
by bhavas the state of mind.
The rasa theory has a dedicated section (Chapter 6) in the Sanskrit
text Natya Shastra , an ancient text on the arts from the 1st millennium
BCE attributed to Bharata Muni . However, its most complete exposition in
drama, songs and other performance arts is found in the works of the
Kashmiri Shaivite philosopher Abhinavagupta (c. 1000 CE),demonstrating
the persistence of a long -standing aesthetic t. radition of ancient
India.. According to the Rasa theory of the Natya Shast ra, entertainment is
a desired effect of performance arts but not the primary goal, and the
primary goal is to transport the audience into another parallel reality, full
of wonder and bliss, where they experience the essence of their own
consciousness, and reflect on spiritual and moral questions.
Although the concept of rasa is fundamental to many forms of Indian
arts including dance , music , theatre, painting, sculpture, and literature , the
interpretation and implementation of a particular rasa differs bet ween
different styles and schools. The Indian theory of rasa is also found in the
Hindu arts and Ramayana musical productions in Bali and Java
(Indonesia), but with regional creative evolution
The word rasa appears in ancient Vedic literature. In Rigveda , it connotes
a liquid, an extract and flavor. In Atharvaveda , rasa in many contexts
means "taste", and also the sense of "the sap of grain".
According to Daniel Meyer -Dinkgräfe – a professor of Drama, rasa in
the Upanishads refers to the "essence, self-luminous consciousness, munotes.in

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39 quintessence" but also "taste" in some cont exts. In post -Vedic literature,
the word generally connotes "extract, essence, juice or tasty liquid".
Rasa in an aesthetic sense is suggested in the Vedic literature, but the
oldest surviving manuscripts, with the rasa theory of Hinduism , are
of Natya Shastra .
The Sanskrit text Natyashastra presents the rasa theory in Chapter 6, a
text attributed to Bharata Muni. The text begins its discussion with
a sutra called in Indian aesthetics as the rasa sutra :
Rasa is produced from a combination of Determinants ( vibhava ),
Consequents ( anubhava ) and Transitory States ( vyabhicaribhava ).
According to the Natya shastra , the goals of theatre are to empower
aesthetic experience and deliver emotional rasa. The text states that the
aim of art is manifold. In many cases, it aims to produce repose and relief
for those exhausted with labor, or distraught with grief, or laden with
misery, or struck by austere times. Yet entertainment is an effect, but not
the primary goal of arts according to Natya shastra . The primary goal is to
create rasa so as to lift and transport the spectators, unto the expression of
ultimate reality and transcendent values.
The Abhinavabhāratī is the most studied commentary on Natyasastra ,
written by Abhinavagupta (950–1020 CE), who referred to Natyasastra
also as the Natyaveda . Abhinavagupta's analysis of Natyasastra is notable
for its extensive discussion of aesthetic and ontological questions.
According to Abhinavagupta, the success of an artistic performance is
measured not by the reviews, awards or recognition the production
receives, but only when it is performe d with skilled precision, devoted
faith and pure concentration such that the artist gets the audience
emotionally absorbed into the art and immerses the spectator with pure joy
of rasa experience.
Bharata Muni enunciated the eight Rasas in the Nātyasāstra , an ancient
Sanskrit text of dramatic theory and other performance arts, written
between 200 BC and 200 AD. In the Indian performing arts, a rasa is a
sentiment or emotion evoked in each member of the audience by the art.
The Natya Shastra mentions six rasa in one section, but in the dedicated
section on rasa it states and discusses eight primary rasa. Each rasa,
accor ding to Nātyasāstra, has a presiding deity and a specific colour.
There are 4 pairs of rasas. For instance, Hāsya arises out of Sringara .
The Aura of a frightened person is black, and the aura of an angry person
is red. Bharata Muni established the following.
Śgāra (शृङ्गारः): Romance, Love, attractiveness. Presiding deity:
Vishnu . Colour: light green
Hāsyam (हायं): Laughter, mirth, comedy. Presiding deity: Shiva .
Colour: white
Raudram (रौं): Fury. Presiding deity: Shiva . Colour: red munotes.in

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40 Kāruyam (कायं): Compassion, mercy. Presiding deity: Yama . Colour:
grey
Bībhatsam (बीभसं): Disgust, aversion. Presiding deity: Shiva . Colour:
blue
Bhay ānakam (भयानकं): Horror, terror. Presiding deity: Yama . Colour:
black
Veeram (वीरं): Heroism. Presiding deity: Indra . Colour: saffron
Adbhutam (अुतं): Wonder, amazement. Presiding deity: Brahma .
Colour: yellow
Śāntam rasa
A ninth rasa was added by later authors. This addition had to undergo a
good deal of struggle between the sixth an d the tenth centuries, before it
could be accepted by the majority of the Alankarikas, and the expression
"Navarasa " (the nine rasas), could come into vogue.
Śāntam : Peace or tranquility. deity: Vishnu . Colour: perpetual
white.
Shānta-rasa functions as an equal member of the set of rasas, but it is
simultaneously distinct as being the most clear form of aesthetic bliss.
Abhinavagupta likens it to the string of a jeweled necklace; while it may
not be the most appealing for most people, it is the string that gives form
to the necklace, allowing the jewels of the other eight rasa s to be relished.
Relishing the rasas and particularly sh ānta-rasa is hinted as being as -good -
as but never -equal -to the bliss of Self -realization experienced by yogis .
BHAVAS -According to the Natyashastra , bhavas are of three types:
sthayi, sanchari, sattvika based on how they are developed or enacted
during the aesthetic experience. This is seen in the following passage:
पुनभावावयािमथाियसचारसवजान ्॥६.१६॥
Some bhavas are also described as being anubhava if they arise from some
other bhAva.
Stha yee-
The Natyasastra lists eight Sthayibhavas with eight corresponding rasas :
Rati (Love)
Hasya (Mirth)
Soka ( शोक) (Sorrow)
Krodha (Anger) munotes.in

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41 Utsaha (Energy)
Bhaya (Terror)
Jugupsa (Disgust)
Vismaya (Astonishment)
This list is from the following passage:
रितहासशोकोधोसाहौभय ंतथा।
जुगुसािवमय ेितथाियभावाःकित ताः॥६.१७॥
Sanchari -
Sanchari Bhavas are those crossing feelings which are ancillary to a
permanent mood.[25] A list of 33 bhAvasare identified therein.
िनवदलािनशङ्कायातथास ूयामदःमः।
आलयंचैवदैयंचिचतामोहःम ृितधृितः॥१८॥
ीडाचपलताहष आवेगोजडतातथा।
गविवषादऔस ुयंिनापमारएवच॥ १९॥
सुंिवबोधोऽमषािपअविहथ ंअथोता।
मितयािधतथाउमादतथामरणम ेवच॥२०॥
ासैविवतकिवेयायिभचारणः।
यिंशदमीभावाःसमायातात ुनामतः॥२१॥
Satvika -
The Satvika -Bhavas themselves are listed below. There are eight Satvi ka-
Bhavas.
तभःवेदोऽथरोमाचःवरभ ेदोऽथवेपथुः।
वैवयअु-लयइयौसािवकाःम ृताः॥२२॥
These are explained by Bharata and 1Dhanika as below:
"सवंनाममनःभवम ्।एतदेवसमािहतमनवा दुपते। "इितभरतः।
"एतदेवायसवंयदुःिखतेनहिषतेनवाअु-रोमाचादयोिनवय ते।
तेनसवेनिनवृाभावाः - सािवकाःभावाः।तावभावन ंचभावः।"इितधिनकः।
"पृथभावाभवयय ेऽनुभाववेऽिपसािवकाः।
सवादेवसमुपेतचतावभावनम ्॥"इितधिनकः।
Thus, physical expression of the feelings of the mind are called Sattvika.
According to Natya shastra , a rasa is a synthetic phenomenon and the
goal of any creative performance art, oratory, painting or
literature. Wallace Dace translates the anci ent text's explanation of rasa as
"a relish that of an elemental human emotion like love, pity, fear, heroism
or mystery, which forms the dominant note of a dramatic piece; this
dominant emotion, as tasted by the audience, has a different quality from
that which is aroused in real life; rasa may be said to be the original
emotion transfigured by aesthetic delight". munotes.in

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42 Rasas are created through a wide range of means, and the ancient Indian
texts discuss many such means. For example, one way is through the use
of gestures and facial expressions of the actors. Expressing Rasa in
classical Indian dance form is referred to as Rasa -abhinaya .
The theory of rasas forms the aesthetic underpinning of all Indian cl assical
dance and theatre, such as Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Kathak, Kuchipudi,
Odissi, Manipuri, Kudiyattam, and others.
In Indian classical music , each raga is an inspired creation for a specific
mood, where the musician or ensemble creates the rasa in the
listener. However, predominantly all ragas and musical performances in
Hindu traditions aim at one of six rasa, wherein music is a form of
painting "love, compassion, peace, heroism, comic or the feeling of
wonder" within the listener. Anger, disgust, fear and such emotions are not
the subject of rasa, but they are part of Indian theories on dramatic arts. Of
the six rasa that are ai med at in Indian music, each has sub -categories. For
example, love rasa in Hindu imagination has many musical flavors, such
as erotic love ( sringar ) and spiritual devotional love ( bhakti ).
In the theories of Indian poetics, ancient scholars state that the
effectiveness of a literary composition depends both on what is stated and
how it is stated (words, grammar, rhythm), that is the suggested meaning
and the experience of rasa. Among the most celebrated in Hindu traditions
on the theory of poetics and lite rary works, are 5th -century ¹›
Bhartrhari and the 9th -century Anandavardhana, but the theore tical
tradition on integrating rasa into literary artworks likely goes back to a
more ancient period. This is generally discussed under the Indian concepts
of Dhvani , Sabdatattva and Sphota .
The literary work Bhagavata Purana deploys rasa, presenting Bhakti
of Krishna in aesthetic terms. The rasa it presents is as an emotional relish,
a mood, which is called Sthayi Bhava. This development towards a
relishable state results by the interplay on it of attendant emotional
conditions which are called Vibhavas , Anubhavas and Sanchari Bhavas .
Vibhavas means Karana or cause: it is of two kinds - Alambana , the
personal or human object and substratum, and Uddipana , the excitants.
Anubhava, as the name signifies, means the ensuants or effects following
the rise of the emotion. Sanchari Bhavas are those crossing feelings which
are ancillary to a mo od. Later scholars added more emotional states such
as the Saatvika Bhavas .
In the Indian theories on sculpture and architecture ( Shilpa Shastras ),
the rasa theories, in part, drive the forms, shapes, arrangements and
expressions in images and structures. Some Indian texts on Shilpa on
image carving and making, suggest nine rasas .
2.5 FOUNDATION OF INDIAN THEATRE -
The traditional theatres of Asia are varied and can be dealt separately. But
many Asiancountries share common theatrical principles and conventions.
Each reflects “thelanguage, religious views, social structures and daily munotes.in

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43 lives of the people - artists andaudiences - who have created it. Each is
distinguished by its own construction o f music,movement, acting style and
staging conventions and by dramatic content and form”.InAsia the logical
beginning of theatre is made in India. India was considered as the sourceof
most theatre in Asia and still remains the immediate origin of some of i ts
highlyevolved and important arts. “The use of poetry, dance and mime the
intermingling of theepic and lyric poetry and narrative and dramatic story
material, freedom from the unitiesof time and place, emphasis on poetic
imagination, a highly stylized an d choreographicstyle of acting
illuminating the gestures, poses and movements of the actors,
conventionsof speech, such as the alteration of prose and usage dialogues,
a stylized, recitative andrhythmic mode of delivery and multiplicity of
delivery pattern s, the use of chorus and natators and a variety of stage
conventions - which are the main features of the Indianclassical and folk
theatrical traditions characterise all Asian Drama, and it is these
featuresand elements which give to the Asian theatre a sy stematic
composite and a totalcharacter”.
Indian theatre has three stages of growth beginning with Sanskrit theatre,
continuingthrough the rural theatre form and concluding with modem
theatre. Fragments of theearliest known Sanskrit plays have been traced to
the 1st century A.D. It suggested aliving theatre tradition must have
existed in India at a somewhat earlier date. The mostimportant single
source for establishing the character of the Sanskrit theatre traditionin
ancient India is the vast compendium -a treatise on theatre or Natya
Shastra, attributedto Bharat Muni and variously dated between 200 B.C.
andA.D200. Natya means dramaor theatre and Shastra is a generic term
referring to any authoritarian text. It is howeverto be taken into
consideration the pr oblems in ascertainting what actually compose
theIndian traditional theatre. In traditional theatre there are two aspects or
style of actingas laid down in Natyashastra in the Indian context
i.e.Natyadharmi and Lokdharmi.
The Natyadharmi or the classical for m is referred as a classical
presentation usuallyorganized by a high feudal power with the practices,
codification, and immense aestheticvalues and exhibitory of a high
civilization order. This conventional type receives almostexclusive
attention in the te xt.The other category Lok dharmi or folk form is mostly
popular and community orientedwith a loose structure and minimal
codification. Many performancesturns in different higherprinciples. Kapila
Vatsyayan also commented on the two principal modes of
presen tation.“The chiselled stylization of (he first is derived by a sensitive
refining of the reality intothe suggestive dynamics of the theatre; the
second allows for somewhat freerrelationships of word, sound and
movement”
Sanskrit theatre turned into perfor med to celebrate important religious
activities in connection with temple festivals. It serves as perfect
behaviour; the plots taken into consideration because the body of the
Sanskrit drama international literature contributed itsaesthetic principle.
The concept of sentimentales to the target market belief ofthe theatre event munotes.in

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44 in addition to the contribution of the theatre artist to the technique.
Everyplay had dominant emotions that produced corresponding sentiments
within the target market.The classical S anskrit dramas witnessed its
decline around tenth century A.D with theemergence of the Muslim rule in
India.The theatre bureaucracy were flourished via the specific belief
gadget and cultural influencesof distinctive Asian regions, which brought
about the growth and development of new theatricalgenres. The Indian
epics Ramayana and Mahabharata and the Jataka memories became
thetheme for the varied conventional theatrical expression. Theatre
primarily based on those themesis found in Bali, Java, Wayangin
Indonesia and Malaysia, Khonin Thailand, Nangsbekin Cambodia, and so
on. Maximum of the Asian theatre forms until nowadays are primarily
based on many mythsand legends. Ten of hundreds of “plays in the course
of Asia and the pacific dramatize non secular idea ls, spiritual myths,
legends and testimonies, characters of saints, gods, spiritsand demons and
underlying non secular worldviews offer the fabric of conventional
dramain all nations”.
Natyashastra and its basic concepts of the classical status are percol ated in
variedregions organizing theatrical forms like Kathakali, kuttiyattam,
Teyyam, Yakshagana,Ankia Nat, and Raas leela(Manipur) as followed
according to Natyadharmi. The above mentionedforms are also called as
Dance Theatre with the aid of the West be cause of the
performativeprinciples mainly dance, track and ritualistic factors in
sanctified surroundings.Starting around the 15th century A.D., theatre
emerged once more in India thru dazzlingarray of the village theatre shape
in-its own precise and grea ter importantly in vernacularlanguages to cater
the wishes of the human beings. Sanskrit theatre has exhibited a
nationalcharacter because of the tremendous use of Sanskrit at the
courtroom and inside the temple. Ruraltheatre bureaucracy did no longer
travel past the boundaries of (heir groups in which theywere originated. A
phenomenon came about among 15th to 19 centimes, wherein formsof
theatre evolved in actually each pocket of the subcontinent.
A main catalyst for the re -emergence of theatre in India be come
vaishnavism, a religiousmovement this is based on Bhakti or devotion.
Many theatre forms arose at varied placesand instances to deal with the
needs of vaishnavism for example Ankiya Nat, Raas Leela,Kuchipudi,
Krishnaattam, and many others. “In Indian classical Theatre each act may
be performedseparately, many people performs are done as serials. Rama
and Krishna cycle plays aredivided into numerous drama -days. Freedom
from the laws of dramatic unities facilitates inenlarging thematic variety of
drama a nd makes possible the multiplicity and simultaneityof movement”.
Most of rural theatre bureaucracy in India starts offevolved with
preliminaries and concludewith rituals and the content material mainly
derived from Hindu Mythology. Some of those formsarose as a selection
of religious zeal and have because made the transition to most
secularconcerns. Dozens of different regional traditional paperwork these
days are performed in commercialenvirons for instance, Jatra, Kathakali,
Tamasha, Yakshaganaetc. munotes.in

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45 Most o f the south Indian bureaucracy lay pressure on dance and certainly a
number of them qualifiedas dance dramas, consisting of Kathakali and
Krishnaattam. The north Indian bureaucracy emphasisesong and those that
lay strain on communicate are Jatrasof Bengal. Excellent arrays of
puppettheatre bureaucracy are also a part of the historical past on Indian
village. Dramatic content material can also befound in the diverse solo
styles of Indian labeled dance like Bharat natyam. Dramaticcontent is rich
in ritual cer emonies of a few regions specifically Teyyam.
2.6 CLASSICAL INDIAN THEATRE - KATHAKALI,
YAKSHGAAN:
A) Kathakali -
Inside the South -west nook of India lies the country of Kerala, created
from the erstwhile princely States of Travancore and Cochin within the
South and Malabar District of Madras kingdom inside the North.
Records:
Elements of the art of Kathakali are discernible inside the historical ritual
plays of Hindu temples and numerous dance forms which might be
believed to were gradually developed in Ker ala from as early because the
2d century until the end of the sixteen th century. Many of its traits are
very much older than its literature as they are a continuation of older
traditions, however these did no longer crystallise till the 17th century
when the Rajah of Kottarakkara, a small principality in primary
Travancore, wrote performs primarily based at the Hindu epic Ramayana
in Sanskritized Malayalam which might be understood by way of regular
people; hitherto the tales were enacted in pure Sanskrit, which turned into
known handiest to, the learned few.Consequently did Kathakali as an
person fashion of dance -drama emerge as a 'humans's theatre' from the
traditional dances of the past. The plays had been carried out the Rajah's
own com#pany of actors n ow not simplest in temples and courts but from
village to village and residence to house. The brand new art shape(referred
to as 'Ramanattam')quickly became very popular everywhere in the
Malayalam# talking vicinity. The feudal chieftains of Malabar(as the area
turned into then known as)began to vie with each other in their efforts to
supply the first -rate Kathakali troupes, and this opposition contributed to
the speedy development of the art in a very brief length. One critical result
of this development t urned into the composition by the Rajah of
Kottayam, in North Malabar, of 4 performs in verse primarily based on
tales from the more colorfulHindu epic, Mahabharata.Those are seemed
by many connoisseursas the first -rate examples of Kathakali literature.
Kathakali as we now see it consequently dates back to approximately the
time that Shakespeare become writing his plays. The performances given
in Malabar at that time through troupes of actors who have been foqned by
and loved the patronage of the neighborho od Rajahs and different
noblemen (mainly the Namboodiris, or Brahrnins of Malabar) have to in
many ways were much like the Masques which have been in fashion in munotes.in

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46 England in the 16th and 17th centuries, in which masked performers acted
and danced, growing ri ght into a form of drama with music. Due to the
fact that then Kathakali has surpassed through many levels of development
in make -up and gown, dance shape and appearing techniques.
Education -
Kathakaliis finished by means of men who in their adolescents ha ve
undergone an intensivecourseof bodily schooling and an extended length
of coaching in abhinaya(performing) and nritta(dancing). The former is
the illustration of feelings and moods by expressionsof the face
supplemented by using mudras,the descriptive a nd symbolicmovement of
the hands andfingers in a specific way to suggest an object or movement.
The Kathakali actor uses mudras in location of the spoken phrase.
To-day there are a number of Kathakali training schools in India. The
main one is located at C heruthuruthy, 6s miles North of Cochin, where in
1930the Malayalam poet Vallathol NarayanaMenon foundedthe
KeralaKalamandalam(orAcademy of Arts) with a view tosaving Kathakali
from extinction, for it became at that time a death artwork. The
Kalamandalam, t hat is now a central authority institution, seems five or
six trained actors and two or three skilled drummers and singers each yr,
when they have passed through a rigorous route which starts at the age of
13 and goes on for 6 years.
The Characters -
Kathak ali characters represent the mythological beings of the 3 worlds -the
upper world of the devas (gods), the middle world of humans and the
nether global of the asuras (demons). The characters are grouped beneath
positive definitely defined sorts; they're now not best individuals however
also symbolic personalities. The hanging makeup and costume are
designed to convert the actors each mentally and bodily into the styles of
characters they are to portray.
Except for the female characters and the mild ones like sages and holy
guys, all characters have their faces painted over in vivid colorings:
essentially green for the heroes, gods and kings, red and black for folks
who are wicked and fierce, and diverse difficult designs for the animal
sorts.
The Make -up-
In lots of types of Asian drama the actors wear mask, and as it isn't viable
to explicit any movements of the face or eyes, adjustments in emotions
have to be portrayed via movements of the mask. In Kathakali, but, the
actor's make -up is thick enough to offer the appear#ance of and provide
the benefits of a powerfully painted masks, however as it's far carried out
direct to the face it also lets in complete expressions of the face and eyes,
therefore allowing him to painting the exceptional emotions which can be
an important feature of all Hindu dramas. munotes.in

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47 The colorful styles which can be painted onto the actor's face are crafted
from diverse stones and powders which can be combined with water or
coconut oil and ground into a excellent paste inside the inexperienc ed
room prior to the start of the procedure of making up. The actor applies
theoutline sample and the preliminary hues to his face. He additionally
does the finishing touches and fills within the colorings, but the most
elaboratepart of the make -up,the chu tti(a sequence of white ridges built up
from the chin to both side ofthe cheek, marking off the face and forming a
frame within which the actor can explicit his feelings) needs to be carried
out with the aid of a make -up artiste. He's a man who has passed through
an extended duration of schooling in this particular component of
Kathakali and is a most crucial member of the Kathakali troupe. Whilst
the chuttiis being implemented,the actor lies on his again and often is
going to sleep.
Nomatterhowimportantort rivial the occasion, or how minor the person
within the play,the equal meticulouscare is usually taken over the_ utility
of the makeup, a procedure which takes two or three hours to finish for
every character actor.Simply earlier than occurring to the leve l,the actor
places a small seed in every eye which turns the whites of his eyes
crimson. This redness, which is not painful and lasts for about five hours,
significantly complements the expressions of the eyes which play such an
crucial component in Kathak ali performing.
Themake -Upfalls Into five Main Classes:
Paccha(that means'green'),Katti('knife'),Tadi('beard'),Kari('black') and
Minukku('radiant') . Let us study each of these lessons separate!Y:
Paccha(green). These are the heroic,kingly and divinetypes. Their faces are
painted inexperienced, and they have big black markings around their eyes
and eye -brows, the sacred mark of Vishnu on their foreheads and
vermilion round their mouths. They wear a chutti, the ridges of which
might be made ofwhitepaperfixedi ntolayersof ricepaste.Ontheirheadsthey
put on a golden crowncalledthe kesabharamkirita(hereafterreferredto by
means of its morecommonname,kirita).
Inside this class come the incarnations of Vishnu -Krishna and Rama -and
Rama's brother Lakshmana and twin sons Lava and Kusa, additionally
Krishna's grandson Aniruddha.They've an identical makeup,but insteadof
the golden kiritawhich theotherswearthey have a vase -fashioned silver
crown with guidelines of peacock feathers on top known as the
Krishnamutior muti for q uick. Four different characters,
Balarama,Brahma, Siva and Surya have a similar form of make -up and
wear the same kiritasas thepacchacharacters,but their faces are painted
orange pink in preference to inexperienced; their make•up is called
pazhuppu(ripe).
Katti(knife)
These characters are arrogant and evil,but have a streak of valour in them.
They put on the identical chuttis and kiritasas the paccha characters, and
their makeup is basically inexperienced, to indicate that they are munotes.in

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48 excessive -born, however a pink mark like an upturnedmoustache or knife
of a shape famous in Kerala is painted on every cheek. They have white
knobs at the guidelines of their noses and on their foreheads to show that
they are evil. Tadi(beard). There are three distinct types on t his elegance:
Chuvanna Tadi(crimson beard), Vella Tadi(white beard) and
KaruttaTadi(black beard). All three put on artificial trimmed beards in
their appropriate hues which simply cowl the neck.
The dress -
The gown of the Kathakali actor is most ornamental . The male characters
(aside from a number of the minukku characters) have an good sized 'skirt'
which incorporates SS yards of material, on top of that's a thick woollen
jacket draped with lengths of fabric. This reputedly bulky get dressed is in
reality purposeful, because the rhythmic sway of the skirt imparts a certain
majesty to the movement of the actor, and its volume offers the right
balance to these oversized figures. The adequate space it presents allows
for ease of leg movements, that are an impo rtant a part of this masculine
artwork.
The costumes of all the main characters are nearly identical, however
diverse fascinating head -dresses are worn, as we've got stated in the
preceding paragraphs. The golden kiritasworn by the paccha and katti
charact ers are encrusted with gold foil, mirrors and imitation stones whilst
the sizeable crimson crowns worn by using the purple Beard characters
upload to their ferocious appearance. Although made of light wood, this
fantastic head -dress isextremely heavy, and adds very notably to the
weight of the costume that a Kathakali actor has to,11,1ear for hours on
lead to a totally hot and humid climate.
The Stage -
Thekathakali level is as easy as it may be.No scenery is needed because
the actors describe everything wit h the aid of their mudras and facial
expressions.On the the front of the level, which traditionally is an open
space of floor or the forecourt of a Hindu temple,stands a big bell metallic
lamp from which cotton wicks floating in coconut give out a mellow and
exciting mild. That is because it should be, but now -a-days
performancesare normally given in halls with footlights,microphones and
the opposite impedimenta of the current degree. But the lamp, which has a
non secular significance, is usually in the fr ont of the degree, and all
actions converge at the lamp.
Aside froma tableand oneortwostools,the onlyitemofequipment used is the
tirassila ,a massive square curtain of shiny colours, which is held up with
the aid of degree hands earlier than the overall p erformance starts and
benzene scenes. Every time effective or evil characters appear for the
primary time, they stand behind the curtain and slowly deliver it down as
they look over the top of it, emitting bizarre sounds. That is a conventional
formality k nown as the tiranokku or curtain look, and it's far followed with
the aid of an exciting atmospherecreated by way of the musicians and
drummers. munotes.in

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49 The Musicians -
Behind the stage on the left as visible fromtheaudiencestandthe
drummers. One plays the chenda, a cylindrical drum held vertically and
for the most component performed with sticks, the opposite plays the
maddalam, held horizontally and played with the palms. Theleft end is
performed with the palm and the right give up with the hands, each of
which h as a finger# stall made from rice and lime appliedto a strip of
fabric. The drummers accompany the action, supply the rhythm and
emphasise the mudras and dance steps of the actors.
Theorchestrais completedwith two singers who stand at the right of the
degree. The chief performs a gong and his assistant a couple of cymbals.
The singers tell the story of the play, verse with the aid of verse, in
Sanskritized Malayalam which the actors interpret phrase for word
through their mudras and facial expressions, afte r which there may be a
length of pure dance known as kalasam, when a part of the first verse is
repeated.After this the following verses are sungand in this manner the
whole story of the play is informed.
The Actors -
The facial expressions utilized by the actors specific the 9 essential
aesthetic feelings -love, valour, pathos, marvel, derision, fear, disgust, fury
and tranquillity. The mudras deliver them with a whole language of
gestures which enab les them not simplest to interpret the strains of the
tale, but additionally to speak with every other on matters relevant to the
event.
In Kerala, most members of the target market of the older technology can
observe the sign language of the mudras, but t heir number is demise out
and only a few of the younger technology have the equal fanatical hobby
in Kathakali as their forbears. Even though the mudras may appear
complicated, even the uninitiated can understand the that means of lots of
them if one is aw are of the tale being enacted, due to the fact they may be
so explicit. Now not a phrase is spoken by way of the actors, though the
evil and animal characters emit bizarre sounds now and again to
emphasize their self -significance.
Inside the 36 performs bl anketed on this e book there are 209 unique
characters who appear in 340 distinctive roles : and further there are many
extra in different less often performed plays. As each actor have to be
capable of perform any role in any play, it desires little creat iveness to
appreciate the vast repertoire that each one the actors ought to research
through heart. And the musicians need to be capable of sing all the phrases
of all the memories, whilst the drummers should be capable of accompany
the actors with set rhy thms.
The Performance -
Atraditional per formance in Kerala begin sat 8 p.M. Andgoes onuntil
dawn the following morning. It is preceded at sundown (among 6.30 and munotes.in

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50 seven p.M. All of the year round) by the kelikottu, whilst the silence of the
evening is damag ed by the sound of the 2 drums, the gong and cymbals,
played inside the outside close to the location wherein the night time's
performance is to take region. This tells the local people that there is a
Kathakali display on that night time.
Before the first play starts offevolved, there are 4 initial tune and dance
demonstrations:
I. The aranukeli, a period of invocatory drumming, played by using the
maddalamplayer, status in front of the lamp.
2. The todqyam, which essentially is a rite done to propiti ate the gods,
however is loosely translated as 'beginning'. That is the primary invocatory
dance finished backstage via or more junior actors and not using a
makeup on. It's miles important inside the schooling of an actor as it has
all of the dance patte rns of Kathakali, however it also includes omitted
nowadays.
3. The purappadu, which means 'going forth', an advent in pure dance
which in its authentic shape become intended to introduce the principle
man or woman of the play being achieved. Now a -days it is usually merely
an opportunity for one or two junior actors -this time in full make -up and
gown -to reveal their dancing talent, at the same time as the musicians sing
the ideal music.
B) Yakshagana:
The Kannada -speaking place of India, usually called Karnataka, has a
wealthy theatre shape referred to as 'Yakshagana'. In earlier instances it
was once known as 'Bhagavatarata', 'Dashavatarata', or surely 'Bayalata'.
In Kannada 'ata' way a play. Originally this shape of theatre used to cope
with the stori es of Bhagavan Krishna and therefore the call
'Bhagavataraata'. Afterward, it began to depict stories of the 10
incarnations of Lord Vishnu; for this reason the call 'Dashavataraata'.
Being an open -air theatre, it came to be known as 'Bayalata'. The
nomenc lature 'Yakshagana' got here from a special fashion of tune vvhich
accompanies those performs. It is a completely historical style, for there is
mention of this fashion in Kannada literature of the tenth and
twelfthcenturies. The Chandraprabha Puran a ( 1 1 eight nine) makes point
out of the shape. Nagachandra's Mallinatha Purana ( 1 1 05) refers to
Yakshagana as "alluring to Laksmivvho stands within the lotus". Within
the sixteenth century Kavi Ratnakar Varni speaks of Yakshagana in his
Bharateshava ibhava. Since he belongs to the region of South Kanara, it is
able to be surmised that the Yakshagana shape vvas vvide spread by that
point.
Yakshagana embraced in earlier times a shape of song played earlier than
royal personages. Afterward, ovving to the arrival of more developed sorts
of song like Hindustani and Karnatic track, Yakshagana receded very lots
into the background. We vvould have completely. Misplaced this shape,
but· for the truth that opera -like plays commenced to be vvritten in this munotes.in

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51 style and their level success contributed to its survival right to nowadays.
Inside the Kannada u . S . A . We have over 3 hundred Yakshagana plays,
vvritten by way of a number of vvriters, from at the least the length of the
sixteenth century. The culture of st aging such performs has persisted
during the last fevv centuries, evolving its ovvn ordinary level strategies.
An crucial characteristic of those plays is that the play is conceived as a
delusion dealing vvith heroes, gods and demons; the fabric selected f or
depiction comes from our myths and legends. Such tales are moralistic in
outlook and often portray the victory of God over evil. Most of our
conventional drama leans closely on such legendary lore. The unique
distinction of Yakshagana is composed in its presentation of the tale via
the medium of track, dance and literature.
The very spine of Yakshagana is its operatic nature; songs and verses are
employed for the narration of its topics. That is achieved some# times in
the third person, and regularly wit hin the first and 2d men and women.
The songs encompass many musical styles, composed to express every
sort of emotion contained within the puranic stories. The language is
simple and direct, and might without problems be understood through lay
audiences. The Bhagavathar, or conductor of the play, has to sing all the
ones songs (further to many narrative verses) to the accompaniment of
cymbals and drums.
Kannada works based totally on Sanskrit compositions shape the supply of
theseprasangas. Those consist o f Kumar Vyasa's Bharata, Torwe Narhari's
Rama#yanaand Battaleshwara'sKaushik Ramayana ahdBhagvata Katha. It
is thru them that village audiences make their earliest acquaintance with
our epic paperwork. The neroicprasangaswhich feature battles have the
word kalgain#corporated into their titles. They include Babhruvahana
Ka!Ga, Sudhanvana Ka!Ga, Marimukha Ka!Gaand other. Ka!Gasoline.
Those that lead to marital bliss have the word Ka!Yanaor Parinayainserted
within the title. For instance, Subhadra Parinayaor K anakangi Parinaya. Of
direction, the funny detail of a consistent with#formance is utterly
monopolised by Hanumanayaka. The Sabha -! Akshanaintroduces us to the
choreography of the Balagopala and stree -veshasequences. The
vaddolagaincludes exquisite institu tion formations in its dance .
Yakshagana song at one time hired as many as a hundred and fifty ragas
and approximately seven ta/as in its musical styles (Ohatis). Today's
Bhagavathars have forgotten most of these ragas; on the other hand the its
musical s tyles (Ohatis). Ultra -modern Bhagavathars have forgotten
maximum of those ragas; however the musical styles .
Numerous metres fulfil a specific feature. As an instance, the Kannada
metreKanda, primarily based on the Sanskrit Arya, helps to hurry up the
pace of a story. Vrittais used when deities are praised. Ovipadiand
BhaminiShatpadiare employed for telling a tale. Yakshagana is never too
ornate and a number of the songs like those inside the Shrikrishna Bala!Ila
borrow closely from folk songs. The well -known prasangaof Chandravali
composed by way of Kavi Nagappaya of Dhwajapura has elements of love munotes.in

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52 and pathos, and a touching simpli# town of mood. The Bhagavathar
accommodations to prose mainly while some# factor exciting is
anticipated to happenthat have su rvived are severa sufficient to depict
forcefully the numerous unique moods of those plays. If all the earlier
ragas might be revived now, we'd enjoy again the operatic excellence of
this shape. There may be a richness and potency inside the ragas and t a/as
used; they're able to convey diverse sunglasses of idea and feeling. In
classical tune, both Hindustani and Karnatic, we've got severa ragas,
however their concept con# tent is normally devotional or sad in its nature.
It embraces the wail of a devote e, self -castigation or praise of 1's non -
public deity. Even inside the thing of affection, it's miles the
virahaelement (the pangs of separation and the yearning for the presence
of the lover who has vanished from sight) that predominates. A drama
can't restrict itself to these feelings by myself. Ithas to deal with
other human feelings like anger, jealousy, rage or joy. It can not limit its
emotional center to pathos, devotion or praise. The Yaksha#gana
composer, therefore, found more opportunit ies for composing expressive
patterns which can additionally lend themselves to rhythmical dance
expression.
In Yakshaganasome of the have Karnatic names (Gaula, for example).
Others have a completely Kannada flavour -Koravi, Mechali or Gopanite.
The Korav i is near the Kurunji of Karnatic tune. Dvijavanti is just like the
Hindustani Jaijaiwanti; Pahadiis like Pahadi. Assembling some of our
traditional Bhagavatharsand with the help of classical scholars (in each the
Karnatic and Hindustani styles i was capab le of discover more than •sixty
ragas, whose patterns our Bhagavatharscan don't forget still, however
whose names they have got forgotten. Now not being certain in their
scales, they often migrate from raga to raga; at instances they tend to be
monotonous. We realized that whenever an old composition (set in a
specific raga) became wittingly or unwittingly changed, its expressive
energy seemed to wane. The importing of gamaka(style of modulation)
from the Hindustani and Karnatic colleges has also had an unf avorable
effect on Yakshagana. This issue differentiated it from the opposite two
schools. The tendency of the Bhaga#vatharto imitate Marathi level tune
and the devotional songs of saints like Purandaradasahas additionally
modified the authentic style and impaired its purity.
There's one element in Yakshagan; which has suffered a bargain at the
hands of the present -day Bhagavatharand his accompanists. The
Bhaga#vathartends to ignore the language -content material of his track,
and to concentrate for the main component on its fashion and tala. The
accompanists are specifically absorbed The characters talk out their
phrases in dignified prose after every song; this art needs to be cultivated
over long years of enjoy. The prose passages cannot be learnt by rote. A
speech is added extempore and often improvised at the spur of the instant
after the Bhagavatharhas sung one stanza after the other throughout the
route of the play. Opposing characters, or a relationship couple, can thus
increase a fascinating communic ate among themselves; this is often dealt
with with dexterity by using veterans of the Yakshagana stage. munotes.in

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53 Kathakali, with its strong accessory on track and the language of gesture,
lets in for no talk spoken with the aid of actors. In Yakshaganathe dance
detail is no longer principal. The tale unfolds itselfthrough the phrases
spoken by using the actors. The dance is supported by the rhythm of the
chandeand maddaleand the pace of the Bhagavathar. The easy metre of the
Bhamini Shatpadi gives the dancer vvi th the proper pace. The stree -vesha
give attention to the asya detail of the dance. The male characters display
valour and fury. Hanumanayaka's moves embody humour and joy. The
dances do not depict a lot of sensitive feelings as the major mood of a
chain. They provide the rhythmic historical past to its delineation.
Consequently dance (except for the fevv activities vvhen tour, war and
valour are depicted) serves as no greater than an embellishment to prose
drama. The spoken vvord is the primary compo nent and the audiences
remain passive observers of the drama enacted in front of them.
The critical problem in Yakshagana is that of liberating dance from the
medium of prose. Dance vvith song can through itself advocate quite
significantly many components of A drama. The notion -content material is
in the realm of language; but emotions can also find an extreme and subtle
expression via song and dance. To discover those opportunities, I
eschevved spoken prose altogether in my ballets. The songs did have
vvords; they set a sequence in motion. However the dancers have been
taught to express their emotions in terms of footwork, frame flexions,
gesture, facial expressions, ·and choreography. This did no longer imply
substitution of gestures for each spoken vvord . The minimal of usually
understood gestures vvas used. The whole frame vvas turned into a vehicle
of expression. Footvvork was subdued or tuned up dep·finishing on the
nature and pitch of the emotion. Steps vvere no longer deemed to be
sporting events in technical skill. Ta/a rhythms needed to be a part of the
dancer's body -moves and poses. The rhythms of songs needed to evoke
corresponding reflections ina dancer's moves. Years of study and workout
led me to the conclusion that our Indian dance has loads t o advantage by
accepting the fact that one medium rarely enriches itself by imitating
another. Talent on my own is neither artwork nor shastra; acrobatics in
raga and ta/a cannot serve the needs of dance or musical expression.
The ability in this shape can be exploited to the total and its canvas
enlarged. As an example, way of life has given Hanumanayaka complete
liberty of speech and motion. He assumes mild roles like those of servant,
courier or messenger. He offers the element of humour inside the dance .
Dance advanced to suit any such temper can increase the opportunities
latent in his role.Yakshagana has some primary dance patterns however
they're restricted to the performances of the main characters for the
duration of the struggle and travel sequence s. They may be hired to
include different situations, too.
Yakshagana surpasses many Indian theatre paperwork in one unique
subject, that is within the matter of costumes and makeup. Those performs
had been origi#nallyconceived as fantasies, and practione rs of the form
advanced a rich sort of costumes. Their design became now not inspired
through historic art work or sculpture: it's far based totally at the important munotes.in

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54 nature of the characters. To the primary class belong heroes like Karna
and Arjuna or Avat arapurusha like Rama or Krishna. The second one type
includes characters of heroic mold who are a trifle too proud of their
prowess and therefore barely immature. To this elegance belongs Indra or
Gaya (Gandharva). The 1/3 institution consists of those l ike
Kirata who're fearless, yet particularly uncultured or even silly. Then there
are demons like Ravanaand Kumbhakarna who are brave in their personal
proper but, at the whole, pretty adverse of their methods. Another group
includes individuals who are bo rn amongst demons however have a code
of proper and wrong. Amongst these are Ravana's brother Vibhushana or
Ravana'sson Atikaya. A unique form of costume is designed for them.
Then there are those deities like Veera -bhadra and Narasimha who're
entrusted wi th the hard undertaking of anni -hilating demons. Aside from
the characters of this deva -danava -manavagroup, there are others like
Hanuman, Bali and Jambava. Then there are directly characters, like rishis
or specialists. The stree -veshaincludes queens, pri ncesses and attendants.
The Yakshagana performances used to take area at night. Torches had
been used to light the area. The dim, yellowish flames flickered and the
daz#zling costumes imparted to the surroundings a proposal of delusion.
Inside the olden da ys aradala(yellow orpiment) was mixed with coconut
oil and smeared over exposed parts of the body. With the creation of
petromax lamps -a whiter coloration, with a mild crimson colouring, was
substituted. The area of the temples close to the eyes is blanket ed with
white and outlined with streaks of crimson. A white ti/akis painted at the
forehead and a black line is drawn in the center. The stree -veshahas a pink
tilak at the forehead. Balagopala, Lava -Kusha, Krishna haven't any
moustaches
The melappadam,a d isplay of drumming through the 2 drummers
accompanied through the gong and cymbals which lasts forover half an
hour and enables the drummers and the singers to illustrate their abilities.
Because the first a part of the melappadamthe musicians sing a
padam (tune) from the Gita Govinda, which starts with the word
Manjutara, by means of which time period it's miles occasionally known.
Only when all o rsome of the sevarious demon strations are over does the
play begin. In the vintage days, best one play became enacted in its
complete shape which lasted throughoutthe night time, however now -a-
days it is usual for selected scenes from or 3 performs to be finished. The
opening scenes are quiet and seem very sluggish to the uninitiated, but
they may be technically the maximum tough to behave. The affection
scene which seems at the beginning of maximum performs does now not
always have a bearing on the tale: it is supposed to stress the importance
of sringara -rasa (the sentiment of affection) and to allow the actor t o
display his virtuosity. Because the night time is going on, the motion gets
faster and faster till the very last scenes just before dawn carry the overall
performance to an cease with loud drumming and exquisite pleasure,
typically with fierce fighting a nd the killing of demons. munotes.in

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55 Attheconclusion of the very last scene, when it is just getting light, one of
the actors in
That scene plays the dhanasi, a short solo dance series presenting way to
god for the a hit finishing touch of the night's paintings and s oliciting for
benefits at the target market.
2.7 LET US SUM UP
When man started believing the existence of supreme forces beyond him,
it led to the practice of worshipping or pleasing these supreme forces
through rituals. Although theatre as an art form em erged at a
comparatively late stage in man’s cultural evolutions but it is generally
believed to have its roots in primitive religious rituals. In the beginning
ritual activity was confined to simple imitation of either the phenomenon
or objects observed associated with them. Those persons or main
performers involved directly in the celebration of the rites wore the forms
of nature, religious characters or emblems associated with the God. The
community used to spontaneously participate and react to the
performances and celebrations which later no evolve as art forms in
various states. India is rich in its culture and heritage every state has its
mythological believe and customs which convert into dance and drama
now. If we will try to find its base in vedas we have many puranas related
to it and one is NatyaShatra which talks about the origin of abhinaya.
Today also we can see its implication. NavRas deals with our emotions,
human being is full of emotions, there are eight types of emotions and
bhavas which a re describe in it. In India every state has its own dance
form base on their myths and now it is known as classical dance of that
state Kathakali and Yakshagaan is the oldest form of India, we learn the
origin and features of it.
2.8 UNIT END EXERCISE
1. Describe the importance of Rituals and myths from regions of India in
development of drama.
2. Give an account of the origins of ancient theatre.
3. What are the important features of the Sanskrit tradition as it emerges in
the Natyashastra ?
4. Explain Na tya Sastra in details.?
5. Describe the foundation of Indian drama.
6. How did the Kathakali of theatre emerge and what are their distinctive
features?
7. Explain the features of yakshgaan as classical Indian Theatre?
8. Discuss Navras as an essential asp ect of Indian drama.
9. What are the theatrical practices and theories that the Natyashastra
outlines ?
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56 REFERENCES:
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https://www.google.com/search?q=classical+indian+theatre++yakshga
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_pNqGl 3LUP 9bSRuA 8&ved= 0ahUKEwjv 59PhmNr 6AhWhErcAHX
VaBPcQ 4dUDCA 4&uact= 5&oq=classical+indian+theatre++yakshgaa
n++pdf &gs_lcp=Cgdnd 3Mtd2l6EAMyCgghEMMEEAoQoAE 6CggA
EEcQ1gQQsAM 6BQgAEKIEOgUIAB CABDoFCAAQhgM 6BwgAEI
AEEA 06CAghEMMEEKABOgQIIRAKSgQITRgBSgQIQRgASgQI
RhgAUKcbWKLoAWCCkAJoA 3ABeACAAf 4BiAHHG 5IBBjAuMT
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57 3
INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE IN
EDUCATION
Unit Structure
3.0 Objectives
3.1 Introduction
3.2 History of Theatre in Education
3.3 Concept of Theatre in Education
3.4 Significance of Theatre in Education
3.5 Benefits of Theatre in Education
3.6 Theatre as a tea ching tool and techniques
3.7 Let us sum up
3.8 Unit and Exercise
3.9 References
3.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
 To collect the information regarding history of Theatre in Education
 To understand the concept of Theatre in Educa tion
 To study the significance of Theatre in Education
 To study the benefits of Theatre in Education
 To understand the Theatre as a teaching tool and techniques
3.1 INTRODUCTION
Theatre in Education permits students to search difficult social situations
and vulnerable feelings in an understanding atmosphere. Theatre is a
combined art form that conjuncts texts, voice, variation and visible parts to
express meaning. Theatre in education is an educational way of the
interactive process by using theatre with d rama, role -play, skits as a
studying aid. So, students can learn creatively and interact with a
progressive mind. Hence, theatre in education acquires students’ values
and problem -solving, effective communication skills, interpersonal skills,
coping with e motions and stress, etc.

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58 3.2 HISTORY OF THEATRE IN EDUCATION
In 1965, Britain arises theatre concept in education. Basically, the theatre
in education belongs to educational institutes such as schools for
youngsters. Theatre in education is used to perf orm a play or stage show to
develop students’ minds, bodies and voices. Due to the modification of
educational policy in 1980 -1990, there was an emergency in theatre in
education. In an education reform act of 1988, a replacement of the
national syllabus i .e., 3 core subjects such as English, mathematics and
science and foundation subjects together with art and music but theatre is a
part of vocational education.
Historically in the USA, theatre is the most form of old common art, idea
of imitation and instinctive. The people in the USA believed that the
origin of theatre is the most intuitive art form to the human experience.
In ancient Greece, the theatre was used as a formal teaching tool. Greece
ably used theatrical craft to communicate effectively t o the public. Greek
culture thinks of theatre to become an intellectual exercise.
In medieval Europe, theatre is a continuous powerful teaching tool. In this
period tropes, short passage of Bible presented in church in the form of
music in Latin. Even dur ing this time religious devoted drama and
righteousness plays were fair to understand entertaining vehicles. Hence,
in medieval Europe theatre is very useful to understand intentionally and
consciously as an educational tool.
Historically theatre has prov en its great tool of educate the child
socialization and communicating with each other with lots of skills
maintain too. Currently theatre is a formal teaching aid has been out from
education budget. Overall, the history of theatre can be trace on 6th century
B.C, when the Greek people first presented their drama, comedy and other
forms of entertainment. During this period people are most interested to
enjoy theatre. Theatre is the aid of education as a social institution and its
affected -on culture in cont emporary world.
3.3 CONCEPT OF THEATRE IN EDUCATION
Theatre in education is a process to help education field that students or
communities as a performer involves people working together and having
an influence on each other. Even theatre in the education helps students to
change their attitude and deportment. The student’s presentation of their
skill in theatre needs to attract the viewers’ knowledge and feelings in
order to create an environment in which consciousness can be challenged.
Theatre helps us to see a various outlook such as understanding the
situation from the point of view of another person. Everyone has different
learning strengths. Theatre in education includes different learning style
like visual, aural, verbal and physical which caters t he different learners
with different learning strengths. It also encourages and empowers them to
investigate challenging situations in a safe and supportive environment. It
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59 skills in different situations. Hence theatre in education has gained global
popularity as it employs the use of a different form of art to promote
teaching and learning. It has a positive influence on learners which helps
them to develop different skills like p roblem -solving, communication
skill, etc. While theatre in education has received positive light and been
adopted on many educational fronts, it has also faced several challenges
that have limited its effectiveness of the same.
3.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THEATRE IN EDUCATION
Education and learning are often associated with institutionalized frames
such as schools. To stimulate comprehensive and balanced development of
child. Theatre art plays an essential part in children’s life. It has been
implanted as part of the curriculum at many institutions around the world
to upgrade effective learning. Be it through puppetry or role -play, trail,
students learn on their own as well as in groups with communication
between people. Significance of theatre in education:
1. Cog nitive and psychological view: Students learn about the importance
of the system of communication and creativity in problem -solving. Even
students learn about coping and growing, challenge our perception and
learn to study our behaviour and mind.
2. SWOT analysis: Teach students to learn about our strengths and
weaknesses. Like the sciences, the theatre arts have the power to train
and motivate students' life.
3. Assertiveness: Students learn about the importance of self -expression
using theatre in educati on and through creative thoughts.
4. Psychosocial skills: It imparts students with various skills like empathy,
management of emotions, teamwork, compassion and self -control.
5. To give feedback and share ideas: Help to improve ourselves in some
areas such as our own assessment, appreciation, comment and critique
of ourselves.
6. Unique Personality: From theatre in education, students learn to organize
their own thoughts and behaviour pattern.
7. Find internal qualities: Through theatre in education, stud ents can search
for their own ‘voice’ and find their internal skills and proficiency.
8. Problem -solving skills: Students learn and show their abilities such as
imagination and lateral -creative thinking and work around various
techniques to achieve the goa l of the group.
9. Learn leadership and teamwork: From theatre in education, students
learn to demonstrate their strength and abilities and also guide and give
direction to the group.
Theatre in education provides new perspectives on the field of theatre as a
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60 field of education. It will bridge the gap between teachers and theatre
personalities and bring them together to set up an advanced education
system in India.
3.5 BENEFITS OF TH EATRE IN EDUCATION
Theatre plays a very important role in education. It is not meant only for
entertainment purposes. A theatre is a place devoted to performances
either solo or collective of performing arts. When one wants to gain
knowledge and improve at titude and behaviour towards society, there is a
need of well -educated or well -trained actors or educators. There are
various benefits of theatre in education. Theatre in education helps build
and enhance personalities in many ways. Theatre brings play, hu mour and
laughter to learning this improves motivation and reduces stress. The
following are some benefits of theatre in Education:
1. Improve emotional intelligence and health behaviour: Talking about
health behaviours; theatre education improves thought -provoking
skills which helps to inculcate emotional intelligence. Theatre in
education provides an emotionally safe and supportive environment
and helps students to face challenging situations in daily life. The
evaluative skills of the students are being developed through theatre
in education and they can critically examine the circumstances of the
society or crowd around them.
2. It is inspirational: Theatre in education creates awareness among
learners and keeps them busy learning innovative techniques in the
theatre. The students can learn performing art through day -to-day life
experiences and they can show it through live performances in the
theatre. With the help of live performances, they can create awareness
in society regarding social issues.
3. It challenges perceptions and changes attitudes & behaviour: By
learning theatre in education students understand their roles and
responsibilities regarding their actions performed by themselves.
They learn the theories of great artists.
4. It improves self -esteem, motivation and achievement: Students acquire
various skills such as self -esteem, creativity, confidence & stage
daring. They get motivated by learning the mentioned theatre skills
and so achieve success in their lives.
5. It delivers important mes sages that are easily understood and
remembered: Enquiry skill is one of the important aspects’ students
learn while learning in theatre Education. This aspect of enquiry skills
makes them inquisitive about the social behaviour around them and
improves the ir decision -making. If a student learns something with
the play way method, can remember it for a lifetime.
6. Maximises learning: It enhances the visionary as well as
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61 techniques. The stud ents can imbibe listening, speaking, reading and
writing skills through theatre in education
7. A positive impact on future generations: Nowadays theatre in education
is becoming one of the most taught subjects in many dynamic
institutions to make a posit ive impact on future generations.
8. Improve attention and listening skills: Watching live theatre is an
enjoyment for students along with receiving and understanding the
educational messages. Also, it improves the attention and listening
skills of a stude nt.
9. Creativity: Theatre in education helps to represent the in -born talents
and creative thinking of the students by performing various co -
curricular activities.
10. Motor Skills: Arts and craft help to improve the agility among the
younger students e. g drawing, colouring, painting, etc.
11. Improves Academic Performance: Theatre in education not only
improves the artistic performance of the students but also improves
academic performance by conducting various academic -related
activities.
12. Confidence : The skill of self -confidence is developed among the
students through theatre in education by recognizing their qualities
and skills.
13. Perseverance: Determination among the students should be imbibed to
make them achieve success in their lives.1
14. Fo cus on the goal: Concentration while performing the activities
makes the learner more focused and active.
15. Accountability: Theatre is teamwork which means everyone should
take up the responsibility to be performed in the group. Therefore,
everyone on t he team has accountability for the same.
16. Collaboration: As mentioned earlier, theatre is teamwork in which
coordination and communication among others are necessary to
perform any kind of arts whether it is visual or performing arts.
17. Decision makin g: While performing various arts -related activities,
management skills and efficiency play a very important role. Arts -
related activities include dancing, drawing, sculpting, creating stories,
etc.
18. Improve social intelligence and self -regulation skill : Theatre in
education helps to inculcate ways to implement self -discipline and
interpersonal relationship among the learners. Also, it helps to
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62 3.6 THEATRE AS A TEACHING TOOL AND
TECHNIQUES
While learning theatre in education, teachers write plays for the students to
be performed. The teacher writes stories that are full of content and
characters based on true events or incidences. The students perform the
play according to the plot with their trained acting skills. T he learners
should get professional as well as critically acclaimed experiences.
Through the dramatization students make the audience understand the plot
of the story written by the teacher. Theatre is not only about plays or stage
performances anymore but it is now the combination of multimedia, T.V.,
interactive sessions, etc. The interaction of the learners with everyone in
theatre in education is considered the best thing and is enjoyed by the
students.
Theatre and education are two sides of the coin. The teacher’s role is to
improve the capability of learners and make them self -sufficient. A
student overcomes the difficulties regarding languages and increases
confidence. While learning in theatre in education students not only learn
stage performances but they learn backstage activities such as direction,
editing, choreography, visual effects, etc. The skills learned in theatre in
education by students are helpful for their bright future, the skills they
learned are language skills and social skills. I t also improves their
imaginary and visual skills to help them think innovatively. A learner
becomes versatile and can use the techniques in other fields too.
Theatre is unbiased towards their learners and allowed to learn all kind of
skills to all types of learners. Various aspects of dramas are voice
modulation, enacting a scene, presenting perspective of the character,
miming, monologues and dialogues. Developing a story with the help of
various points, narrating and performing the story, deciding the c limax
etc., are the projects carried out while learning. Sensibility of the learners
enhances through the actual actions to be carried out by the characters.
The exposure of acting skill is the way to make them more creative.
Students can do the group acti vity by discussing the theme or the plot of a
story. Students perform the role plays of various well -known characters to
improve non -verbal communication. Portrayal of various characters helps
students to coordinate with others for the decision making. Lea rners get
motivated for reading the books on which the plays are based on. There
are well known play writers such as William Shakespeare, Laurens etc.
The history of theatre helps the learner to know about the various types of
theatre and other arts. The history of theatre includes Greek and Roman
tragedies, medieval passion plays, Italian and English renaissance pieces,
restoration comedies and turn of the century realism and naturalism. While
conducting activities in the class such as drama and puppetry shows
should be of more importance like academics. Miming activities can be
brain storming for the learners. Theatre in education always helps students
to improve verbal and non -verbal communication skills. Students learn to
work in team and develop coordi nation between them, also learn tactile
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63 equally important while learning theatre. Theatre and drama are great
motivators for the learners. If the theatre learners want to be a succes sful
actor one day, they should perform various activities such as drama, role -
play etc.
There are various techniques used to enhance the performance skills such
as character development and storytelling theatre in education. Following
figure of technique s of theatre in education:

In a world, the education sector has equal importance with politics,
multimedia and thinkers. If the learners get good training and motivation
from teachers, the students learning is certainly going t o improve. The
following points are going to be beneficial in learning theatre arts:
1. They learn the value of coordination.
2. The learning capacity of students increases.
3. They learn to fulfill the emotional needs of society.
4. The learners become pioneers in t heir respective fields.
5. Problem -solving attitude and leadership skills are developed among
the learners.
6. The students perform well and become stimulated to be change -
makers.
7. The creativity of the learners is being developed using the core of
education.
3.7 LET US SUM UP
Theatre in education is a productive way of learning because it involves a
child’s all -round development i.e.., cognitive, affective and psychomotor
development. It means children understand communication with each
other as well as learn bod y language and gestures in a supportive place.
Activities in improvisation, pantomime, play -making and scene re -Techniques of
Theatre in
Education Drama Games 3D Living
Pictures
Action Clips Role Playing Tableaux Hot Spotting Choral Speaking Narration
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64 enactment serve to develop the creative potential of the participants and
help to develop critical thinking skills.
3.8 UNIT END EXRECISE
1. Wha t is meant by the ‘Theatre in Education’ concept?
2. Explain theatre as a teaching tool with a suitable example.
3. Discuss how you think theatre in education be an effective method to
help both individuals and the community?
4. Explain the role of educati on for learners with theatre in education.
5. What did you think theatre education is important for children and
teenagers?
6. Describe the history of Theatre in Education.
SHORT ANSWERS
1. Significance of theatre in education
2. Benefits of theatre in ed ucation
3. Theatre as a teaching technique in education
3.9 REFERENCES
Hobgood, B (1990) A Short History of Teaching Theatre, Vol 2, Issue 1
Gardner, H (1983) Frames of Mind, Basic Books, New York, NY.
Gardner, H (2008) Five minds for the future, Harvard B usiness School
Press, Boston, MA.
Anthony, J and Chris. V (2013) Learning through Theatre: The changing
Face of Theatre in Education, London (UK), Taylor and Francis Ltd.
ISBN13 9780415530705
Yvonne, L (2016) Arts Integration in Education: Teachers and Tea ching
Artists as Agents of Change, Intellect books Ltd. ISBN 9781783205271
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65 4
MODERN INDIAN THEATRE
Unit structure
4.0 Objectives
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Study of Indian Playwrights
4.2.1 Ravindranath Tagore
4.2.2 Vijay Tendulkar
4.2.3 Bharatendu Harishchandra
4.2.4 Badal Sircar
4.3 Study of Indian Directors:
4.3.1 Vijaya Mehta
4.3.2 Damu Kenkare
4.3.3 Ratan Thiyyam
4.3.4 Satyadev Dubey
4.4 Brief study of new trends in Theater at national and regional level
4.4.1 IPTA Movement
4.4.2 Navnatya Movement
4.4.3 Third Theatre
4.4.4 Alternate Theatre
4.5 Let Us Sum Up
4.6 Unit End Exercise
4.0 OBJECTIVES
By making study of this unit, students will come to know about following:
● Various Indian Playwrights
● Various Indian Directors
● New trends in Theatre at national level
● New trends in Theatre at regional level munotes.in

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66 4.1 INTRODUCTION -
The heritage of modern Indian theatre is influenced by and inspired by a
variety of sources. Modern theatre or what is known historically about the
Western proscenium type of theatre. That was not introduced in India till
18th century when the britishers were consolidatin g in many areas in India.
Western proscenium -style theatre made its way to Indian shores thanks to
the British. Modern Indian theatre took shape in the colonial era. To
provide support to the theatre translations of historic Sanskrit content and
Western cl assics was made available.
4.2 STUDY OF INDIAN PLAYWRIGHTS -
Indian Drama has a golden history. Tagore has contributed to Indian
theatre through lyrical excellence, symbolic and figurative significance.
After that many more playwrights have contributed to develop Indian
thatre. We are discussing Few of them here as below -
4.2.1 Rabindranath Tagore -

Rabindranath Tagore was a versatile personality. He was a Bengali poet,
short -story writer, song composer, playwright, essayist, and painter too.
He has ini tiated new prose and verse forms. Also for the first time he has
used colloquial language into Bengali literature. So he made an attempt to
free it from traditional models which were on the basis of classical
Sanskrit only. He was highly willing to take in itiative in Indian culture to
the West and vice versa. In the beginning of 20th century, he was known as
an excellent innovative artit. He was the first non -european to achieve the
Noble award in the year 1913. The Noble was given in the field of
Literatur e.
Childhood and Early Education -
Rabindranath Tagore born on 7th May 1861 at Calcutta. He was the son of
Devendranath Tagore. Devendranath Tagore was the religious activist.
R.N Tagore was unable to go to the school. So he was very much worried
and was thinking a lot. Then he took admission in famous St. Xavier’s
School. After that he completed law degree from University of London.
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67 Literary contribution –
Rabindrana th Tagore has contributed a lot to literature. Still he was the
poet first. He has given many poetries -
“Manasi (1890) (The Ideal One), Sonar Tari (1894) (The Golden Boat),
Gitanjali (1910) (Song Offerings), Gitimalya (1914) (Wreath of Songs),
and Balaka (1916) (The Flight of Cranes)”.
The English translations of his poetry such as the Gardener (1913), Fruit -
Gathering (1916), and The Fugitive (1921). These translations are not
compatible with the particular volumes written in Bengali.
Ravindranath Tagore has written many short stories and novels. Some of
them are Gora which is written in the year 1910, Ghare -Baire written in
1916, The Home and the World, and Yogayog written in 1929.
Apart from this he has written musical dramas, essays, travel diaries,
autobiographies etc. Most out of these, he completed before his death.
Also he has done a number of drawings, paintings.
He also played the title role in his first original dramatic piece - Valmiki
Pratibha.
Famous Playwrights -
Rabindranath Tagore has written many plays as below:
➢ Raja (1910) [The King of the Dark Chamber],
➢ Dakghar (1912) [The Post Office],
➢ Achalayatan (1912) [The Immovable],
➢ Muktadhara (1922) [The Waterfall],
➢ Raktakaravi (1926) [Red Oleanders].
4.2.2 Vijay Tendulkar -

One more famous p laywright in the 20th century in India was Vijay
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68 Childhood and Early Education -
In Brahmin family on 6th January 1928 Tendulkar was born. His birth
place was Kolhapur from Maharashtra state. When h e was 14 years old, he
left the school and joined with Mahatma Gandhi. He involed in Quit India
movement with Mahatma Gandhi. He read so many with hunger for
knowledge. Also he observed many drama programs. He started his
writing for newspapers. Then in th e year 1970, he initiated for script
writing in cinema. It was the new trend in cinema.
Literary contribution -
Tendulkar was fond of writing. He used to say that if you give me paper
and pen then easily I can write down so much.
Tendulkar went to Mumbai for journalism in the year 1950. He got
influenced by the facts of slum areas in the cities.
Shrimant concentrated on Tendulkar more positively in the year 1956. He
wrote on debatable issues such as unmarried mothers. Then his writings
on Sakharam Binder, Ghashiram Kotwal, were political satire and musical
too.
Criticizer Shakti Bhakta said, “Tendulkar’s writings rapidly changed the
storyline of modern Marathi theatre in the 1950s and 60s, with
experimental presentations by theatre groups like Rangayan.”. Tendulkar
has written many scripts for cinema such as Nishant in the year 1974,
Akrosh in the year 1980, Ardh Satya in 1984. He wrote a total of eleven
cinema scripts for Hindi and eight for Marathi.
Again he started studying literature in the 1990s. He w rote novels like
Kadambari:Don and Kadambari: Ek. He wrote dramas such as Suffer in
the year 1991 and Masseur in the year 2001. He wrote first English drama
in 2004 entitled His Fifth Woman.
Famous Playwrights -
➢ Ghashiram Kotwal, S
➢ hantata! Court Chalu Aah e
➢ Sakharam Binder.
Tendulkar’s most of Tendulkar's dramas were based on social and political
issues. His literature, writing was different from others. He contributed for
more than five decades. He wrote 25 one act plays, 27 full length plays.



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69 4.2.3 Bharatendu Harishchandra -

Bharatendu Harishchandra is called the father of modern Hindi literature
and Hindi theatre. He was born on 9/9/1850 in Benares. He served for 35
years in modern Hindi literature. He was a recognized poet for his great
works an d renowned as one of the supreme Hindi writers, novelists and
playwrights of modern India.
Literary contribution -
Bharatendu Harishchandra corrected many magazines such as Kavi
Vachan Sudha, Harishchandra Magazine, Harishchandra Patrika and Bal
Vodhini.
He used Giridhar Das as his pseudonym.
In the year 1880 he was awarded with the title "Bharatendu" ("The moon
of India"). He was honored for his writing in the public meeting at Kashi.
Poetry -
● Bhakta Sarvagya
● Prem Malika 1872
● Prem Madhuri, 1875
● Prem Taran g,1877
● Prem Prakalpa, Prem Phulwari and Prem Sarowar, 1883
● Holi (1874)
● Madhumukul, 1881
● Raga Sangrah, 1880
● Varsha Vinod, 1880
● Vinay Prem Pachasa, 1881
● Phulon Ka Guchchha 1882
● Chandravali, 1876 and Krishnacharitra 1883
● Uttarardha Bhaktamal, 1876 –77
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70 Famous P laywrights -
Bharatendu Harishchandra was a director, manager, and playwright. He
used theatre for creating public opinion. His famous and important plays
are:
● Vaidika Himsa Na Bhavali, 1873 ( वैदक हंसा हंसा न भवत)
● Satya Harishchandra, 1876 ( सय हरच)
● Bharat Durdasha, 1875
● Niladevi, 1881
● Andher Nagari, (City of Darkness) of the year 1881
4.2.4 Badal Sircar -

Badal Sircar is a famous name in the field of contemporary theatre. He
represents the New Theatrical Movement in India. He has initiated a
proper ‘people’s theatre’ that is, a theatre supported and created by people.
His career began with the humorous play Solution X. His plays include
Evan Inderjit (1962), That Other History (1964) and There Is No End
(1971). All these plays are based on political, social, psychological and
existential problems.
Childhood and Early Education -
Badal Sircar, born in an Indian family in Calcutta. His real name was
Sudhindra Sarkar. He completed his primary schooling from Scottish
Church Collegiate school. Th en he went to Bangal Engineering College.
His father was working as a History professor in that college. After that he
took education from Shibpur, Howrah and University of Calcutta. He
completed M.A. in comparative literature in the year 1992 from Jadhavp ur
University in Calcutta.

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71 Famous Playwrights -
● Evam Indrajit (And Indrajit) (1963)
● Basi Khabar
● Baaki Itihaash (1965)
● Pralap (1966)
● Tringsha Shatabdi (1966)
● Pagla Ghoda (1967)
● Shesh Naai (1969)
● Spartacus
● Prastava
● Michhil
● Bhoma
● Solution X
● Baropishima
● Saara Raattir
● Baro Pisima
● Kabi Kahini
● Manushe Manushe
● Hottomalar oparey
● Bollovpurer rupkatha
● Sukhapathya bharoter itihash
● Gondi
● Nadite Dubiye Dao
● Sinri
● bagh
● Ka Cha Ta Ta Pa
● Bagala Charit Manas
● Ore Bihanga
● Dwirath
● Manushe Manushe
● Janmavumi Aaj
● Mara -Saad
● Choruivati

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72 4.3 STUDY OF INDIAN DIRECTORS -
Directors are skilled professionals who are in charge of the overall process
of filming, editing, and presenting. Their job is to give directions or code
of conduct to the team involved. Directors are primarily re sponsible for
visualizing and making the visualization a reality via filming and guiding
the film crew, designing team, and all the creative aspects of filmmaking.
Various directors have contributed to make this field prosperous. We are
discussing some of them here.
4.3.1 Vijaya Mehta -

Vijaya Mehta born in radical humanist Theosophists family. They were
following the Varkari tradition. In her teen age she was with Jayaprakash
Narayan. She has been successed as Desdemona in a college production
(“Othello ”). It was the theatre course with veteran Ebrahim Alkazi and this
was the turning point of her life. She got trained in backstage and direction
by working with Adi Marzban. She established the theatre laboratory
named as Rangayan, in the year 1960. Vijay Tendulkar and Arvind
Deshpande were with her in this establishement. It was the experimental
theatre movement in Marathi. Many famous plays were given by her
theatre such as (Tendulkar's “Shantata Court Chalu Ahe”, Khanolkar's
“Ek Shunya Baji Rao”, Elkunc hwar's “Holi”), along with the adaptations
of foreign masterworks.
Vijaya Mehta served as chairman of National School of Drama. She
continued as Executive Director for the National Centre for the
Performing Arts.
Early life & education -
Vijaya Mehta’s pa rents were from a middle -class family. They were
staying in Vadodara, Gujarat. She graduated from Mumbai University.
She studied theatre with Ebrahim Alkazi in Delhi with Adi Marzban.
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73 Contribution as a Director -
She gave her performance as Desdemona in S hakespeare's Othello in
1953. At that time she was in the final year at Wilson College, Bombay.
Ebrahim Alkazi was impressed with her performance. He offered her the
training in the Theatre Group. This was the efficient group in Mumbai. In
1954 she joined Adi Marzban at the Indian Academy of Dramatic Arts.
She has developed herself with the learning of these two directors. In 1955
she had her first experience of professional theatre. She took this
experience by working in Othello translated by G.B. Deval Ma rathi
Sahitya Sangh production of Jhunjarrao from Mumbai. She got married to
Durga Khote’s son who was a film star. He died in 1962. Then she
married Farrokh Mehta who was working in English theatre.
She founded a theatre laboratory in 1960. Famous playwri ght Vijay
Tendulkar, actor Madhav Watve and Arvind Deshpande were with her.
The name of this theatre laboratory was Rangayan. Very soon this
laboratory became an idol movement in Maharashtra. The goal of this was
to provide a platform for new Marathi write rs. Some of them were
Tendulkar, C. T. Khanolkar, and Mahesh Elkunchwar. These writers
translated contemporary Western drama in Marathi. This laboratory was
committed to do only limited shows in a day. Though the shows were
good but still a limited number. Best shows were given by this theatre
laboratory like Ionesco's Chairs i.e. 'Klmrchya' in the year 1962,
Tendulkar's Mijinkalo mi haralo i.e. 'I Won, I Lost' in 1963. Even some
more like Shantata! Court chalu ahe in the year 1967, Khano Wars
Eksbunya Baji rao in the year 1966. Apart from these, Elkunchwar's Holi
in the year 1970. But this Rangayan theatre laboratory was closed down in
the year 1972. Then Mehta entered into the mainstream of Marathi theatre.
She has directed and acted in many plays. But the most powerful act and
direction was in ‘Jasvandi’. This play was done in 1975. Then ‘Barrister’
in the year 1977 and was scripted by Jaywant Dalvi. Also ‘Savitri’ in
1981. In 1978 she acted and directed Anil Barve's Hamidabaichi kotbi.
She was very much a ppreciated for her efficient performanes in Dalvi's
Sandhya chhaya and Mahesh Elkunchwar Wada chirebandi in the year
1973 and 1985 respectively. Her self -possessed naturalism created an
effective option for her through her melodramatic style. However, the
itinerant profession was lots of hectic and she accosted physically and
creatively.
By searching new ways she moved from theatre to costume, poetry, music
and dance. She directed many famous dramas. Few of them are Ajab
nyaya vartulacha, then in the year 1 973 'Strange Justice of the Circle'.
Along with this Visakhadatta's MudraRakshasa in 1975. She made many
theatre experiments with East German director Fritz Bennewitz. She
participated in Brecht Festival organized in Berlin in the year1973.After
that she c ompleted Mudra -Rakshasa to present in the Weimar National
Theatre in the year 1976. She directed Kalidasa's Sakuntala in Marathi in
1979. In 1980, this joint theatre house in German went to the Leipzig
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74 performed in German.In 1991 agin she directed Karnad's Naga -mandala.
Its German interpretation was done at the Festival of India in 1992.
Vijaya Mehta was a keen director who used to work at minute level. She
was well disciplined and very strict in nature. She directed films also. Few
of them are Smritichitre in 1983, Pestonjee in 1987. She started to serve as
Executive Director at National Center for the Performing Arts, Mumbai
from 1993.
4.3.2 Damu Kenkare -

The birth year of Dam u Kenkre is 1928. His place of birth is Margo from
Indian Union Territory of Goa. His name is Damodar Kashinath. He
completed education as a commercial artist. Also fronted the evolution of
Marathi theatre from the traditional to the modern. From the 1950s he
started to work with Vijaya Mehta. Vijay Tendulkar and Arvind
Deshpande were with him. He was highly impressed by Parshwanath
Altekar. He started his careere as an actor, director. In the year 1940 he
performed in a one -act competition organized at Bha ratiya Vidya Bhavan.
He contributed a lot by introducing modernizing stagnant techniques. Also
he provided insight for the use of costumes, lights, music etc. He has given
a new approach to theatre as a consolidated unity in creation of plays. He
went to E ast Germany in 1955. Also visited the United Kingdom for a
year.
Life in Theatre for Damu Kenkre
After returning back to the theatre in 1956, he directed a free -verse
adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet. He acted in a drama Tujhe ahe
tujapashi written by P. L.Deshpande in 1957. In 1958 he acted in Sundar
mi honour for Mumbai Marathi Sahitya Sangh. He directed many
productions and achieved a professional directorial career. He innovated
genre form and design. Classical Hamlet, Tendulkar's naturalistic Manns
navache bet (1956), then Atun kirtan varun tamasha written by Ashok
Paranjape (1957), S. N. Pendse's problem plays Asajhala ani ujadla
(1969), Ratnakar Matkari's comedy Birhad bajla (1972), and Vasant
Kanetkar's melodrama Akhercha sawal (1974) etc. and many more were
his remarkable creations..
He served as a professor in a well -known institution, Sir J. J. Institute of
Applied Art, Mumbai, and as Dean of the School of Art, Aurangabad. He
also worked as Director of Cultural Affairs, Government of Maharashtra.
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75 for the Goa Hindu Association and is President of Antarnatya, an
experimental theatre group.
4.3.3 Ratan Thiyyam -

Life in Theatre for Ratan Thiyyam
Ratan Thiyam is considered on e of the most eminent directors. He is well -
known for his writing. He has staged plays from ancient Indian theatre
traditions. He got Padmashri in the year 1989 from the Government of
India. Also he has awarded with Sangeet Natak Akadami Fellowship in
the year 2012. He took charge as founder -director of ‘Chorus Repertory
Theatre’ in Imphal, Manipur. He served as the chairperson of the National
School of Drama for four years. The appointment was made by the
president of India.
His parents were Manipuri danc e artists in Imphal. His date of birth is
20/01/1948. So he was also interested in Manipuri dance. Along -with that
his interest was in painting and Hindustani classical music. In the year
1974, Thiyyam passed out Gaduation from National School of Drama
which is situated in New Delhi. He has established Chorus Repertory
Theatre in the year 1976.
In his younger age he wished to visit Cuba to become a revolutionary life
Che Guevara. Thiyam expressed his rebellion through theatre. His plays
have challenged powe r for 45 years.
When Thiyyam reached the age of 22 years, he published his first novel.
After that he has written many novels on various themes. E.g. Chakravyuh
i.e. World of War in the year 1984, Uttar Priyadarshi i.e. The Final
Beatitude in the year 199 6, Urubhangam, Blind Age etc.
Thiyyam has given back his Padmashree award back to the Government of
India in the year 2001. Then he came into the focus. He returned it due to
the declaration of an extension of the Manipur ceasefire. It was with the
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76 The second Bhupen Hazarika Award was offered to Thiyyam in the year
2013. It was declared due to his contribution through the establishment of
“Sarhad” – a non -governmental organization. On the occasion he said,
“We are adapting to the chimpanzee culture. In this culture, the
chimpanzee is given training in every aspect and he behaves accordingly.
But the chimpanzee can never discriminate between the holy water of the
Ganga and mineral water. Likewise, we are importing ev erything from
China. Globalisation is a broom which sweeps away our individual
identity”. He said, "I am humbled to be honoured with an award in the
name of Bhupen Hazarika. He was my brother. We worked and shared
many experiences of life together".
Awards received by Ratan Thiyyam -
● Appointed chairperson of the National School of Drama (NSD), 2013.
● Bhupen Hazarika Foundation Award by Sarhad Foundation in
November, 2013
● DLit doctoral degree by Assam University in May, 2013
● Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship ( Akademi Ratna), 2012
● Bharat Muni Samman, 2011
● John D Rockefeller Award by Asian Cultural Council, USA, 2008
● Kalidas Samman, 2005
● “International Man of the year in the field of Theatre and Humanism,
1998 -1999”
● “Diploma of Cervantino International Festival ( Mexico), 1990”
● “Padmashree (Padma Shri), 1989”
● “Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 1987”
● Fringe Firsts Award by Edinburgh International Festival, 1987
● “Indo -Greek Friendship Award (Greece), 1984”





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77 4.3.4 Satyadev Dubey -

Satyadev Dubey born in 1936. His family w as from upper -caste and
staying at Bilaspur. He completed his BA in English literature in 1952
from Mumbai. He was willing to become a cricket player. But afterwards I
became interested in theatre. So he started to act in theatre. That theatre
group was ru n by Ebrahim Alkazi. Alkazi went to Delhi to join the
National School of Drama. Then Satydev Dubey undertook that theatre
unit and started for remarkable plays. In the 1960s he worked a lot for
Hindi theatre to recover it.
In 1962, he completed a theatre production of Dharamvir Bharati’s radio
play “Andha Yug”. It was about criminal and homicidal behavior during
times of war. It is known as heralding a new era in Indian theatre. He did a
great job through the stage production for Girish Karnad’s “Yayati,” with
Mr. Puri in the lead role.
Satyadev Dubey’s vision was not only national but international though
he was from Bilaspur. His role was significant in bringing Hindi,
Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada and Bengali languages theatre together.
Satydev Dubey was v ery much interested in films also. For many films,
he has written dialogues, screenplays etc. He worked with the
filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt as well. He has not only recovered Hindi
theatre but also given a modern touch to it. He has given the boost to
Hindi th eatre to compete with the English language theatre in Mumbai.
He made a Hindi interpretation of Albert Camus’s “Cross Purpose ''
and Hindi trnaslations of Jean -Paul Sartre’s “No Exit” and of “Dear
Liar”. One more play on the basis of communication between George
Bernard Shaw and Mrs. Patrick Campbell given by Jerome Kilty.
Satydev Dubey actually dislikes English language thatre in India. He
used to call it a colonial legacy where only the elite can participate.
Later on he changed his opinion and said that this medium liberated
itself from colonial baggage of British influence. He has not only
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78 He is awarded with “Padma Bhushan”, third -highest civilian award.
This award is presented to appreciate his contribution in Indian
literature.
His produced “Shantata! Court Chalu Ahe” was the interpretation of “Die
Panne” (“Traps”). This story written by Friedrich Dürrenmatt. He was
theater teacher also. Few of his students’ are the Bollywood villain Amrish
Puri, the actor -filmmaker Amol Palekar and the director and
cinematographer Govind Nihalani etc.
4.4 BRIEF STUDY OF NEW TRENDS IN THEATER AT
NATIONAL AND REGIONAL LEVEL
Theatre of India is one of the most ancient forms of theatre. Its structure
explains te xtual, sculptural, and dramatic effects which arose in the mid
first millennium BC. There are different forms of Indian theatre such as
Traditional theatre, Hindustani theatre, Indian puppet theatre, Mobile
theatre etc.
4.4.1 Indian People’s Theatre Associ ation (IPTA) Movement
On 22 May to 25 May 1943, the special thing occurred in Bombay school
by organizing the All India Conference. This was the fourth conference
which was specially organized for Progressive Writers Association. The
venue of this conferen ce was Marwari Vidyalaya. The first conference
was organized on 9/4/1936 at Lucknow. The second conference was
conducted at Calcutta on 24th & 25th December 1938. Third conference
was organized in the year 1942 at Delhi.
The four conferences were the most important among these four
conferences. As the concept of Indian People’s theatre Association was
the outcome of it. The slogan for Indian People’s theatre Association i.e.
IPTA was “People’s theatre Starts the people.”
Anil de Silva served as the first G eneral Secretary of this IPTA. Whereas
N.M. Joshi was appointed as the first president of it who was a trade
Union leader. The purpose behind the establishment of IPTA was man -
made famine in Bengal. One of the Urdu poets Wamiq Jaunpuri has
written the poem Bhhoka hai Bangal. This poem became a rallying cry for
IPTA. Very soon all big ‘isms’ of that era came on the track. Some of
them were anti -colonialism, anti -fascism, anti -imperialism, feminism, land
reform, peasants and landless labors etc. Apart from th ese, rights of
industrial workers, communal harmony, secularism, pluralism, multi -
culturalism were there.
IPTA has taken initiative to take theatre to the every part of the
nation -
IPTA has taken some responsibilities on top priorities such as gender
justice and to bring attention to the backward women. IPTA has focused
on these issues from the beginning itself. A long poem of KAifi Azami
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79 efforts were made in the form of drama on the life of Tanya from Soviet,
the special dance form of Kerala i.e. Kathakali etc. Even the songs of
begal poets viz Nazrul Islam, Ravindranath Tagore etc are important. This
list is a combination of traditional and modern forms of efforts. Then the
group of danc ers and musicians of Uday Shankar visited each and every
place in the nation to collect donations. In that group two sisters, Zohra
and Uzra were there.
The film “Dharti ke Lal” was produced by Khwaja Ahmed Abbas. This
film was written by Krishan Chandar a nd Bijon Battacharya from IPTA.
Sardar Jafri, Nemi Chandra Jain, Wamiq Jaunpuri and Prem Dhawan have
written songs for this film. They have received lots of likes.
The Chinese People’s Theatre Movement was the great inspiration for
IPTA. Also the Innovati ve living newspaper format inspired IPTA. With
the influence from Urdu poetry, Russian dramas IPTA started for folk
dance. Initially this folk dance group was called ‘Squads’. But later on it
turned into the top performers group. They have performed in sma ll
villages of the nation. They have visited and performed in poor regions,
villages on top priority.
IPTA has brought to ‘Cosmopolitanism’ –
Famous songs, drams were performed by the squad i.e. local folk dance
group. These were in different languages li ke Hindi, Telugu and
Malayalam etc. These compositions were made to understand the situation
of laborers and farmers. These are also added into the IPTA for the
performance.
Mr. P.C. Joshi served as General Secretary from 1935 to 1947. He was
from CPI. In that era there was optimum use of culture, literature and
performing arts. Mr. Joshi has taken so many initiatives in his service.
Few of them have served as a writer, journalists, artists, economists,
historians, film and stage acting. Even he started a p arty organ of stage
actors, rallying around the National Front, people’s war and people’s age.
He allotted photography tasks to Sunil Jana. Sunil Jana worked for the
Bengal Famine of 1943 as well as documentation for people’s movement.
Joshi was well aware of the need for following culture. He also took
initiative to spread awareness of the same amongst people to develop
bonds amongst them.
New versions were developed for Lenin songs, ballads on the defencem
heroism of the Red army etc. Even the translatio n of Kazakh poet Jambul
Jabir is made in Urdu language. He has also written ‘Stalin Calls’. ‘Heer’
the old ballads of Punjab are transformed into the new version. The
concept being to change and present India’s rich, pluralistic heritage and at
the same ti me to bring attention towards the situation of local movements
in Russia, China, Spain, Telangana and Malabar uprising. IPTA and
PWA have tried for cosmopolitanism and localism. The purpose behind
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80 IPTA worked on the Trauma of Partition
IPTA, PWA and the Bombay film industry were together in groups in the
decade of 1940 and 50. They were interconnected with each other. Even
their issues were relatively the same. The most common issue was related
to the fi xation of an agenda which can fulfil the requirements of a new
nation.
For this the motivation was taken from Marxist times. Even in post -
independence India they gor inspired from socialism of India. At that time
there was change in India due to the adopt ion of “Idea of India”'. Based
on this idea schools, colleges, dams, factories were started as ‘temples of
modern India’.
Some of the members of IPTA and PWA performed responsibilities of
actors, directors, script writers, lyricists, technicians etc.
Few of the members are Prem Dhawan, Prithviraj Kapoor, Salil
Chowdhary, Shailendrs, Ak Hangal, Balraj Sahni, Damyanti Sahni,
Chetan Anand, Shaukat Azmi, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, Ismat Chughtai etc.
These actors worked on making combinations of images, metaphors, an d
vocabulary. It made an impact on many generations of viewers. The most
important impact was on individuals from narrow confines of caste, creed
and religion. During the partition and after the partition, it worked like
medicines.
4.4.2 Navnatya movement
This Little Theater Movement started in the 1910s. By innovating small
theatres, it challenged dominant commercial theater business models that
could be more artistically daring. The movement was helpful to improve
economic conditions in theater, foster gr eater artistic exploration, and
promote the new plays by playwrights.
Some little theater plays were written in an elaborative type model of
realism. Even some plays were written in employed graceful and types
such as expressionism. The plays of the navna tya movement demonstrate
the capacity of modern dramaturgy which was useful to speak about
themes such as the place of women in society. The cost of urbanization
and mechanization and the value of a scientific understanding of human
behavior.
4.4.3 Third t heatre
Introduction -
A term Third theatre is used by Eugenio Barba. It means the idea of a
Third Theatre.
Some of the features are Marginality, auto - didactism, the existential and
ethical dimension of the craft and a new social vocation. These are the
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81 This brief text was projected as an internal document for the participants
of the International Encounter on Theatre Research. It was directed by
Barba, during BITEF/Theatre of Nations, Belgrade in 1976. However, it
quickly assumed the value of a manifesto. It became a reference point for
many groups in Europe and Latin America.
Some theatre groups attended the event in 1976 organised in Belgrade.
Few of t he groups are Els Comediants; Cuatrotables (Peru), Teatro di
Ventura (Italy), Cardiff Laboratory (Wales), International Visual Theatre
(France), Roy Hart Theatre (France), Academia Ruchu (Poland). Even
Théâtre Élémentaire (Belgium), Comuna Nucleo Alternati va (Agentina),
Teatro Circo (Uruguay), Teatro de Arte Infantil e Juventud (Venezuela)
were there.
The first ‘manifesto’ was published in “International Theatre
Information”, UNESCO, Paris in 1976. It was reprinted in The Floating
Islands by Barba and publi shed in 1979 in Denmark by Thomsens
Bogtrykkeri. It was distributed in the UK by Cardiff Laboratory Theatre,
and reproduced again more recently in Theatre: Solitude, Craft, Revolt,
published by Black Mountain Press in 1999 (pp. 169 -170).
Meaning –
From the past few years a theatrical group has been formed in several
countries. Almost unknown, it is rarely subject to reflection. It is not
presented at festivals and critics do not write about it.
It looks to find many theatres that are recognised by the world of culture.
On the one hand, the institutionalised theatre, protected and subsidised
because of the cultural values that it seems to convert. They appear a
living image of a creative confrontation with the texts of the past and the
present. Even it is a “ noble” version of the entertainment business. On the
other hand, the avant -garde theatre, experimenting, researching, arduous
or iconoclastic, a theatre of changes, in search of a new originality. It
defended in the name of the necessity to transcend tradi tion. Also its open
to novelty in the artistic field and within society.
The Third Theatre lives on the fringe. Many times outside or on the
outskirts of the centres and capitals of culture. This is a theatre created by
people who express themselves as ac tors, directors, theatre workers etc.
Although they have rarely gone into a traditional theatrical education. So
they are not recognised as professionals.
But they are not professionals. They are busy with theatrical experience
for the whole day. Sometimes they call it training. By making preparations
for performances they must fight to find spectators.
As per the traditional theatre standards, the phenomenon might seem less
important. But from a sociological perspective, the Third Theatre
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82 Youngsters from Europe, North and South America, Australia and Asia
are coming together to form as troup. Their aim is to create a platform for
survival.
In Indian perspective, Badal Sircar was an eminent and versatile
playwright. And he was an eff icient director too. He was one of the most
active people in the modern Indian theatre movement. He was influenced
by Grotowski and Euginio Barba. He has taken initiative for ‘Third
Theatre’.
Aspects of Third theatre -
Third Theatre has certain unique f acets as below:
1. Union of Rural and Urban
The combination of rural and urban theatre is only Third theatre. In the
elaboration Sircar saw the essential features of folk theatre. Few of them
are live performers and direct communication skills. Body langua ge of
performers is more important than set -ups or mechanical devices from the
proscenium theatre. In this way he mixed all these features of the rural and
the urban theatre. By means of this he made the third theatre as the
synthesis of these rural and ur ban theatres.
2. Importance of Participation by Audience
According to Sircar, theatre is an action taken by human being.
Everywhere to get success experience is the key. It is success key in every
art. As theatre is also a kind of art. Here people come to have experience.
He said that theatre should be a combined exercise which can be used to
awaken and enhance the social consciousness of participants. Even it can
be used for the viewers. So, he preferred plays should be performed in the
open area, so that ausiance can participate easily. Further he continued by
saying that there is no separate stage is required. The performance can be
done on the floor. So that is the Performers and the spectators are perform
in the same environment. This can become friendl y theatre. The
performers can see the spectator clearly. They can approach them
personally. They can whisper in his ears and even they can touch if he
wants.
3. Anti -Proscenium Nature
Anti-proscenium is one of the nature of Third theatre. When stage set -ups,
props, spotlight, costume, make -up etc. are used then it is called
proscenium theatre. It is used to create the illusion of reality. But in the
Third theatre focus on the performer’s body, expressions instead of set,
props and costumes. A raised stage i s used in the proscenium theatre. So
that it makes it easy to maintain the distance from the spectator. But the
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83 4. Movability, Springiness and Reasonable
As Third theatre can shift from one place to another , it is known as
movability of third theatre. Third theatre don’t need heavy set -up,
spotlight, furniture, costumes etc. Because of that it becomes movable.
Third theatre is having springiness. Easily plays can continue anywhere. It
does not require a part icular stage. It can be arranged at any place where
people can come and join easily without waiting. It helps to minimize the
cost of theatre as it can be offered freely. It is cheap or reasonable. Sircar
aways trust in the human relationship instead of th e relationship between
buyer and seller. He believed that theatre is a human act. It is for the sake
of earning money as its an art.
5. Approach towards Acting
Instead of set -ups, costumes the Third Theatre focuses on acting. In the
third theatre set -ups a re prepared with the combined efforts of human
beings. Human body is only focused as it's more important. Workshops
are conducted for the free flow of action games. Performers are trained
through these workshops. Only copying movements, expressions and
certain stage voices is not sufficient. So the performers are trained to give
more from within. The original expressions are there in the third theatre.
Third theatre is free from constraints such as realistic depiction. Sircar
motivated the performers to use movements, rhythms, mime, formations
and expressions. These aspects of the actor play the role of text.
6. Theatre serves as a servant of Nationalism
Within the study Sircar observed that, there is existence of two different
cultural trends in the areas of India viz urban and rural lives. These are
parallel to each other. As well as these are giving rise to fundamental
dichotomy. Basically he was from Calcutta and from a middle class
family. Foreign culture based on English education. It motivates
repress ing, changing, buying etc. Also recommend for sale the real culture
of the country. Sircar was well aware of the urban conscience of this city.
Also he was familiar with middle class life. So he always tried to find the
middle class mindset of Calcutta. He produces plays expressing the
dichotomy of rural and urban lives. He wanted to create a link between
rural and urban lives through the third theatre.
7. Theatre performs as a Device of Political Ideology
In the 1940s Sircar was an active member of the und ivided communist
party. That was the decade of Independence. After that he was suspended
from this. Then also he continued with organized politics. In the 1950s he
left politics forever. But his political ideology has not changed. He said
that the party di sappointed him but the ideology of Marxism has kept him
alive. He had faith in Communism. His aim was to work for the society.
He wished to make the world change. He has projected the estrangement
of the middle class to the peasants’ life as a Marxist prog ression through
his productions. It is best outlined in his play Hattamalar Oparey in the
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84 Becha. Obviously symbolic of the evils of capitalism chance upon a land
of no money those were try ing to operate according to the Communist
principle of each to the best of his ability. It was as per the needs. After
many false tries they feel guilty and give up all their unethical ways. They
started to live in a new place. One started to work as a mas on and another
as a Gardner. Hattamala ended with the chorous song, “We’ll share what
we have together. Come, let’s share everything together.”
4.4.4 Alternate Theatre
In 1960s the strong reaction was reflected against the mainstream of
theatre. It was sti mulated by a wave of political protest around the world.
Due to visits by French and American avant -garde companies, an upsurge
of “alternative culture,” There was an abolition of the lord c hamberlain’s
powers of censorship in the year 1968. Following the example of the
Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, a profusion of “fringe” theatres sprang up
in converted cellars, warehouses, and the back rooms of pubs. Rock
music , Dada, and Antonin Artaud . These were the inspiration for groups
such as the People Show, Pip Simmons Theatre Group, and Ken
Campbell’s RoadShow etc. Other companies were more politically
motivated. Few of them were Foco Novo, Portable Theatre, 7:84, Belt &
Braces, and CAST. From thes e came several major dramatists. Some of
them were Howard Brenton, David Hare , Trevor Griffiths, and David
Edgar etc. These became integrated into mainstream theatre in the end of
the 1970s. Although most frontier plays quickly disappeared without a
trace. Whereas several successfully transferred to London’s West End .
Indeed. The fringe continued to provide an important boost for the British
theatre.
Subsidies from Government
From 1940 the State aid for the British theatre was started for the
formation of the Council. Even it is for Encouragement of Music and the
Arts (CEMA). From this, the Arts Council of Great Britain was created in
1946. The aim of this was to provide “State support for the arts, withou t
State control.” It soon became instrumental in developing vital arts
communities in London and throughout Great Britain. It was initiated to
foster generations of new dramatists. Als o to support fringe, touring,
community , and repertory theatres. The budget was more as compared to
the previous budget. Of the 1960s. An explosion in new theatrical works
during the 196 0s. The 1970s was in part the result of the funding priorities
of the Arts Council. In the 1980s, however, successive governments
favoured only the largest companies. In the 1990s —when the Arts Council
of Great Britain was split into individual councils fo r England, Scotland,
Wales, and Northern Ireland —competitive funding through profits from
the National Lottery. It was a more important source of funds for theatrical
companies. It was the sponsorship from the private sector to overcome
revenue shortfalls.
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85 4.5 LET US SUM UP -

Drama has a grand ancient history in India. Rabindranath Tagore is the
first major playwright. He has invested Indian English drama with lyrical
excellence, symbolism and allegorical significance. After that many more
playwrights have contributed to develop Indian thatre such as Vijay
Tendulkar, Bharatendu Harishchandra, Badal Sircar etc.

Directors are skilled professionals who are in charge of the overall process
of film ing, editing, and presenting. Their job is to give directions or code
of conduct to the team involved. Directors are primarily responsible for
visualizing and making the visualization a reality via filming and guiding
the film crew, designing team, and all the creative aspects of filmmaking.
Various directors have contributed to make this field prosperous. Some of
them are discussed in this unit viz Vijaya Mehta, Damu Kenkare, Ratan
Thiyyam and Satyadev Dubey.
4.6 UNIT END EXERCISE
Q.1 Discuss in detail the contribution of Ravindranath Tagore as an Indian
Playwright.
Q.2 Discuss in detail the contribution of Vijay Tendulkar as an Indian
Playwright.
Q.3 Discuss in detail the contribution of Bharatendu Harishchandra as an
Indian Playwright.
Q.4 Discuss in d etail the contribution of Badal Sircar as an Indian
Playwright.
Q.5 Explain the role of Vijaya Mehta as an Indian Director.
Q.6 Explain the role of Damu Kenkare as an Indian Director.
Q.7 Explain the role of Ratan Thiyyam as an Indian Director.
Q.8 Expla in the role of Satyadev Dubey as an Indian Director.
Q.9 State and explain various new trends in theatre.

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DRAMA AND ITS THEORIES: INDIAN
AND WESTERN
Unit Structure:
5.0 Objectives
5.1 Concept of Drama - Introduction
5.1.1 Indian Concept of Drama
5.1.2 Western Concept of Drama
5.2 Elements and Structure of Drama
5.2.1 Elements of drama according to Indian dramaturgy
5.2.2 Elements of drama according to Western dramaturgy
5.2.3 Structure of drama according to Indian dramaturgy
5.2.4 Structure of drama according to Western dramaturgy
5.3 'isms' in relation to Drama
5.3.1 Realism
5.3.2 Naturalism
5.3.3 Sym bolism
5.3.4 Expressionism
5.4 Let us Sum up
5.5 Unit End Exercises
5.6 References
5.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, the student will be able to:
 Explain the Indian concept of drama
 Elucidate the Western concept of drama
 Describe the elements of d rama according to Indian dramaturgy
 Discuss the elements of drama according to Western dramaturgy
 Illustrate the dramatic structure according to Western dramaturgy
 Discuss various 'isms' in relation to Drama

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87 5.1 CONCEPT OF DRAMA - INTRODUCTION
The oral tradition of Greek theatre and the religious and social life of the
Athenians are the sources of modern Western drama. Whereas Indian
drama originated in the second century BC, about 5,000 years ago. With
time, dance drama replaced this early stage of perf ormative behaviour,
which in turn made way for formally written and performed dramas. This
unit intends to focus on the concept of drama and, later emphasizes the
elements and structure of drama according to Indian as well as Western
dramaturgy. Further, i t continues on to briefly cover the "isms": realism,
naturalism, symbolism, and expressionism in relation to drama. So, it is
crucial to first understand “what is drama?”
Drama: General Concept
The term "drama" is derived from the Greek terms ‘δρ μα’(dr âma)) that
mean ‘an act, a play or a deed’ and ‘δράω’(dr áō) that imply ‘to do, to take
action’. It has been used since the time of Aristotle (c.335 BCE). The term
‘drama’ refers to a well -written, unified plot that is presented in action.
According to Merriam -Webster dictionary , “A drama is a composition
in verse or prose intended to portray life or character or to tell a story
usually involving conflicts and emotions through action and dialogue and
typically designed for theatrical performance.”
A Shorter En glish Dictionary defines drama as “a composition in verse
or prose and verse, adapted to be acted on the stage, in which a story is
related by means of dialogue and action and is represented with
accompanying gesture, costume and scenery as in real life. ”
A drama, in literature, is an account of a fictional or real -life event that is
performed using dialogue that has been written either prose or poetry
form. "A true play is three dimensional; it is text that walks and talks
before our eyes," asserts Marjo rie Boulton .
According to Peacock' s (1957) theoretical definition of drama, “there
must be an action, that is that events and events must be presented with
accompanying tension, sudden change, and a climax. There must be a
fundamental message that resonat es with the spectator's mind and heart,
whether it is religious, moral, emotional, or psychological”.
The following key points might be made in order to clarify the meaning of
the word "drama" after looking at the aforementioned scholarly
interpretation.
 Drama is a literary work that includes conflict, action, crisis, and
emotion and is intended to be performed on stage in front of an
audience by actors.
 It is a piece of text with dialogue that is artistically presented through
acting.
 It is a type of comp osition intended for theatrical performance in
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88  It provides characters together with a natural and convincing qualities,
making it appealing, impactful, and real.
 A drama, in essence, creates a live setting wh ere the characters are real
and tell the story naturally.
 Drama cannot ever be studied solely from a literary perspective. It
must be understood in light of the stage and the theatre.
 Dramas take place within the boundaries and structures of space and
time. Its unique, intricate connection to time sets it apart from other
forms of literature.The narration of events that occur in the past,
present, or future is the focus of narrative art. But as a performing art,
along with music and dance it has its existe nce in time. It is therefore a
temporal act.
 It has several similarities with a short story, notably characters, a plot,
a setting, and symbolism. However, there is a distinction between a
short story and a drama as the previous is not intended to be play ed in
front of an audience, whereas a drama is.

In the following subunits, the concept of Drama from Indian and Western
perspective is discussed in depth.
5.1.1 Indian Concept of Drama
From an Indian or Western perspective, drama cannot be reduced to a
single concept. Dramatic elements and related concepts have progressed
and changed over time along with the evolution of drama as an art form.
Therefore, it is crucial to comprehend both the concept of drama and the
pertinent history in order to fully grasp it. This will assist in
comprehending the concept more clearly.
History of Indian drama dates back to the ancient Vedic period. Indian
drama evolved as a narrative art form that incorporated acting, dance, and
music. Recitation, dancing, and music were al l performed on stage. The
essence of drama and theatre from the Vedic era can be found in the Ushas
Suktas, Sarma -pani, Indra -indrani, Yama -Yami, and Pururava -Urvashi
passages of the Rig Veda. The Natyashastra of Bharat Muni states that
Brahma combined mat erials from the four Vedas to construct the Natya
Veda for the amusement of Gods. The first formal treatise on dramaturgy,
known as Natyashastra, was composed between 200 BCE and 200 CE by
Bharata Muni, who is considered to be the father of Indian drama.
The repository of Sanskrit in India seems to be where Indian drama's
history began and developed. Hinduism has a significant influence on
traditional Indian drama, which was created locally by artists and
performers and is not a replica of the western inflo w. Classical Sanskrit
Theatre, the oldest form of drama and theatre still in existence, has a
significant influence on the development of Indian drama. The Sanskrit
grammarian Panini's writings from the fifth century BCE contain
aphorisms on acting, and Ka utilya's treatise on statesmanship, the
“Arthashastra”, which is written in fourth century BCE, also makes
mention of actors, dancers, mummers, theatrical companies, and
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89 Thus, the origins of classical Indian drama are most likely older than the
Gupta period which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th
century CE. During Gupta period, the majority of literary works are
intricate, multi -layered works that present and engage in contradictory
philosophies of life and art. The earliest exi sting works are fragments of
plays written by the Buddhist poet Asvaghosa. Drama became a
sophisticated genre of popular literature during the Gupta era. There were
performances of the dramatic romances of Kalidasa and the political
drama “Mudraraksaas” by Visakhadatta. The works of dramatists like
Sudraka, Bhasa, Bhavbhuti, Harsha, and Kalidasa help shape Sanskrit
drama. Because of their literary talent for presenting characters, situations,
and plots in their own distinctive ways, they have endured for th ousands
of years. Nearly all of the great Sanskrit playwrights enjoyed royal favour,
belonged to royal family, or even were kings.
The Sanskrit term "nataka" derives from the root "nata," which in Sanskrit
means dancer. Other names for drama include Rupaka , Drishyakavya, and
Preksakavya.
According to Bharata Muni , “Drama is a replica of human behaviour that
portrays many circumstances and is rich in various emotions. This pertains
to the good, bad, and neutral behaviours of mankind and provides all of
them with bravery, amusement, happiness, and counsel”.
The Natyashastra by Bharat Muni is a fundamental guideline for dance
and theatre, particularly Sanskrit theatre. The Natyashastra classifies plays
into two main categories: Natakas and Prakarana. Prakarana focuses more
on everyday life, whereas Natakas is concerned with gods, kings, and
mythology. Lokadharmi and natyadharmi are the two main types of Hindu
plays, according to theNatyashastra. The drama in Lokadharmni is more
realistic because it depicts real -world events and human behaviour on
stage. Indian drama in the Natyadharmi style, which explicit symbolism
and visually striking storytelling.
Dr. M. RameshworSingh (2019) in his research article “Bharata Muni’s
Natyashastra: A Comprehensive Study establis hes the characteristics of
Sanskrit drama. Such as:
1. It is composed of sacred material.
2. It is meant for an audience that is well -versed in the performance
tradition.
3. It is performed by members of the highest rank in the caste system, i.e.,
priests.
4. It requires special knowledge and skill to execute.
5. A complete understanding of dance, music, recitation and ritual
language is a must.
6. Training is a hereditary process descending directly from God, and
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90 7. It must be performed on consecrated ground.
8. It serves a dual purpose – to educate as well as entertain.
Accordingly, Indian drama and theatre have a religious heritage with its
Greek equivalent. The Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the two greatest
Indian epics, m ade significant contributions to the performing arts in
antiquity. The Natyashastra of Bharata Muni demonstrates how theatre
arts are used during festivals and public gatherings.In Indian drama,
several techniques such as acting, speech, poetry, and music are employed.
Recitations, dance, and song were employed to transmit local history,
society's ethos, and other themes in its early development stages as a
narrative form of art. It is based on impromptu creativity that arises in
circumstances where the int ensity of expressions and natural emotions is
generated from the social structure rather than from any classical or
grammatical basis. Almost invariably, traditional theatrical performances
take place during religious celebrations, ritual offerings, gather ings, and
prayers. It depicts the behaviours, viewpoints, social awareness, and
emotions of regular people. It combines entertainment with religious
rituals.
India has developed a style of dance drama that is a form of
comprehensive theatre through its cla ssical and folk traditions. A complex
gesture language used by the performer to dance out the drama surpasses
the subcontinent's multilingualism due to its worldwide appeal. Certain
classical dance -drama genres, like as kathakali, kuchipudi, and bhagavatha
mela, retell well -known Hindu mythological tales. Actors and dancerswere
granted unique places of distinction during the magnificent period of the
Hindu rulers in the first eight centuries CE. For instance, the raja of
Kottarakkara, who ruled over one of the states in South India in the 17th
century, created the Kathakali dance -drama. The influential peshwas of
the Maratha state supported the tamasha folk theatre in the 18th century.
The maharaja of Banaras (Varanasi) continued this practise in the 20th
century by sponsoring and producing the magnificent Ramlila, a 31 -day
cycle play on Rama's life that he saw each night while sitting atop his
majestic elephant. More than 30,000 people attended special events.
It is essential to highlight regional and folk d ramas, before we conclude
our discussion of concept of Indian drama. Soon after its formation, all
theatre and performances of drama in public locations were outlawed by
Islamic conquerors. In order to preserve stories and narratives in their
communities, Indians started performing drama privately in their villages.
The Sanskrit theatre, which had previously been a national phenomenon
and was now divided into a broad range of regional forms that were
essentially village arts, made a triumphant comeback in I ndia around the
fifteenth century. These regional dramas evolved their own distinctive
presentation style. To serve the requirements of its people, each spoke the
language of the area. Naturally, these theatrical genres remained confined
to their respectiv e geographical areas. Almost every region of India
created its own theatre form between the 15th and the 19th century, and
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91 today. Although the execution, costume, make -up, staging, and acting
styles of these regional forms vary significantly from one another, there
are some general similarities. The dance component, for example, is
frequently emphasized in southern Indian forms like Krishnaattam from
Kerala and Yakshagaana from Karna taka, while Jatraa from West Bengal,
Tamaasha from Maharashtra, and Bhavai from Gujarat place more
emphasis on spoken words.
Indian drama survived and flourished again. Indian culture depends
heavily on theatre, which has remained relevant in the theatre w orld longer
than any other culture over the previous 5000 years.It is worth mentioning
that India's performing arts are magnificent because they constantly
change while simultaneously remaining constant. It maintains a
connection to the earliest practices and traditions of theatre.
5.1.2 Western Concept of Drama
The history of dramatic literature in Western culture is referred to as the
"Western theatre," and it comprises works from many languages,
countries, and geographic areas, such as English, French, G reece, German,
and so on.Western theatre began in Greece's capital city of Athens more
than 2,500 years ago. The ancient Athenians, who lived between 600 and
200 B.C., developed a theatre culture whose structure, methodology, and
terminology have endured f or two millennia. They also produced plays
that are today regarded as some of the masterpieces of world drama. Given
that there have only been two other historical theatre periods that can be
compared to the magnificence of ancient Athens —Elizabethan Engla nd
and the twentieth century —their accomplishment is absolutely
extraordinary.
Aristotle’s ‘Poetics’ is the first major text of Western drama theory.
Aristotle stated that the dithyramb was the origin of Greek drama, or more
specifically, Greek tragedy. Di thyramb is an exchange between the lead
singer and the chorus occurred during this choral tribute to the god
Dionysus. Thespis, the dithyramb's main singer, reportedly invited an
actor to join the chorus at the Dionysia in 534 BC, during the reign of
Pisis tratus, thereby making the way for prospective dramatic action.
Eventually, more actors are introduced and Greek drama was evolved.
To understand the concept of western drama, lets focus on some of the key
characteristics of Greek dramas.
In general, the chorus is given more importance in the earlier Greek
dramas than in the later ones. The chorus serves to highlight the
personalities and circumstances of the characters as well as to offer ethical
perspective on the action in Aeschylus' outstanding works. The choruses
in Aeschylus' plays contain a lot of his most exquisite poetry. Because
there were more performers, dramatic conflict between people became
more important than cultural issues and ideologies.The majority of the
dramas consisted of lengthy mono logues and songs , though these were
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92 This focus on interpersonal communication was accompanied by a clear
inclination toward realism . Greek dramas feature ordinary, non -divine
individuals, and gods are introduced more as plot devices than as visceral
symbols of omnipotence as in the case of Medea, 431 BC, which employs
a deus ex machina . The classical harmony between the divine and human,
the realistic and the symbolic, is best exemplified in Sophocles' dramas.
The unity of action, place, and time referred to as the three unities is one
of the fundamental principles advocated by Aristotle. To put it simply, the
unity of action principle states that the action shown in a play should
closely reflect the circumstances under which it is staged, the unity of
place principle states that the action should take place only in one location,
and the unity of time principle states that the drama only be performed for
two or three hours. Hence, Greek tragedy typically attempted to make the
action complete in itself, without superfluous details, and in a single
location. Most of the action, especially murders and other tragedies,
occurred offstage due to the lack of scene changes and the scarcity of
performers.
Greek dramas extens ively used masks for performances. Thalia, the Muse
of comedy, and Melpomene, the Muse of tragedy, are two of the classic
masks of drama that represent them: the laughing face and the crying face.
Over time, the masks of actors and chorus gained expressive ness owing to
their standardization of character types i.e., old king, young king, soldier,
etc. The masks also made it easier for the vast audience to distinguish the
facial features and increased the plausibility of male actors playing
feminine character s.
The satire of Old Greek Comedy was intense. It was distinguished by
wildly imaginative content in which the chorus might stand in for birds,
frogs, wasps, or clouds. They use a grotesque, vulgar, and humorous tone
that could nonetheless accommodate poe try of great lyrical beauty. The
performers' clothes, which included jerkins with padded stomachs and
enormous phalli. Masks were worn, like in tragedy, but they were
exaggerated for humorous effect.
The analysis of Greek drama reveals how the theatrical r itual function
affects drama and performance. The Romans' adoption of Greek tragedy
and comedy resulted in the loss of this ritualistic element. Roman
playwrights Plautus (c. 254 –184 BCE) and Terence (c. 186/185 –159 BCE)
created clever yet distasteful come dies. Western drama had a new
beginning in the medieval church, and, again, the drama has ritualistic role
in society. The authors of Medieval dramas provided their audience with
several, intimate dramatizations of the Bible story rather than a single,
large-scale communal experience. They combined amazing events with
instances of extraordinary simplicity in their stylized and alliterative
poetry, capturing regional specifics, identifiable behavioural cues, and the
humour and harshness of mediaeval life.
In the 16th century, England and Spain provided conducive conditions
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93 audiences, a flourishing language that encouraged lyrical expression, a
boom in professional performing companies, and a straightforward but
adaptable stage. All of these elements worked together to give the
playwright the chance to develop a fresh, experimental drama of
remarkable interest. Elizabethan dramatists frequently mixed up their
styles. The end product was an interesting and experimental body of
drama. A variety of novel techniques were tried, including combining
humour and passion, shifting focus and perspective by switching back and
forth between verse and prose, extending the use of the popular clown,
exploiting the implicit double standards created by boy actors playing
female roles, examining the role of the actor both in and out of character,
but most importantly, developing an incredibly adaptable dramatic poetry.
The scenery, characters, language, and subject matter in seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries dramas were idealised and highly stylized. An
important development in the drama in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries was the emergence of "Patent" theatres and small playhouses.
Dramas from th e nineteenth and twentieth centuries are distinguished by
the proscenium or picture frame stage, which is designed such that the
audience views the play as it would a picture. The scenery is detailed and
accurate. Thanks to new technologies, elaborate stag e props, lighting, and
sound systems are now possible. As time has gone on, dramatic power has
increased, artistic skill has improved, and situations have become more
secular and universal. Western theatre evolved into a more globally
unified form during t he 20th century, particularly following World War I,
and less as a result of distinct national literary traditions. Important dramas
continued to be influenced by realism, naturalism, expressionism and
symbolism (which will be covered under 5.3) throughout the century.
Check your progress:
1. What is Drama? Enumerate key feature of Sanskrit Drama.
2. Which are the dominant characteristics of Greek drama?
5.2 ELEMENTS AND STRUCTURE OF DRAMA
According to A Glossary of Literary Terms by M. H. Abrams (1971),
“Drama is a composition designed for performance in the theatre, in which
actors take the roles of the characters, perform the indicated action and
utter the written dialogue”. Actors, dialogue, setting, plot, and action are
thus the key elements of a drama. It is primarily intended to be performed
on stage. The elements and structure of drama are discussed in detail from
the perspective of both Indian and western dramaturgy in following
sections. Before moving on to the discussion of the elements and structure
of drama according to Indian or western dramaturgy, it is essential to
understand the term ‘dramaturgy’.
Dramaturgy: meaning
Dramatourgos, a compound term that originated in Greek, originally
denoted a playwright or play composer. According to Aristotle, th e root
verb, which simply meant "to do" or "to make," is the origin of the word munotes.in

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94 "drama." The second morpheme, "tourgos," was derived from the Greek
word "ergo," which meant "working together" or "composition".Thus, the
term "dramatourgos" originally just r eferred a person with the ability to
sequence many dramatic actions in a meaningful and thorough manner.
But now, the study of dramatic structure and how the primary components
of drama are portrayed on stage is known as dramaturgy. Dramaturgy is a
thoroug h examination of the context in which the drama is set. It provides
comprehensive exploration of the following points:
 The physical, social, political, and economic context of the action;
 The psychological foundations of the characters;
 The various metap horical interpretations of theme in the drama; and
 The technical assessment of the drama as a work of literature focusing
on each aspect like structure, rhythm, flow, and even individual word
choices of characters.
Thus, the ability to recognize and analy ze each element of dramatic
structure is necessary for dramaturgy. The discussion that follows includes
information on the elements and structure of drama from both Indian and
Western dramaturgical perspectives.
5.2.1 Elements of drama according to Indian dramaturgy
Bharata Muni, who is recognized as the father of Indian dramaturgy,
referred to Indian drama as The Fifth Veda. The Natyashastra of Bharata
appears to be the first work to systematically develop and create the art of
play. It describes ten type s of plays, ranging from one -act to ten acts, and
covers all aspects of classical Sanskrit literature. Bharata covers
practically every aspect of stagecraft in his Natyashastra, which includes
music, stage design, make -up, dancing, and every other part of Indian
drama. The growth and development of Indian drama, has gained a
significantly new dimension because of Natyashastra's kaleidoscope
approach. In addition to providing suggestions on what should be depicted
in a drama, the Natyashastra also outlines t he proper methods for doing so.
The Natyashastra, a treatise on dramaturgy,consolidated the traditional
structure, form, and style of performing and staging with aesthetic
guidelines. Bharata Muni identified main modes for the success of a
theatre product ion: speech and poetry, dance and music, actions and
emotions. Bharat is to the Indian people what Aristotle is to the Greek
when it comes to the form, technique, and subject of drama.Following is a
detailed discussion of the numerous elements of Indian dr ama especially
traditional Sanskrit Drama:
Plot in Indian Drama
The sequence of events in a drama are referred to as the plot of the drama.
A plot is basically the weaving of a line of thought and a sequence of
incidents that connect to what occurs rather than what it signifies. The plot
is typically structured into acts and scenes, and the action and movement
in the play start with the first entanglement and continue through various
activities in the middle, reaches to its finale by resolution. For differe nt munotes.in

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95 types of dramas, the interest sparked by the plot has its highs and lows of
variance. But overall, all drama displays the beginning, middle, and end of
the drama's plot.Bharata’s the Natyashastra discusses the plot and
organisation of the underlying tex t that supports the performance art under
chapters 14 to 20. Sanskrit parody theory, musical metre, and expression
language are some of the topics covered in these parts.
Abhinaya (acting)in Indian Drama
Everything is affected by how well or poorly a perfo rmance is done.
According to Natyashastra, a play that is superior in significance or
meaning becomes beautiful to the audience when brilliantly performed,
but a play that is inferior in significance or meaning confuses and loses the
audience when played p oorly. A substantial part of the Natyashastra and
the other Indian dramaturgy literature both discuss actor training in verse.
He asserts that abhinaya (acting) consists of rasa ( flavors), bhava
(emotions), and sangita -nritya (music and dance). Bharata divides acting
into four categories:
1. Acting with the body (angika), which includes gestures and motions
2. Acting through speech (vak aya), relating to voice intonation,
recitation and singing.
3. Acting through emotional cues (sattvika), which include outward
displays of emotion like tears.
4. Acting through accessories (aharya), including makeup, costume,
jewellery and propsto enhance one's acting.
The best actor training promotes the actor's growth as a person and raises
his or her consciousness, enabling the actor to articulate thoughts from a
higher state of consciousness. Acting is more than just physical skills or
recited lines; it is al so emotional communication and the manifestation of
the text's underlying meaning and levels of consciousness. The
Natyashastra's chapters 8 through 12 cover specific instruction on acting
gestures and movements as well as their performance and importance. It is
worth noting that Indian classical drama never prohibited female actors to
perform the roles. On the other hand, there was ban on female actors in
western classical drama. Even there are several verses on training women
in the performing arts in the Natyashastra.
Rasas (aesthetic elements) and bhava (emotions) in Indian Drama
The idea of Rasa, as created by Bharata, is referred to as the essence of art.
It is the heart, the soul, the nucleus of each work of art, and is interpreted
as the relationship between the artist, the art, and the audience. Rasa is a
crucial aspect of Sanskrit drama as the audiences’ refined emotional
response evoked by the drama. Rasa can be classified into eight different
categories: erotic (Sringara), comic (Hasya), pathetic ( Karuna), furious
(Raudra), heroic (Vira), terrible (Bhayanaka), odious (Bibhatasa), and
marvellous (Sringara) (Adbhuta). The elements of the aesthetic experience
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96 In addition to rasas, Bharata categorises bhav a (emotions) in a serious
manner, using terms like sthayin (fundamental) and sancari or vyabhchari
(associated). The eight sthayin bhavas are love, humour, compassion,
horror, the heroic, fear, repulsion, and wonder.he thirty -three sancari or
vyabhicari bh avas are dejection, lassitude, suspicion, envy, infatuation,
exhaustion, laziness, helplessness, anxiety, confusion, reminiscence,
boldness, bashfulness, fickleness, pleasure, excitement, sleep, frustration,
pride, sorrow, impatience, forgetfulness, dream, awakening, intolerance,
dissimulation, ferocity, desire, illness, insanity, death, fear.
Dialogues in Indian Drama
The word selections of the playwright and the performers' enunciation of
the lines are referred to as dialogues in Indian drama. In additio n to
delivering exposition and characterizing the various characters, the
language and discourse used by the characters advance the plot and action.
The art of speech and expression in the performing arts is discussed in
chapter 18 of Natyashastra. In summ ary, dialogues contribute to the theme
as well. One unique aspect of later Sanskrit drama is its bilingual nature.
The protagonist who belongs to upper caste like the king or the brahmin
spoke in Sanskrit whereas characters from lower sections of society l ike
soldiers, servants etc. spoke various Prakrit language.
Characters in Indian Drama
These are the people that the drama portrays as being involved in the plot.
In the drama, every character has a unique personality, age, appearance,
perspective, socioec onomic background, and language. Characterization is
the process through which an actor performs a role and uses their acting
abilities to develop a character in a drama.Indian drama generally includes
characters like Sutradhar – director, Natyak -hero, Nay ika-heroine and
Vidushak -jester. Sanskrit drama does not highlight the tragic ending of
characters because in Hindu cosmology death is not and end but a way to
achieve spiritual liberation from the cycle of life or rebirth.
Music and Dance in Indian Drama
In Indian drama, the tone, rhythm, and melody of the speeches are referred
to as music. Music can refer to the melodic elements of music
compositions, such as in musical theatre, or it can also refer to the rhythm
of conversation and speeches in a play. So ngs, instrumental music used as
a play's underscoring, sound effects, and actor voices are all examples of
how music may expand its sphere of influence. In the musical aspects, the
songs are sometimes employed to advance the plot and raise the tension in
the narrative.
The use of music in theatre is covered in the Natyashastra. The topics of
jati (melodic kinds or matrices), sruti (microintervals), svara (notes),
grama (scales), and murcchana (modes or ragas) are covered in chapter
twenty -eight. In chapter twenty -nine, stringed instruments like the vina are
discussed. Vocal music is also distinguished from instrumental music and
further divided into two categories: giti, or "song," which has lyrics, and munotes.in

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97 varna, or "colour," which uses solely syllabics. Music and dance enhance
the meaning of the performance by incorporating the two fundamental
components, rasa and bhava. In his work on Indian dramaturgy, Bharata
discusses rasa and bhava in great detail.In his work on Indian dramaturgy,
Bharata discusses the rol e of song and dance to display rasa and bhava in
great detail.
Spectacle (Aharya Abhinaya) in Indian Drama
Each play has its own distinct and special character traits, including
behaviours, attire, and language. When a writer makes decisions about the
realm of the play, such as the types of people, historical eras, locales,
language, characterization techniques, symbolism, and themes, these
decisions are often influenced by their writing style. The same has been
discussed in chapter 21of the Natyashastra, w hich is devoted to Aharya
Abhinaya. The topics of makeup, costumes, props, masks, and simple
stage decorations are addressed.The text includes 10 different types of
plays and discusses each one's notion of storyline, costume, and makeup in
detail.
Audience of Indian Drama
Since a live audience has a significant influence on how dramas are
created, theatre requires an audience. An audience's physical presence can
alter a performance by motivating the actors and generating a wide range
of expectations. As a r esult, authors factor in the audience's impact rather
than the quiet reaction. In order to appeal to the audience and deal with
issues that they can relate to, the majority of classic Sanskrit dramas are
created with this in mind.
Bharata’s the Natyashastr a discusses the reaction and participation of the
audience in drama in the first chapter. The audience members come from
all social strata without distinction, but they are expected to have at least a
basic understanding of theatre appreciation. This is du e to the possibility
that they will react to the art in an appropriate way as an empathic
‘sahridaya’.
Prekshagriha (auditorium) in Drama
The standards for prekshagriha, or auditorium, are laid forth in the second
chapter of Natyashatra. It shields the per formance from any difficulties
brought on by the forces of evil nature, evil spirits, animals, and people. It
claims that the medium -sized rectangular room, which can accommodate
supposedly 400 spectators, is great for visibility and audibility. Bharata
also recommends square and triangular halls, as well as smaller and larger
structures, each half and double this size. Given the nuanced eye
movements and other facial expressions that Bharata detailed in the
second chapter of Natyashastra, his concept for a n intimate theatre was
suitable.
Natyashastra describes drama and the art of theatre as having the purpose
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98 detail to discuss the strategies available in dramatic arts to accomplish it s
objectives. The book outlines four ways for actors to interact with viewers:
words, gestures, clothing, and aharya (makeup, cosmetics), all of which
should complement the mood implied by the drama. The text examines the
specifics of stage design, positio ning the performers, the relative locations,
movement on stage, entrance and leave, change in background, transition,
and things presented, describing the stage for performance arts as the
sacred place for artists.
Other elements seen in contemporary India n drama include symbolism,
designs, visual components, contrast, etc. The audience will discover a
combination of all the elements mentioned above in the majority of
dramas now being exhibited, as most dramatist tend to use a little bit of
each feature.
5.2.2 Elements of drama according to Western dramaturgy
Even though theatre as a cultural practice is incredibly diverse, all plays
share some elements. Drama communicates to us in what seems to be a
universal language through story, characters, emotions, an d challenges.
This "universal dramatic language" is understood not merely across
different cultures or age groups, but throughout centuries as well. There is
something in the stories that resonates with and makes sense to us, even
though Shakespearean Engl ish can be a little challenging to understand.
Therefore, it makes sense to question how the universal language of
theatre functions and what elements make it up.
Aristotle (384 -322 BCE) was the very first Western dramaturg, even
though Aeschylus wrote th e first Western play. Aristotle’s book Poetics
was the first Western work to seek to describe the formal rules of well -
structured theatre. Aristotle dissected every element of a successful
dramatic production in an effort to discover the ideal formula. Dra ma
became one of the subjects that Aristotle explored in depth. He reached to
the conclusion that drama has six elements: Plot, Character, Thought,
Diction, Melody, and Spectacle. Each of the elements will be briefly
discussed below, along with how it rela tes to a drama.
Plot - “Mythos”
Aristotle defines plot (mythos) as "the arrangement of the incidents" in
The Poetics and views it as the most crucial component of theatre. A plot
must contain all of the required components, including a compelling and
logic al beginning, middle, and end. The incidents must be arranged in
such a way that the cause -and-effect chain reaction (desis) leads to the
climax and eventually to a realistic and internally consistent unwinding
(lusis). A successful plot comprises reversal (peripeteia), recognition
(anagnorisis), and the scene of suffering (pathos), and it has all the
ingredients in the right order. This results in a cathartic release of
emotions. In the early Aristotelian model, the dramaturg is most concerned
with the plo t and the order of the incidents, or dramatic structure. munotes.in

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99 According to Aristotle, a play's plot depicts a "reversal of fortune,"
meaning that things may begin well and turn out bad as in most tragedies
or adversely and turn out positively as in most romanti c comedies.He
asserts that plot lays the groundwork for the theatre. It is similar to life in
that it is made up of a series of actions that produce outcomes. So, it is
mostly the plot that makes a story
Character - “Ethos”
For Aristotle, the characters i n a drama are secondary to the plot.
Characters are the plot's operatives. The reasons (motivations) behind the
plot's occurrences are provided by the characters. The major purpose of
characters is to portray particular morals or qualities (i.e., their cha racter)
and how those morals or qualities influence the course of the plot and
there must be consistency in character.They act as a catalyst for conflict.
This provides us with a certain perspective on the features that are good or
terrible, how they can r esult in good or bad. The "reversal of fortune" —in
Aristotle's opinion, the primary "purpose" of the plot —is directly
influenced by a character's personality or decisions.
Thought - “Dianoia”
The theme of a drama is that thought. Andramatist may have been inspired
to write the piece by a particular thought, recognition, or realization,
which is then threaded throughout the plot. Uncertainty, for instance, is
one of Hamlet's themes. In a drama, characters typically make comments
about or pose questions abou t the theme, inspiring the audience to do the
same. The writer conveys particular themes through the use of images and
the positioning of performers in a scene.
Diction - “Lexis”
Aristotle used the term "diction" to refer to the language used to convey
the story. Information may be communicated verbally (via song or speech)
or nonverbally (facial expressions).Aristotle believed it was crucial for a
piece of writing to maintain the right balance between poetic and prosaic
language. He advises against using e xaggerated diction in his work
Poetics. He desires a combination of poetic language (metaphors, simile
etc.) with everyday language. Regular speech clarifies, poetic speech is
beautiful and provokes thought, but both must be used in tandem.
Melody - “Melo s”
Melody is a term used to describe the use of music in the story. The chorus
in ancient Greek plays offered commentary on the action and occasionally
danced and sang.The natural progression of events is frequently referred to
as melody. Similar to a piec e of music, a plot must have a specific flow to
"function" well.
Spectacle - “Opsis”
Aristotle defined diction as the language used to tell the story. Spectacle
describes the visual style of a drama. In a drama, elaborate clothes and munotes.in

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100 finely crafted set pi eces promote audience engagement. The scenery,
costumes, and special effects used in a performance are all forms of visual
elements that make up the spectacle in a theatre. Additionally, it describes
how some dramatic elements, such as settings and costume s, are
developed. Naturally, a piece of art cannot be pure spectacle. Additionally,
there must be a compelling plot.
Aristotle's six elements of drama are still very important and relevant, and
current age drama still includes these fundamentals. There are some
similarities between Indian and Western dramatic traditions , such as
the plot being primarily focused on historical and mythical figures, the
play being divided into Acts and Scenes, the use of the Chorus, and the
development of stock characters. The basic purpose of drama, according to
Aristotle, is to impart knowledge and build character. While Bharata views
plot as the body rather than the essence of a drama, Aristotle views it as
the soul of a tragedy. In accordance with Aristotle's six components of
tragedy —plot, character, thought, diction, melody, and spectacle —
mentioned in Chapter VI of ‘Poetics’, Bharata's Natyashastra is made up
of vastu (plot), neta (hero), rasa (flavour), laksana (signs and symptoms),
alamkara (artistic frills), nritya -sangita (dance and music), and
Abhinaya(acting). Another point of difference between two traditions is
that there is the absence of tragedy in the Indian dramatic tradition, which
was much appreciated in western dramatic tradition. Apart from it, Greek
drama c omply to the rule of three unities of time, place and action; this is
not strictly observed in Indian drama where the action shifts from earthly
places to heaven and also story occurs across a time span of some years as
in Ramayana or Mahabharata.
5.2.3 St ructure of drama according to Indian dramaturgy
Dramatic structure is like the skeleton of a text. Dramatic Structure relates
to the style of drama and the manner in which the plot is presented, the
characters are portrayed, and/or the themes are addressed . The order or
sequence in which the play develops on stage is referred to as the structure
in theatre.
The classic Sanskrit drama’s narrative structure consists of five phases that
lead to the events being depicted finally culminating in a conclusion.
 The main event is the "origin" (mukha), which plants the plot's initial
seeds of action.
 The second is the "incident" (pratimukha), which advances the story
by displaying both favourable and unfavourable circumstances.
 The third is "germ" (grabha), where p ositive deeds appear to get one
closer to the goal (phala).
 The fourth state is "crisis" (vimarsa), in which negative deeds appear
to dominate positive ones and deviate significantly from the original
goal.
 The play's "completion" (nirvahana), which comb ines all of the stories
together and brings them to a clear end, is the fifth act. munotes.in

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101 5.2.4 Structure of drama according to Western dramaturgy
Dramatic structure refers to the overarching framework or procedure the
dramatist uses to organize the dramatic mate rial or action in its domain.
Aristotle outlined the ideal structure and plot of a successful play in his
discussion of tragedy. Aristotle believed that the plot should have a
beginning, middle, and end and should adhere to a basic three -act
structure. He named it as protasis, epitasis and catastrophe. There should
be a convincing rationale for why the hero fails. The ultimate purpose of a
tragedy is to create catharsis by invoking fear and pity in the audience.
Horace, a Roman theatre critic, advocated fiv e act structure and advocated
that a drama should not be longer or shorter than five acts. Then later in
1863, German playwright Gustav Freytag came up with a pyramid
diagram after his extensive study of 5 act dramatic structure. According to
Freytag's pyr amid , a story's plot is divided into five sections: Exposition
(originally termed introduction), Rise, Climax, Return, or Fall, and then a
Catastrophe, dénouement, resolution, or disclosure."

Source:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/Freytag%27
s_Pyramid_with_English_text.svg/220px -
Freytag%27s_Pyramid_with_English_text.s vg.png
Exposition or introduction
The introduction, as its name implies, is where the setting and backdrop
are established. The audience meets the characters at this point, and they
also learn crucial details about what will happen next.
Rising action
After the incident that occurred in the introduction, suspense is now
established. The way the characters act or behave prepares the audience
for the climax. Here, tension is produced through the employment of
elements and theatrics that generate suspense.
Climax
Contrary to common usage, "climax" in Freytag's model does not imply
"the end." Instead, it connects to the narrative's pivotal moment. It is the
time period between the tension -building events and the eventual actions
that bring the story to a close. A revelation that changes the story's munotes.in

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102 direction is known as the turning point, or the "plot twist" is climax for
Freytag.
Falling action
The action that follows the climax is known as the fall or falling action.
The unfolding of the disputes and tensions that have been building up
might be considered to as this stage. The reader or the audience may be
able to predict where the story is going at this point.
Resolution or Catastrophe
This is the concluding act of a drama or work, sometimes known as a
catastr ophe or revelation. Everything is revealed to the audience at the
end.
To demonstrate this kind of dramatic structure, Shakespeare's Macbeth
from 1623 is a superb example. The five -act play Macbeth centers on
Macbeth's rise and fall.
 Act One: Introduction
It portrays Macbeth as a brave soldier and the king of Duncan's
trusted confidant. The encounter with the three witches on his way
home portends Macbeth's ascension to the throne.
 Act Two: Rising Action
The couple plans to murder Duncan while he is sleepin g after
being influenced by Lady Macbeth. Duncan's position as king is
replaced by Macbeth. Banquo is killed by Macbeth because
Macbeth sees Banquo as a threat to his newly acquired power.
 Act Three: Climax
At the supper held at their house, Macbeth encoun ters Banquo's
ghost. Lady Macbeth is driven insane by shame and the worry of
repercussions.
 Act Four: Falling Action
Macbeth seeks consolation from the three witches during his visit.
They give him three prophecies, each of which sets up a
subsequent scene in the narrative. To protect himself from
rebellion, Macbeth murders Macduff's family, which prompts
Macduff to plot revenge against Macbeth.
 Act Five: Catastrophe/ Resolution
Act five demonstrates the fulfilment of the witches' prophecies,
much to Macbet h's surprise and dismay. Malcolm becomes king of
Scotland after Macbeth is killed. Ambition and moral decay are
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103 Freytag's pyramid is an excellent example of dramatic structure, although
not all plays must adhere to it. More writers are eager to test the
boundaries of performance as experimentation and creativity in literature
increase. There are various structures that differ in various ways, including
time, space, and storytelling style. Five acts of British drama were first
developed by Elizabethan dramatists. Non -musical dramas only have three
acts today as opposed to four in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Some dramatic structures employ flashbacks and flashforwards to tell a
non-linear story. The playwright b uilds a pattern of complexity, escalating
action, climax, and resolution using this technique.
Check your progress:
1. Differentiate between a dramatic structure of Indian and Western
Dramas.
2. Illustrate the dramatic structure according to Freytag's pyramid?
5.3 'ISMS' IN RELATION TO DRAMA
The beginning of the 20th century saw a powerful revival of the drama,
which had experienced a dramatic decline throughout the Victorian era.
20th-century drama that was written and performed is a significantly
differentthan previous attempt. Numerous innovations and experiments
have been made, and these are tied to the progress of civilization and crisis
faced by common people. Historical, social, political, economic, and
scientific movements affected and changed this era's s tage. The two world
wars, the Great Depression, and technological developments have all
contributed to the diversified and many expansions of the human mind.
Liberty, equality, and fraternity as well as a challenging outlook on art and
life were influences on the new movements of the 20th century. A new
acting approach appeared that was less polished, but stronger, more direct
and independent. There were many intricate and perplexing
movements.Over the course of six decades,from late 19th century to initial
decades of 20th -century theatre haveseen many trends and currents. The
subunit, among other trends, concentrates on discussing about realism,
naturalism, symbolism, and expressionism in drama.
5.3.1 Realism
The emergence of realism was influenced by three significant
developments. Firstly, August Comte (1798 –1857), who is frequently
referred to as the "founder of sociology", developed a theory of
Positivism. One of the Comte's principles promoted careful observation as
a method for determining the causes a nd effects of nature.Secondly, The
Origin of Species, published in 1859 by Charles Darwin (1809 –1882),
inspired people to think that science could explain everything in life. The
core argument of Darwin's book was that life evolved gradually from a
common ancestor and that it favoured "survival of the fittest." The founder
of communism, Karl Marx (1818 –1833), promoted a political philosophy
in the late 1840s. He argued in favour of an equal wealth distribution and
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104 recognition and middle class demanded more rights. These three ideas
paved the way for a new kind of theatre that would be distinct from all
others. Realism developed partly as a reaction to these new social and
aesthetic conditions. I t started in France and by 1860 as a belief that the
goal of art was to advance humankind. Drama was intended to include the
direct observation of human behaviour in modern settings and times, and
the subjects should be related to daily life and problems.
From 1859 till 1900, melodramas, spectacle plays, comic operas continued
to dominate the mainstream of theatre. The last half of the 19th century
saw the development of dramatic realism - a literary and artistic
movement, which began in the 1870s. It was im plemented to increase
theatre attendance so that more people could relate to and enjoy the
performance. Drama of the late 19th century sought to replace the artificial
romantic style with an accurate portrayal of common people in proper
situation. Conventi on of portraying artificial and romanticized situation
had existed in drama since its inception. The directors and authors of 19th
century rejected this convention and made an effort to prefer reality over
the illusion. This movement completely transformed modern theatre,
including the setting, performing techniques, script, and even the use of
makeup. In England, France, and the United States by the 1920s, realism
had become popular. Henrik Ibsen, who is frequently referred to as the
father of modern reali sm, led them in their transition away from
melodrama.He aimed at bringing a greater fidelity of real life to the stage
and attacked society's values and brought unconventional subjects in
drama.
Salient features of realistic dramas:
 Realism is a developed set of dramatic and theatrical norms that aims
to give texts and performances of dramas a better resemblance to real
life.
 It is an effort to replace the manufactured romantic style with realistic
portrayals of common people in real -world situations.
 It is a dramatic technique for taking a direct look at the world as it is.It
highlights day to day conduct and tough decisions
 In a straightforward manner, it wants to shed light on humanity's
problems and hardships.
 The settings of realistic plays bring to mi nd the ordinary office setting,
towns, residences, society, and essentially daily life.
 The simple true language of reality was used in place of artificial
speech in theses dramas. Common everyday settings are used to create
believable dialogue.
 Realistic playwrights created settings, characters, conflicts, and staging
that are based on real -world events.
 Realism's focus was on authenticity and truth, and anything that was
demonstrated to be exaggerated was condemned.


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105 Major contributions:
Realistic drama was first conceptualised by Henrik Ibsen. His plays
challenged societal norms and explored unconventional themes. Ibsen
refined the well -written drama formula and by employing a tried -and-true
pattern made his plays, with a very disturbing subject matter, acceptable.
Soliloquies, asides, etc. were dropped. In his plays, emphasis was placed
on inner psychological motivation. The setting had an impact on the
personalities of the characters, and everything the characters did and
everything they used reflected their socioeconomic surroundings. He
served as a template for other realistic authors.
Euthanasia, the place of women, business and war, and syphilis are just a
few of the topics Ibsen covered in his dramas. For example, the 1877 play
"Pillars of Society " by Ibsen deals with business and war. At the
conclusion of the play, “Hedda Gabbler” (1890), an influential woman
who was tired with society, commits suicide. In his play “A Doll’s
Housewhich was written in 1879. He discussed women's roles in the home
and their restrictions in “A Doll's House”. Nora, the heroine, was never
allowed to grow and transform into a woman, either by her father or her
spouse. The woman in “A Doll's House” was not inherently a doll, she
simply pretended to be one. Here, Nora only pretended to be one because
it was required of her when she was imprisoned in a doll’s house where
she was expected to be beautiful and playful, obedient and mindless. At
the conclusion of the play, Nora abandons her husband Torvald and her
children.
Geor ge Bernard Shaw, a British dramatist who lived from 1856 to 1950,
mocked the idea of utilising entertainment to change and educate society.
His drama on love, battle, and honour, “Arms and the Man” (1894),
tended to depict the conventional viewpoint before demolishing it and
presenting his own alternatives. The drama “The profession of Mrs.
Warren” is about realistic presentation of prostitution.
Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov (1860 –1904) is most renowned for
plays “The Three Sisters” and “The Cherry Orcha rd”. His portrayals of
fascinating psychological realities, characters caught in awkward social
situations, and characters who find hope despite all odds makes his dramas
absolutely realistic. Even the wealthy cannot escape the loneliness and
indecisivenes s of human existence.Eugene O'Neill (1888 –1953), one of
the most significant American playwrights, contributed to the
development of serious realistic theatre as a dominant form on Broadway.
Although realistic drama is not as popular as it was in the 19th century,
and it persisted for the majority of the 20th century as well it continues to
have an impact in various regions of the world today.
5.3.2 Naturalism
The late Nineteenth and early Twentieth centuries saw the emergence of
the Naturalism movement in European drama and theatre. A variety of
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106 effort to convey the illusion of reality. In contrast to movements like
Romanticism or Surrealism, which may give issues a highly symbolic,
idealistic, or even supernatural approach, Naturalism is a movement in
theatre and literature that aims to replicate a realistic everyday reality. It
describes theatre that use intricate sets, prosaic writing that mimics actual
people's speech, and acting tha t seeks to replicate reality in order to create
the most convincing illusion of reality. Naturalism strives to scientifically
ascertain the underlying forces such as the environment or heredity
that drives the behaviours of its subjects, in contrast to rea lism, which just
seeks to represent subjects as they actually are.
The French philosopher and playwright Emile Zola is the chief proponent
of Naturalism. As early as 1867, Zola had called for a rejection of all
artifice in the theatrical arts, demanding th at plays be faithful records of
behaviour i.e., scientific analyses of life. The first explicitly naturalistic
drama was Zola's “Thérèse Raquin” (1873), a re -enactment of his own
novel which was published in 1867. ‘La nouvelle formule’ is Zola's phrase
for naturalism. Faire Vrai, Faire Grand, and Faire Simple are the three
main principles of naturalism, and serve as the key feature of naturalistic
drama. They are as follows:
 The drama should be realistic and the outcome of a comprehensive
examination of hum an behaviour and psychology. The characters must
be real people with real motivations and acts that are based on their
heredity and environment.
 In terms of the setting and performances, a naturalistic play should be
presented in a realistic manner rather than in an extravagant or
dramatic manner.
 The drama should be simple and not overburdened with intricate
subplots or prolonged expositions.
Apart from the aforementioned three, following are key aspects of
naturalistic drama.
 Darwinian concepts are pres ent throughout naturalistic dramas,
particularly in the way that the environment influences character and
serves as a source of motivation.
 Naturalism places an emphasis on common speech patterns, plausible
writing, and the avoidance of supernatural beings like ghosts or spirits
interfering with human affairs.
 Subject matter selection remained reasonable and current and shied
away from far -off, strange, or otherworldly places.
 An expansion of the social spectrum of the characters portrayed, who
spanned from the middle and working -class heroes to the classical
drama's nobles.
Under the guidance of French philosopher and playwright Emile Zola, the
naturalists sought to observe life on stage as if through a microscope.
Theatre was viewed as false by naturalism, which it advocated. Even
realism, in their view, was false. In the end, it just imitates life rather than
staging it. Emile Zola believed that for theatre to thrive, truth must be munotes.in

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107 promoted and that it must also matter to the audience and society at large.
For Zola, theatre was to be a forensic and empirical investigation of
human nature. In light of this, naturalistic plays were less influential than
realism, although having a substantial impact on stage management and
design.
Major contributions:
Johan Au gust Strindberg (1849 –1912), a Swedish playwright, novelist,
poet, essayist, and painter, produced naturalistic dramas like “The Father”
(1887), “Miss Julie” (1888), and “Creditors” (1889).
Maksim Gorkiy (1868 –1936), Henry Becque (1837 –1899), and Gerhart
Hauptmann(1862 -1946) were the top naturalist playwrights. “The Lower
Depths”, a drama by Maksim Gorkiy, examined the grim living conditions
in Russian flophouses following the revolution. It was supposed to be so
lifelike that you could actually see the pe sts and smell how dirty the
surroundings were. “The Vultures” by Henry Becque explored the
nefarious side of those who feed on the ill and dying. Becques is
especially praised for his use of slang, which has a realistic tone to it. With
his play “The Weave rs”, Gerhart Hauptmann furthers the development of
the genre by examining the harsh conditions of cottage industry workers
and their struggles to protect their assets and lives. Naturalistic artwork
showed the grim reality of existence, such as disease, pr ostitution,
pollution, racism, and poverty. Naturalistic authors were hence frequently
condemned for being too straightforward.
5.3.3 Symbolism
A group of French poets started the informally organized literary and
artistic movement of symbolism in the lat e 19th century. It reached its
zenith between 1885 and 1910, the period in which French poet Jean More
published the Symbolist Manifesto in 1886. It later moved to painting and
the theatre and had varied degrees of effect on both European and
American lite rature in the 20th century. In the theatre, symbolism emerged
as a conscious movement as a required response to the verbose,
descriptive style of Émile Zola's and other naturalistic writers during late
nineteenth century. Through the subtly suggestive use of highly symbolic
language, symbolist artists aimed to convey the unique emotional
experience of each viewer. In the theatre, symbolism was considered to be
a reaction against the dramas that represented naturalism and realism at
the onset of the 20th Cen tury.
The symbolists sought to eradicate all signs of melodrama and
romanticism, as well as any imitative or naturalistic acting. According to
theory, the actor was to serve as a depersonalised symbol pointing to a
deeper meaning than what was on stage. Dr amatists also drew inspiration
from the Symbolist poets of France, particularly Mallarmé. In his capacity
as a drama critic in the 1870s, Mallarmé argued against the predominating
Realist theatre and advocated for a poetic theatre that would convey the
underlying mysticism of humanity and the universe. According to
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108 the correspondences between the visible and invisible worlds using the
suggestive power of his poetic language. The sali ent features of symbolist
dramas are;
 Symbolist dramas sought to replace realistic representation of life with
the expression of inner truth.
 Symbolist drama used myths, legends and symbols and tried to move
beyond everyday reality.
 The symbols which were used implied a greater meaning than the
literal suggestion.Thus, the symbols chosen suggested a deeper
meaning than what was really communicated.
 Characters, colours, movement, props, and costumes were used to
accomplish symbolism in play.
 Strictly symboli st dramas took form of lyric drama with maximum use
of symbols, metaphors and music and with minimal plot action.
 These dramas sometimes contain a strong element of mysticism and
spirituality.
 In symbolist dramas, the acting and dialogue were extremely sty lized
and unnaturalistic/anti -realistic.
Major contributions:
Maurice Maeterlinck, a writer from Belgium, was considered as the most
successful symbolist playwright. His play “The Intruder” used theme of
death. Auguste Villiers de L'Isle -Adam, one of the f oremost symbolist
dramatists, is famous for his drama “The Axel” which revolves round the
theme of love and religion.
Paul Claudel, from France, with his remarkable work “the Tidings
Brought to Mary” (1921)is the leading Symbolist playwrights. The
Swedish playwright August Strindberg and the Irish poet and playwright
W.B. Yeats were both influenced by Symbolist ideas.
Alfred Jarry's sharply satirical Uburoi (1896) is notable examples of
Symbolist theatre. The horrific farce about the monstrous Ubu, which w as
originally conceived as a parody of one of Jarry's teachers, quickly
evolved into a satire of the French middle class.
Despite the short lifespan of Symbolist theatre as a unified movement, its
significant shift from the realistic past and dependence on fantasy,
atmosphere, and mood had an impact on writers and theatrical production
in the 20th century.
5.3.4 Expressionism
Expressionism is a subjective art genre that refers to an artist's propensity
to alter reality for emotional effect. Expressionism ca n be seen in a variety
of artistic mediums, such as painting, writing, theatre, architecture, and
music. Expressionism is a modernist movement in drama and theatre that
developed in Europe (especially in Germany) in the early decades of the
20th century an d later in the United States. It forms part of the broader
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109 participated in the protest against increasing industrialization
theme.Expressionism is "Forms of composition and stagecraft throu gh
which the wishes, fears, and obsessions of the human psyche are made
audible and visible," opines Ethan Mordden.
Georg Kaiser and Ernst Toller were two of the most well -known
playwrights in the early 20th century German Expressionist movement.
Expressi onist writers used the expressionist theatre to graphically portray
the events they had experienced and imagined in order to communicate
their vision to large audiences. Expressionist drama prioritised stage
effects and inventive settings while rejecting t he realistic play's structured
pattern.Therealities of everyday existence were unimportant in the
Expressionist drama. The playwright's own perception of reality is
expressed in expressionistic plays. It was a wholly random and subjective
portrayal of life . Other key features are:
 It concentrated on displaying the inner thoughts of the characters. By
depicting characters in ridiculous conflicts, it sometimes shocked the
audience.
 Characters were reduced to nameless designations like The Man, The
Father, and The Son.
 Although the setting and the characters may be authentic, the writer's
preconceptions and preferences control how they are presented on
stage.
 The stage could be very complex or completely barren and the use of
the lighting, clothes, music, and scenery are non -realistic. The decor
frequently featured bizarre shapes and vivid colours.
 Expressionist dramas frequently used dream -like images, with intense
words and movement.
 It lacked a cohesive plot, The plot is disjointed and broken into
episodes, incidents, each making its own point.
 The boundaries between time, place, and action were generally
ignored. The story telling is vividly dreamlike or nightmarish.
 It conveyed a sense of the void and uncertainty of life.
Major contributions:
The first tru ly Expressionist work for the stage was Oskar Kokoschka's
“Murderer, the Hope of Women”, which premiered in 1909 in Vienna.
Unnamed man and woman compete for dominance in it. It is marked by
radical reduction of characters to mythic types, choral effects, declamatory
language, and increased intensity; this chrematistics were highly employed
by later Expressionist plays.
One of the most prominent playwrights who helped establish
expressionism in Germany during World War I was Georg Kaiser. His
work “Gas” (19 12) portrays the story of a gas -producing mill that is
democratically controlled and employs profit -sharing strategies. However,
the mill explodes, leaving the protagonist —the son of the mill owner —
with a moral dilemma. He, like the Expressionist artists, does not want to
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110 character who fully understands the value of living a better life free from
the control of machinery. This moral dilemma over what constitutes true
happiness shows how industrialisation posed difficulties for everyone —
not just artists, workers, and humanity as a whole.
Reinhard Sorge, Walter Hasenclever, Hans Henny Jahn, and
ArnoltBronnen were a few other renowned Expressionist dramatist. As
models for their dramatic exp eriments, they looked to German actor and
dramatist Frank Wedekind and Swedish playwright August Strindberg.
Expressionist dramas like “The Son” by Walter Hasenclever, and “The
Beggar” by Reinhard Sorge were both seminal performances. These
dramas portraye d the generational conflict between those who rejected the
father figure and those who showed a messianic confidence in youth.
"The Hairy Ape", "The Emperor Jones" and "The Great God Brown" are
three plays by Eugene O'Neill that were popular expressionist plays in
American theatre. Other noteworthy contributions included "Machine" by
Sophie Treadwell, "Rapid Transit" by Lajos Egri, and "The Adding
Machine" by Elmer Rice.Tennessee Williams, one of the greatest writers
in American theatrical history, had a s ignificant impact on expressionist
American theatre. His well -known play “The Glass Menagerie” was a
continuation of the early 20th -century European expressionism.
Fundamentally, any "ism" is a reaction. For instance, Realism was a
reaction to the early 19 th-century Romanticism. Expressionism is a protest
against the naturalism that is more prevalent in the arts and that has its
roots in the materialism of the nineteenth century. Today, playwrights are
free to experiment with many different dramatic forms a nd structures —as
long as their approach speaks compellingly to an audience.
Check your progress:
1. Describe the Realistic approach to drama.
2. What is Expressionism in drama? Which are the famous Expressionist
drama?
5.4 LET US SUM UP
The discussion about dra ma first concentrated on the concept of drama
before emphasizing the elements and structure of drama according to both
Indian and Western dramaturgy. It then briefly discusses realism,
naturalism, symbolism, and expressionism focusing on the key features
and significant contribution to the dramatic arts. It is not an exaggeration
if we say, Drama is the most diverse kind of art since it not only depicts
life but also offers a unique perspective on it. Dramas can satirize society
or subtly highlight human st rength as well as frailty. Tragedies can reveal
the greatness and potential of people, while current naturalistic playwriting
explores the human mind. The drama may also have a more openly
didactic intention, as did morality plays from the later Middle Age s, or
melodramas from the 19th century, and discussion plays from the 20th
century. The many purposes that dramas served in different eras are
recorded in the scripts of dramas. And it consistently supports Samuel munotes.in

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111 Johnson's claim that there is no set restr iction on the types of composition
available to dramatist.
5.5 UNIT END EXERCISES
1. Explain the concept of Indian Drama. Enumerate its characteristics.
2. “A true play is three dimensional.” Justify the Boulton’s statement
with references to Concept of Drama.
3. Critically compare various elements of drama according to Indian and
Western dramaturgy.
4. Discuss in detail the dramatic structure of Western drama.
5. What is Symbolism in drama? Which are the famous examples of
Symbolist drama?
5.6 REFERENCES
 J. L. Styan (19 63). The Elements of Drama, Cambridge University
Press. Digitised by University of Florida in 2011. Retrieved from
https://edisciplin as.usp.br/pluginfile.php/3817779/mod_resource/conte
nt/1/ELEMENTS%20OF%20DRAMA.%20STYAN..pdf
 LenagalaSiriniwasaThero (2017). The Structure of a Sanskrit Drama.
International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR) Volume 6 Issue
1. DOI: 10.21275/ART20163180 Retrieved from:
https://www.ijsr.net/archive/v6i1/ART20163180.pdf
 Singh Rameshwor (2019). Bharata Muni’s Natyashastra: A
Comprehensive Study. International Journal of English Language,
Literature and Translation Studies, Vol.6.Issue.1. Retrieved from:
https://doi.org/10.33329/ijelr.6119.85
 https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/drama%2C+Western
 https://literariness.org/2020/11/12/drama -theory/
 https://www.britannica.com/art/South -Asian -arts/Indian -theatre
 https://www.britannica.com/art/Symbolism -literary -and-artistic -
movement
 https://www.ijsr.net/archive/v6i1/ART20163180.pdf
 https://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/arts/performing/theater/dra
ma-western/greek -
drama#:~:text=The%20Western%20dramatic%20tradition%20has,trag
edy%2C%20originated%20in%20the%20dithyramb .
 https://www.lkouniv.ac.in/site/writereaddata/siteContent/20200412063
2194475nishi_Natyashastra.pdf
 https://www.merriam -
webster.com/dictionary/drama#:~:text=1%20%3A%20a%20written%
20work%20that,drama%20occurring%20in%20the%20courtroom .
 https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/the -
natyashastra/d/doc202318.html
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112 6
DRAMA AND COMMUNICATION MEDIA
Unit structure
6.0 Objectives
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Understanding Communication and Media in context of performing
Art
6.3 Promotion and PR of performing Arts through Communication Media
6.4 Changing Technology and capacities , limitations of technology in
Media
6.5 Let Us Sum Up
6.6 Unit End Exercise
6.0 OBJECTIVES
After studying this unit, the students will be able to understand:
● Communication and Media in context of performing Art
● Promotion and PR of performing Arts through Communication Media
● Changing Technology and capacities, limitations of technology in
Media
6.1 INTRODUCTION
Communication is a social tool which includes a wide range of functions.
Some of them are instruction, persuasion, education, entertainment,
develo pment etc. Over the periods, all the communication mediums have
evolved themselves to accommodate the various functions of
communication and this is true of the theatre as well.
Drama is a valuable form of communication provided to learners. It is
with the opportunity to work together cooperatively on a shared life. It
gives the opportunity to the learners to express themselves more
effectively. Drama is also useful to enhance verbal and nonverbal
expression of ideas. It helps to make progress in voice proj ection,
articulation of words, fluency with language, and persuasive speech. Some
other skills like listening and observation can be developed by using
drama games. Even by being an audience, practicing, and performing.
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113 6.2 UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION AND
MEDIA IN CONTEXT OF PERFORMING ART
Communication plays a vital role in theatres as it is the Communication
between people. It is helpful to impart or exchange information, thoughts,
opinions etc. A play is a two way process where one is sending and
anoth er one is receiving the information and giving immediate response
for the same.
Drama plays an important role in Indian culture. India is always known
for art lovers, be it music, dance or drama. Drama is the composition of a
particular text containing t he different aspects of drama. Nātyasāstra.
Nātya is the Sanskrit term for ‘Drama’. Different emotions and situations
are projected through acting. A combination of two words, ‘abhi’ and ‘ni’
which means “towards” and “to carry” respectively is called the word
Abhinaya. From this, abhinaya means carrying the performance towards
the audience.
Here the query comes up in what manner the performer can carry the
meaning towards the audience. So the contribution, role and significance
of communication starts her e. Communication is the activity which
conveys ideas by using important symbols. It is the connection between
two or more persons.
It is significant to social life when meaningful symbols are used to
communicate by the persons. Communication helps to deve lop the
information sharing capacity of an individual, particular attitudes, values
which support healthy social relationships. It is multidimensional in
nature. It performs various functions. Few of them are instruction,
persuasion, education, entertainme nt, development etc. We are going to
discuss some of the prominent functions here.
Information Function -
This is the very first and important primary function of any
communication. Since the ancient period, the important function of
performing art has be en to broadcast information. It is the duty of the
performer not only to entertain but also to provide the information to the
audience. This is beneficial to the performer as well to explore himself on
various platforms. E.g.This medium was used to give th e information of
the Kargil conflict to the rural population in Orissa, Uttar Pradesh and
Bihar etc. In today's modern era where exponential growth is there, then
also such art of play/ drama is useful to make aware rural people with
various issues in the society.
Informative function -
This is the second significant function of communication. It refers to the
communication related to making aware with do’s and don’ts. Since
ancient Theatre is an evergreen medium of instruction. “Oil, inflation, war,
socia l struggle, the family, religion, and the meat market, all became
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114 about facts unknown to him….Right and Wrong courses of action were
shown. People were shown who knew what they were doing, and others
who did not. The theatre became an affair for philosophers, but only for
such philosophers as wished not just to explain the world but also to
change it. So we had philosophy, we had instruction.” as rightly said by
Bertolt Brecht.
Persu asive function -
This is the third important function of communication. The main role of
communication is to encourage people and to motivate them to think
critically which leads to change in behavior in the desired direction.
Theatres can attract audienc es through the use of certain attitudes and
behavior patterns. It can even perform a task of excitement and
advertising. The very first drama of social protest in India was Nildarpana
(The Mirror of Indigo Planters). It was given by Dinabandhu Mitra, It wa s
published in the year 1860. From the revolution of 1858 some incidents
are projected through this drama.
Education function -
This is one more significant function of communication. Formal
communication is used in education generally and practical is rar ely.
Theatre is the best platform which can be successfully used to provide
education. In today’s date students are having the burden of learning
books. The theatre can help in this regard. Techniques of drama in the
form of games and communication can be used. In fact sometimes it
disturbs its physical order. Sometimes even actually breaking down its
physical order. The communication between teacher and the taught infuses
trust in between. It makes correct interpretation possible. The regard and
respect of community exercise that would be able to respect children's
extra -curricular skills in storytelling. It will help to go a long way in
making children communicative.
Entertainment Function -
Nowadays one more significant function of communication is evol ved
called as. This function was firstly used and coined by Charles Wright.
Entertainment media is mostly related to interests and physical
attractiveness. Through these features this media attracts the people.
Generally, social media like Films and Televi sion is the best to reflect this
function. Theatre started for the sake of entertainment. Entertainment here
is an expression which talks about the broader canvas for giving relief to
the people. Multiple aspects of diversion are involved in it. Few of the m
are delight, recreation, pastime or mere distraction from the problems of
real life even if momentarily.
Improvement function
The role of communication is to mobilize people. Also to enquire their
willing participation in the growth of the nation. To reach out to many
people in India and to communicate with them, is focused in India as a munotes.in

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115 need of time. Also, introducing new skills to people is the biggest
challenge. The solution for this is made through the five years plan for the
nation. Blueprint of t he development plan is provided in that. In India, this
concern above reaching people, communicating with them and equipping
them with new skills has been emphasized over and again in successive
five year plans which provide the blueprint of the country’s planned
development. Use of Communication is accepted and implemented as a
tool of development through mass media forms. Still the expected result is
not achieved by development communication planners till date. This is
because of the people as they are no t able to connect with modern mass
media forms as easily as traditional media of communication.
6.3 PROMOTION AND PR OF PERFORMING ARTS
THROUGH COMMUNICATION MEDIA
Public relations (PR) is the set of techniques and strategies related to
managing how inform ation about an individual or company is
disseminated to the public, and especially the media.
In simple words, public relations (PR) means the handling of
communication between an organisation and its stakeholders. The
intention of doing this is to communi cate effectively through informative
result oriented content. It should be done to make people aware, influence
public opinions, recommend and safeguard reputations.
Public relations is the old profession. “Ever since people and communities
have wanted to communicate they have used the skills of public relations,
but it is only in recent times that these skills have been refined and
integrated into a separate discipline”.
America is the originator of modern PR. Some of the great examples of
PR can be the D eclaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill
of Rights etc. Many American companies started to appoint PRs in their
companies in the late 1800s. It was for the sake of promoting their ideas
and products too. The term public relation was first ly used by The
Association of American Railroads Company in the year 1987. It is
mentioned in its Year Book of Railway Literature. Whereas other sources
mention that American lawyer Dorman Eaton has used this term for the
first in 1882. In Yale Law School he has explained the term as general
good.
Still America’s first publicity firm was established in 1900. The name was
The Publicity Bureau. It was the start of an independent public relation
department.
Role of PR -
PR and social media are based on communi cation. Whereas social media
is based on real -time messaging. It amplifies your message and allows PR
to become stronger as well as more impactful. The information published
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116 faster and easily reach a large group of people with the help of social
media.
● Brochures
● Handbooks
● Letters
● Posters
● Flyers
● Annual reports
● Billing/pay inserts
● Audiovisual information
● Webpages
● Blogs
● Facebook
● Twitter
It also able to advertise your company products by using following ways:
● Print
● Broadcast
● Social media
● Direct mail
● Banners
● Signs
● Promotions
● Specialty items (pens, buttons and memo pads)
Significance of PR -
To communicate effectively is an important skill. To develop this skill you
can use various mediums successfully. It considers following factors:
1. Source
The source which you have selected for communication should be
authentic one. It should be reliable, practiced and have matches with your
target audience.
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117 2. Message (salient information)
Make sure t hat the information is the strong content of the message. Such
powerful content received by your audience.
3. Verbal/nonverbal cues
Clear and correct use of language gives healthy communication. Use of
different symbols, words and images is necessary. It helps to make
effective communication to your audience.
4. Two -way communication
You can ask for audience feedback so that conversation will continue with
your audience. Some of the ways for that are open forums, suggestion
boxes, speeches with Q&A. Even t he use of response cards and surveys is
also effective way. Social media is an excellent tool to provide platform
for direct interactions with your audience. It also encourages engagement
of audiance.
5. participation of Audience
You should plan by conside ring audience necessities. They should join
and participate in your program easily. Audience active participation is
important to increase awareness for your company. Try to organize special
events, competitions to increase audience engagement.
To use thes e sources becomes necessary for healthy communication with
the audience.
It’s important for every company to employ these mediums of
communication.
Axia Public Relations uses both controlled and uncontrolled
communication. Also the PESO model is the key t o create an inclusive PR
plan.
Benefits of Promotion and PR of performing Arts through
Communication Media
The purpose of PR is to aorganise healthy and active communication by
using target -orientated information for creating awareness, impact of
public o pinions, promote and safeguard reputations. There are certain
benefits PR as below -
1. Awareness of Build Brand –
Powerful media relations drive can help to make more visibility of the
brand among the target audience. In your large marketing communication
you can use media relations. So that you can effectively develop
awareness in securing positive coverage through trusted media agencies.
This can easily build a custom media database for the audience in the form
of a variety of factors, such as your locatio n, geographical reach, industry
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118 branding your product into the market by using newspapers, websites and
blogs, podcasts and television channels, radio stations etc.
With the help of these media coverage can come in many forms as below -
● Product Round -Up – Various types of media regularly share your
product details. It can be useful to fetch your product in the limelight to
market it. Before talking or writing anything on your prod uct, its price tag
or quality the editor, reporter, blogger can easily receive the product.
● There is increasing craze for reviews and unboxing videos from the
last two years. If your public relations agency lends the product for such
coverage, then it wil l be able to send a targeted list of reviewers and
samples.
● Thought leader: Spokesperson is an expert in his or her field. If such
a spokesperson is appointed in your company then definitely that can
speak about your industry related news. Such trending s tories can be a
thought provoking food for media coverage. The observances can provide
new opportunities as well.
● Contributed Article: A spokesperson of the company used to give
industry related articles for media outlets . It is known as a bylined article
containing author name and title of the article. It can be written by the
CEO or someone else from your company to spread awareness of your
products . It becomes easy to reach an audience by means of bylines
articles. Specifically articles in the newspapers . These articles help in
image building of your company as well as to maintain deeper connections
with target audience by focusing on strengths of your company. Once the
title is finalized for the article . Then easily public relation agency can
connect wit h various suitable and appropriate publications. Outlets are
always in search of fresh and updated information, innovative ideas, new
perspectives etc. If your company is able to innovate such new ideas, it
will attract an audience and strong relationships can be developed.
● Trending features – The happenings in your company can provide a
thoughtful boost for articles . Spokesperson can develop a special story
based on this, one can write down an article or segment based on this. In
this case, these can be in the spotlight of a piece. For example: One of our
clients Saint Peter’s University Hospital was about to start the first birth
centre in the state. This newsworthy event attracted readers to take the
newspaper daily to know more about it. By securing news a special story
can be drafted to communicate with the target audience.
2. Increase Credibility –
Whether you are a start -up or a company who is celebrating its 50th
anniversary, gaining the trust of your target audience is essential.
Consumers tend to be lo yal to brands and products they have confidence
in. In fact, most people use the same product, company, organization, etc.
for years because they develop a brand bond and it can be hard to convert
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119 with for such a long time? Media coverage can help achieve this by
promoting authenticity, trust, transparency and credibility. Consumers are
not only loyal to brands or organizations, but also to media outlets. Think
about it, everyone has thei r 2-3 go -to media sources for news
consumption, which is why it’s important to have a media relations team
that understands the media world and which outlets to target to ensure
your content is being seen by the right audience. When it comes to
credibility , it’s important to understand what your target consumer is
looking for in a brand. According to a recent study by Forbes , 33% of
millennials rely on blogs before making a purchase and 43% of
millennials value authenticity over content when consuming news.
Once your brand is established and growing in the media world, those
media relationships can be ever -growing and evolving .
3. Establish Relationship with Media –
Our company always tells clients that we are not going to clients rather
clients are coming to us. This is because of the dedication of a company
with media outlets. Such dedication is required for developing
relations hips between company and clients. Stories are created by media
and PR experts to engage audiences. The PR team dedicatedly worked to
maintain relationships with the media . If a spokesperson of the company is
able to give related news consistently to the me dia. If the audience gets
interested in that then they like to come with the company. If the
spokesperson or CEO shares the experience through story then clients are
more interested to join with the company. This strong relationship can
work better for bot h the parties.
4. Control the of calamity –
The relationship between company and media plays a vital role in
controlling the calamity.
When any crisis are there then it should be published properly through the
media . So to give the correct statement as earl y as possible to the media is
handled by the company.
In this situation misunderstandings viral very speedily. It can affect the
company's products . To save the brand of the company it becomes
necessary to spread correct information about the calamity. In brand
building, a strong relationship with the media is important to convey
absolute information to the people. SO that the situation can be controlled.
6.4 CHANGING TECHNOLOGY AND CAPACITIES,
LIMITATIONS OF TECHNOLOGY IN MEDIA
Meaning of Changing Technol ogy and capacities -
In the environmental policy Technological change plays an important role.
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120 Due to lack of public policy development of clean te chnologies cannot be
done. Because of knowledge spread there will be an impact on investment
in research and development.
Definition -
“A technological change can be defined as an increase in the outputs
possible with a given level of inputs through the pr ocesses of invention,
innovation and diffusion.”
Role of technology in media -
Communication between people can speeds up with the help of
technology. Technology Supports for convenience and motivates for using
more than one communication methods. Few of t hem are email, social
media, chat messengers, video conferencing, video calls, images, videos,
symbols, diagrams, charts and emoticons etc.
Changing Technology and capacities of technology in Media
Power of the Internet is joined with blockchain technology . It has changed
the problems of ownership and proprietorship and these are handled by
distributors and institutions over their content databases. AR and VR
technologies have supported innovative experiences from story -driven
content to fabulously extracte d stories to experience -driven entertainment.
AR and VR combine real -world elements with virtual ones. Examples of
AR in action - Pokémon Go, Ready Player One.
Innovations in voice technology have the capacity to minimise consumers'
search for good music t o listen to. Machine learning and Artificial
Intelligiance will highly enter the media industry and work as an analytical
sector. It will develop innovative solutions for data input actionable.
Advanced analytics are used for data compelling, personalised and
transparent.
A personalized manner of content is delivered by Algorithms. It is a good
platform for advertisers. So that they can target audiences based on the
consumption data .
Media get help from Cloud infrastructure management solutions to
increase the capacity of companies. Advanced analytics useful to forestall
demand for advertising inventory.
Day by day Technologies are emerging to help media companies. With
that companies can speed up their data -driven journeys. Availability of
smart technologi es has increased in the wide range of products. Few of
them are smart speakers, smartphones, connected homes and connected
cars etc. It is helpful to stay online anytime, from anywhere, and stream
unlimited music, video and read books till they have Intern et connectivity.
Due to this demand has been increased for data to minimize creation.
Facial recognition enables certain apps which are useful to identify a face,
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121 image over specif ic coordinates on the face. People can posture and click a
photo with the features of a cat (ears, whiskers, tail, etc) blended
somewhat seamlessly over their features. Nowadays such apps are giving
opportunities to identify the features in a photo. Then t hese features can be
used to overlap the photo or to create a 3D animation.
AI is making or creating new content significantly more informative. This
can be done for businesses, publications and online creators etc. Forbes
uses a bot named Bertie which ins ists article topics to the contributors.
These topics are based on previous output.
Similarly, AI can be used for creating new advertisements quickly. So that
it can be moved to movie trailers, automated subtitling and streamline pre -
and post -production p rocesses. Even for making all steps involved more
cohesive, cost effective and time saving. With the use of AI, behavioral
data and facial recognition advertisements have become very personalized.
Limitations in Media technology
● Lack of Concentration and depression:
Nowadays we are very much dependent upon social media. We all are
connected with them. So sometimes we get frustrated and jealous of
others' lifestyles. We used to admire them but we want to become like
them. We try to follow their style of liv ing. We also try to do everything
that they do in their lives. But it’s a fact that all these cannot happen
immediately as every person has their own personality. We cannot be
exactly like someone. So sometimes depression and frustration comes into
our li ves. We start thinking that we are failing which has an impact on our
achievements in life and so on. And when we suffer from such a mental
situation you lose your concentration. We will not be able to concentrate
on anything except to compete with others.
● Hacking, Security and Privacy Issue:
Social media is a medium where all the information can be stored safely.
Such technology is beyond our imagination. But where there is the
opportunity there are only more challenges. So whenever you are storing
your da ta someone is trying to steal it. You would not believe that your all
information is hacked by someone. Also you cannot predict the use of
such stolen data. There are some issues with privacy. Your personal
information easily spreads. The main problem of h acking is that anyone
who knows hacking can control all your social media accounts. It can
control from another system easily and collect all your information.
● Cyberbullying:
In today’s date it is very easy for anyone to create a fake account. That can
be used for starting bullying to anyone. This cyberbullying is too
dangerous. Some children attempted suicide due to too many threats and
insults from the bullies. Trust issues are the biggest issue of social munotes.in

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122 networking. So everyone should take care while usi ng it. Don’t trust
strangers or unfamiliar persons.
● Health Issues and Addiction:
In today’s world everything is available on fingertips. In society, we can
observe that young adults are too seriously addicted to social media. They
don’t realize how much t ime they are passing on social media from their
valuable life. In result they spoil their health, their mental stability and
self-control. They have detached from physical visits, conversations with
the people. They are living in virtual life. They are alw ays busy with
social media and no time for family. Their healthy communication with
family members is lagging. Their personal relations are disturbing. Also
they are losing good health. So many health issues arise due to this. Few
of them are eye -sight pro blems, low energy, sleeplessness, depression,
frustration, weird behavior, psychological issues, too much thinking, etc.
● Crimes and Sexual Exploitation:
Treasure of knowledge is available on fingertips due to the internet. How
to use it depends on each and every individual. What kind of knowledge
one should earn varies from person to person. Very few people use this
treasure for good, ethical things. Otherwise people are losing their
individualities and their abilities to think something new and creative.
They stuck into the cyber -crime type of things and also involve in sexual
exploitation.
6.5 LET US SUM UP
Drama as a valuable form of communication provides learners with an
opportunity to work together cooperatively on a shared life. It gives the
opportuni ty to the learners to express themselves more effectively. Drama
is the best platform to update with verbal and nonverbal expression of
ideas. It is also helpful for voice projection, articulation of words, fluency
with language, and persuasive speech etc. The important life skills like
listening and observation can be improved with the help of drama games.
Even by being an audience, practicing, and performing etc. So to
understand the relation between communication and media becomes
important and the same is discussed in detail in this unit.
Public relations is the series of techniques and strategies in managing the
information. It may be about an individual or company which can be
conveyed to the public. Especially to the media. The need and role of
publi c relations is significant in the media.
Technology improves the communication among people. Technology
provides ease to use various methods of communication. This unit has
thrown light on certain topics to understand role, need and challenges
along with t he capabilities.
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Media
123 6.6 UNIT END EXERCISE
1. Discuss the relation between Communication and Media in the context
of performing Art.
2. Mention the need of Promotion in performing Arts through
Communication Media.
3. What is the role of PR of performing Arts through Communication
Media?
4. What are the various trends in Changing Technology?
5. State various limitations of technology in Media.

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