The Creative Spirit An Introduction to Theatre 6th Edition by Arnold – Test Bank

 

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Sample Questions Are Posted Below

 

CHAPTER 5

 

THE DIRECTOR

 

MATCHING

1. Match the person with the most appropriate statement about him or her.

 

George II, duke of Saxe-Meiningen :: Established an aesthetic for the role of the director in the late 19^th century

 

Konstantin Stanislavsky :: Most famous and influential director of early realism

 

Jerzy Grotowski :: Founder of the Theater Laboratory in Poland who was committed to the concept of a “poor theatre”

 

Anton Chekhov :: Author of The Seagull

 

Elizabeth LeCompte :: Founding member and director of the Wooster Group

 

Robert Wilson :: Director known for large scale works which emphasize spectacular visual effects

 

Lloyd Richards :: Director of the original productions of many of August Wilson’s plays

 

Nancy Keystone :: Director of Apollo

 

Ping Chong :: Director who relies on all the resources of the theatre to lift audiences into an otherworldly view of human existence

 

MULTIPLE CHOICE

2. How does Harold Clurman describe the role of the director?
3. The ringleader of the circus
4. The author of the stage action
5. The subtle mistress of the performers
6. The casual observer

Ans: B

Page: 134

 

3. When did the position of the director become a part of the theater?
4. There have been directors for as long as there have been performances.
5. During the development of the Beijing Opera
6. When plays became more complex during the period of Elizabethan drama
7. As there became an interest in realism during the 19th century

Ans: D

Page: 135

 

4. Why was the position of director created in the theatre?
5. As texts became more complex, the actors and playwrights wanted to focus on their jobs alone and not have to also stage the productions in which they were involved.
6. From nearly the beginning, there has been a need for someone who is not performing to stand apart and guide the production.
7. With the advent of realism and a profusion of theatre styles that arose in response to realism, new plays required a director to stage them.
8. Actors could make more money if they also took on the demands of directing other actors in a production.

Ans: C

Page: 135

 

5. The Seagull failed in its first production. Why?
6. The rehearsal process allowed too much exploration.
7. No one had recognized that with this new type of play, changes in production methods were necessary.
8. The text had not been fully developed.
9. The author was too sick and much of his interaction was reduced to correspondence.

Ans: B

Page: 137

 

6. Which is a way Konstantin Stanislavsky changed the acting style of his time?
7. By having actors act as an ensemble instead of melodramatically
8. By having actors use the external acting approach as opposed to the internal acting approach
9. By having actors improvise portions of the script if they felt the need as opposed to using only the playwright’s words
10. By having the actors break the convention of the fourth wall

Ans: A

Page: 137

 

7. What did Stanislavsky mean when he referred to the spine of the play?
8. The main narrative
9. The central action or central idea that draws together all the smaller plot incidents and all the separate character actions
10. The one character that is the main instigator of the whole plot
11. The playwright’s initial vision – the idea that motivated the playwright to create the play in the first place.

Ans: B

Page: 137

 

8. Which theatre director sought to create an approach to acting that would maximize the expressive power of the actor’s total instrument?
9. Jerzy Grotowski
10. Harold Clurman
11. Konstantin Stanislavsky
12. Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

Ans: A

Page: 139

 

9. Which is not characteristic of Grotowski’s approach to creating performance pieces?
10. He used puppetry techniques extensively.
11. He believed that the director should shape the stage space.
12. He freely adapted the works of different playwrights.
13. He did not use lavish high-tech production values.

Ans: A

Page: 141

 

10. Grotowski’s desire to avoid lavish auditoriums, have only necessary objects or costume pieces for the actors, and not utilize available theatre technologies, gave his theatre what name?
11. The lonely theatre
12. The bare stage
13. The poor theatre
14. The only theatre

Ans: C

Page: 141

 

11. Which of the directors outlined in the text embraces puppets, intricate scenic arrangements, projections and animations, along with live actors?
12. Konstantin Stanislavsky
13. Harold Clurman
14. Ping Chong
15. Jerzy Grotowski

Ans: C

Page: 145

 

12. Which of the following is not listed as a director’s responsibility?
13. To choose the play
14. To develop a “concept” for the production
15. To guide the work of the actors
16. To rewrite the playwright’s words to fit their “concept”

Ans: D

Page: 147

 

13. At what stage of the creative process does a director work to create a metaphor for a production?
14. Usually well in advance of the work involving the actors
15. During the initial read-throughs and table talk discussions with the cast
16. During the blocking portion of rehearsal once the actors are on their feet
17. Just before opening night so it inspires the actors to new heights

Ans: A

Page: 149

 

14. What was the central image or metaphor used in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival production of Macbeth in 2002?
15. A spider web
16. The cliffs of Scotland
17. A pool of blood
18. Nightmares

Ans: C

Page: 151

 

15. The selection of certain actors because they have a certain physical appearance and personality is called __________.
16. Color-blind casting
17. Pre-casting
18. Typecasting
19. Cross-gender casting

Ans: C

Page: 152

 

16. Which of the following is not true in terms of color-blind or non-traditional casting?
17. American directors prefer to avoid color-blind and non-traditional casting.
18. There is increasing participation in the theatre of actors and directors from diverse ethnic groups.
19. Contemporary productions frequently combine actors from different racial backgrounds even when playing members of the same family.
20. Directors utilize color-blind casting in an attempt to cast the best actor for the role.

Ans: A

Page: 152

 

17. Which is not a reason why directors keep rehearsals closed to the general public?
18. It is done in respectful consideration of the actor’s efforts and because of the vulnerability inherent in the acting process.
19. It is done by the director in an attempt to create an atmosphere that is conducive to the creative work for all involved.
20. Outside observers might make inappropriate commentary or inhibit the actor’s work by making them feel that they are “performing” before they have completed their foundation work.
21. Directors don’t want actors to waste their best performances in rehearsal.

Ans: D

Page: 152

 

18. What is the process of guiding the audience’s attention to a specific actor or point on stage called?
19. Blocking
20. Improvisation
21. Focus
22. Spatial Composition

Ans: C

Page: 155

 

19. Which of the following is not a responsibility of a director in the theatre today?
20. Line memorization
21. Focus
22. Spatial composition
23. Rhythm and pacing

Ans: A

Page: 155-158

 

TRUE OR FALSE

20. The use of a director is as old as the theatre itself.

Ans: F

Page: 135

 

21. One of the reasons the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen became director of Meiningen court theatre was to promote his actors as stars.

Ans: F

Page: 136

 

22. Stanislavsky defined the position of the director as one who interprets the playwright’s creation.

Ans: T

Page: 139

 

23. A director decides how a play is to be interpreted, regardless of the time period it was written.

Ans: T

Page: 138

 

24. Grotowski had a rigorous and athletic program for actor training.

Ans: T

Page: 140

 

25. Grotowski believed that the text must be the dominating force when creating a production.

Ans: F

Page: 141

 

26. Typecasting has always been avoided in the American theatre.

Ans: F

Page: 152

 

27. One of the functions of the director is to be the actor’s audience to confirm what is being clearly communicated.

Ans: T

Page: 153

 

28. Directors usually keep the majority of their focus and energy on the actors and their process during the technical rehearsals and let the designers take responsibility for coordinating their parts of the process into the production.

Ans: F

Page: 158