Theater as a hobby

Theatre, often spelled "theater" in the United States, is a type of collaborative artistic presentation that involves performers acting out roles in a scripted performance. Theatre differs from motion pictures and films in that theatrical performances are performed live in front of an audience, rather than prerecorded. Hundreds of different varieties of theatre have developed around the world.

Theatrical performances originated from the spiritual rituals found in prehistoric human societies. Over centuries of development, these performances became a form of artistic expression and recreational entertainment. Separate theatrical traditions exist in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and elsewhere, but the type of theatre most common in the United States is a direct descendent of theatre from ancient Greece.

Ancient Greek theatre flourished in the fifth and sixth centuries BCE and was among the most popular forms of public entertainment. A relatively small number of famous playwrights contributed pieces that were performed at public theatres across Greece but primarily in the city of Athens, which was the center of Greek artistic culture. The Greeks developed plays of several characteristic varieties that are still represented in modern theatre: the tragedy, the comedy, and the satire, which blended comedic and tragic elements.

The Catholic Church began to utilize theatrical performances in the Middle Ages, presenting religious stories in theatrical form. This became one of the major modes of theatrical expression until the European Renaissance. In the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, European playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe caused a major revival in the popular play as a public attraction. The plays produced by these authors became the nucleus of modern theatre in the Western world.

Between the sixteenth and the eighteenth centuries, theatre was largely dominated by either the Catholic Church or the tastes of European nobility, and most playwrights attempted to appeal to one or both of these audiences. In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, a popular theatre movement emerged and spread from Europe to the United States, including plays written for common consumption and featuring characters that represented the lives of workers and lower-class individuals.

By the twentieth century, popular theatre had become highly commercialized, and large commercial theatres were established in most major US and European cities. While mainstream theatre became dominant in the entertainment industry, with professional actors and professional playwrights, many towns and cities maintained small-scale community theatres in which local, often amateur, actors performed for smaller audiences in relatively low-budget productions.

As the film industry gradually eclipsed live theatre as the dominant form of performing arts in the United States and Europe, the number of local theatres declined sharply. However, public and community theatre companies endure and continue to perform in cities and towns around the world. In the twenty-first century, thousands of theatrical companies in the United States operate annually, producing a variety of productions, from classical works by Shakespeare, Henry Ibsen, and Anton Chekhov, to modern plays by emerging playwrights.

Techniques

There are many different types of theatrical performances, including large-scale productions that generally feature professional actors and community-based theatrical productions that typically cast local and amateur actors with varying levels of experience and ability.

The dramatic play is one of the most familiar types of theatrical production, including many of the Western world's most famous plays. Dramatic theatre explores the drama of human life and the interaction between characters, whether set in modern, historical, or fantasy environments. The drama is considered one of the primary types of theatre productions, and there are many different types of dramas, some of which have elements of comedy. In addition, many famous plays fall into the category of tragedies, which are dramatic plays in which the protagonists of the story are forced to confront adversity that leads to tragic ends.

Another common type of theatre is the comedic play, which tells a story between characters marked by comedic events, interactions, or characters. The comedy is a classical style of theatre that can be traced back to ancient Greek theatre and beyond. Today, many theatre companies produce classical comedies written by the world's foremost playwrights, as well as modern comedic plays.

Musical theatre is a specialized form of production that blends comedic and/or dramatic acting with songs and music. Many of the most famous plays written by American playwrights are musical productions, including West Side Story and Oklahoma!. Both professional and amateur theatre groups may produce and perform musical productions, though this type of theatre demands a certain level of musical ability from actors. Those who land roles in musical productions often need to have a basic singing ability in addition to an acting ability, and may also be required to be able to dance.

Trends

Dinner theatre is a unique type of theatrical production that emerged in medieval Europe, but it has become a chic form of theatrical entertainment in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Dinner theatre combines theatrical production and dining, allowing audiences to enjoy a meal while being entertained with a theatrical performance.

While many dinner theatre productions are passive, with diners simply observing a production while dining, others involve audience participation, in which audience members are sometimes pulled into the production as minor characters. One popular type of dinner theatre is the murder mystery, in which audience members are presented with a crime through the performance of a group of actors. At the conclusion of the performance, the audience members are often asked to "solve the crime" by choosing which of the characters is the guilty party.

Theatre for Fun vs. Profit

Recreational theatre can be an excellent hobby for individuals who have always had an interest in acting, singing, or other types of performance. Those seeking to profit from the theatre have a variety of options. Those with skill in acting may be able to rise from local community theatre to obtain roles as paid performers in larger theatrical companies. Those hoping to become professional actors are advised to research acting programs that offer the potential for actors to obtain contacts in professional theatre companies.

In addition to acting, theatrical hobbyists can earn money by working for local theatrical production companies, helping with backstage activities such as stage setting, lighting, direction, and various theatrical assistant activities. Behind-the-scenes activities can be an excellent way for part-time and recreational actors to earn money while remaining involved with the theatre. Professional actors and theatrical professionals can also attempt to earn extra money by teaching classes in acting or theatrical services through community or professional theatrical companies.

Learning More

Organizations  

American Association of Community Theatre <http://www.aact.org>

The Broadway League <http://www.broadwayleague.com>

International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees <http://www.iatse-intl.org>

League of Resident Theatres <http://www.lort.org>

Books  

Boleslavsky, Richard. Acting: The First Six Lessons. New York: Routledge, 2010. Print.

Cameron, Ron. Acting: Skills for Life. Ontario: Dundurn, 1999. Print.

Konijn, Elly. Acting Emotions. Amsterdam: Amsterdam UP, 2000. Print.

Schreiber, Terry, and Mary Beth Barber. Acting: Advanced Techniques for the Actor, Director, and Teacher. New York: Allworth P, 2005. Print.

Vogel, Frederic B., and Ben Hodges, eds. The Commercial Theater Institute Guide to Producing Plays and Musicals. New York: Applause Books, 2006. Print.

Volz, Jim. Working in American Theatre. London: Methuen Drama, 2011. Print.