Research
There was very little research I could do for my documentary as it was an observational documentary meaning I was unobtrusively looking into 'Life in Rehearsal'. However I did do some research into the origins of Western theatre.
The lack of documentary evidence makes it impossible to determine exactly how theatre began, though it is generally believed to have evolved from religious rituals. It is difficult to decide at which point ritual became theatre. The most widely held theory about the origins of theatre is that it evolved from rituals created to act out natural events symbolically, thereby bringing them down to human scale and making the unknown more easily accessible. As part of these rituals, the natural elements were given personalities, which were in turn abstracted as spirits and gods. By wearing masks and moving in certain patterns, individuals could impersonate these deities. The Greeks then developed different genres such as Commedia de l'Arte. Eventually theatre made its way into Western civilisation and for a brief time was only available to those who were rich but soon became one of the most popular forms of entertainment.
Before interviewing I asked the girls how much they knew about the origins of theatre and to my surprise it wasn't a lot. Since Dragons Stage and Theatre School is more focused on the practical side of drama we don't teach the history behind it. However most of them knew that the Greeks were the main founders of theatre as we know it.
The lack of documentary evidence makes it impossible to determine exactly how theatre began, though it is generally believed to have evolved from religious rituals. It is difficult to decide at which point ritual became theatre. The most widely held theory about the origins of theatre is that it evolved from rituals created to act out natural events symbolically, thereby bringing them down to human scale and making the unknown more easily accessible. As part of these rituals, the natural elements were given personalities, which were in turn abstracted as spirits and gods. By wearing masks and moving in certain patterns, individuals could impersonate these deities. The Greeks then developed different genres such as Commedia de l'Arte. Eventually theatre made its way into Western civilisation and for a brief time was only available to those who were rich but soon became one of the most popular forms of entertainment.
Before interviewing I asked the girls how much they knew about the origins of theatre and to my surprise it wasn't a lot. Since Dragons Stage and Theatre School is more focused on the practical side of drama we don't teach the history behind it. However most of them knew that the Greeks were the main founders of theatre as we know it.
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