ELEMENTS OF DRAMA
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
STAGE APPLICATIONS
DRAMA TERMS
Drama
A story written to be performed by actors.
– There are several different forms of presenting a
drama; each has a very specific format. Plays have a
very simple format; teleplays, for television shows,
or screenplays, for movies, have more complex and
strict rules for formatting.
– The first dramas to be written for the express
purpose of being performed were created by the
Greeks. Many of our modern drama terms derive
from Greek origins.
TWO BASICS TYPES OF DRAMA
Comedy
Tragedy
In the Greek sense, a play
that doesn’t end in death
and wherein the main
character moves from
adversity to prosperity.
In the Greek sense, a play
that ends with the death
of at least one of the
main characters. In
modern usage, refers to a
play that doesn’t have a
happy ending.
In modern usage, refers
to a play that is humorous
DRAMA TERMS
1. Script – the written text
of a play. Usually
includes a list of
characters that appear in
the play with a brief
description of what the
character is like (Dramatis
Personae), brief
descriptions of the sets or
setting, and the lines the
characters will speak.
2. Dramatis Personae "People of Drama" in
Latin; a list of the
characters in a play,
usually found on the first
page of the script; often
includes important
information about the
character.
DRAMA TERMS
3. Character - as in a story, people or
creatures that appear in a script by
speaking or doing something (the
"something" may be as simple as walking
on stage, then walking off again);
someone in a script who is involved with a
plot
DRAMA TERMS
4. Dialogue – the lines spoken by the actors; in the
script, preceded by the name of the character that
is to speak the words.
5. Monologue – A speech given by a single
character while that character is alone on stage;
also called a soliloquy
6. Soliloquy – In drama (especially
[Shakespearean]), an extended speech by a
solitary character expressing inner thoughts aloud
to him-or herself and to the audience; a
monologue
DRAMA TERMS
7. Aside – A monologue performed by a
character while other characters are on
stage; the information in an aside is not
heard by the other characters on stage, even
though they may be standing very close by;
it is intended to convey the character’s
private thoughts to the audience.
DRAMA TERMS
8. Stage directions – a description (as of a
character or setting) or direction (as to
indicate stage business) provided in the text
of a play, usually indicated with italics and/or
parentheses. May indicate where the scene
takes place, what a character is supposed to
do, or how a character should deliver certain
lines.
DRAMA TERMS
9. Enter – A stage direction – tells the character(s) to
come onto the stage. Often includes a direction (left
or right) or additional information about how
characters are to enter the scene.
10. Exit – A stage direction – tells the character(s) to
leave the stage and the scene. Often includes a
direction (left or right) or additional information
about how characters are to leave the scene.
DRAMA TERMS
11. Act – A major section of a play, similar to a chapter
in a book; an act is usually made up of several scenes
12. Scene – a subdivision of an act; usually, a scene
indicates a specific location or time, and changes if
another location or time is supposed to be
presented. A scene usually ends when all the
characters in the scene leave the stage.
DRAMA TERMS
13. Proscenium stage – a traditional stage
DRAMA TERMS
14. House - The portion of the theater
where the audience sits; the area that is
not the stage