Page 30 - Thietre Arts

Theatre Arts For Secondary Schools

Spectacle
Spectacle refers to everything the audience see on the stage. It includes scenery,
costumes and makeup. It is the totality of visual elements of the play that apart from
settings and costumes, they also include physical actions of the performers.

Forms of drama
Drama consists of many forms but the commonly used forms especially in Africa
are comedy, tragedy, tragicomedy and melodrama. These are explained as follows:
Comedy
Comedy is a type of drama whose main aim is to make the audience laugh. Its tone
is light and its intent is to make people happy. One of the things that makes it distinct
from other plays is its happy ending. Although comedy aims at making people happy,
the message inside it is always very strong. Comedy is used to warn and educate
people in a much more interesting way. In the comedy world, there is an emergence
of a popular genre that trends in theatrical stages today, known as stand-up comedy.
It is the kind of comedy that is mostly performed by a solo artist who creatively
narrates a plotted scenario that has amusing parts which leave the audience cracking
their ribs with laughter. In rare cases, two or more artists can share a stage during a
single stand-up comedy performance.

Activity 1.7

Search for the Tanzanian stand-up comedies from reliable online sources. Then,

choose one comedian you like the most and imitate his or her actions.

Tragedy

Tragedy is a serious play that ends with a sad note. It is a type of drama with several
conflicts and complications. In tragedy, the protagonist or hero is brought down by
his or her mistakes. Murders, deaths, insanity and pain are the most common features
in a tragedy. Tragedies are used to describe personal and uncontrollable hardships
on the main character, for example, the breaking of marriage, or death of a dear one
caused by the main character unintentionally. Tragic plays always end sadly by the
main character being embarrassed or humiliated.
Tragicomedy

Tragicomedy is a play that combines both comic and tragic elements. It employs both
tragic and comic emotions. It is a serious play that consists of sad moments with a
happy ending. In tragicomedy, the audience experiences serious and comic elements
that make them laugh and cry or happy and sad at the same time.

22 Student’s Book Form One

18/10/2024 18:39
Theatre arts form 1.indd 22
Theatre arts form 1.indd 22 18/10/2024 18:39