notes on pfa 111: theatre origin and development

TARABA STATE POLYTECHNIC NATIONAL INNOVATIVE DIPLOMA IN FILM AND TV PRODUCTION

NOTES ON PFA 111: THEATRE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT By

Kyantirimam R. Ukwen

I. Understanding Theatre

Theatre, driven from a Greek word “Theatron” (seeing place) is essentially a specialized structure or arena with a section for performers (actors, singers etc) and a section for the audience to sit or stand to watch.

What else could Theatre mean?

Aside its definition as a place for performance, theatre refers to the various activities that are performance-related and are staged for an audience. Thus drama, music, singing, drumming, dance, dance drama, masquerade performances etc are referred to as theatre.

I. Understanding Theatre

Forms of Theatre At least four forms of theatre stand out as derived from Aristotle thus: i. Tragedy: – A form of drama that treats serious issues and

in which the main character suffers a reversal of fortune that results in failure or death.

ii. Comedy – A form of drama that is characterized by amusing events that makes the audience laugh. It is fundamentally a light play with a happy ending.

iii. Melodrama - As devised by early Greek dramatists, these styles rely on stock characters and stereotypes to portray stories in an exaggerated way, either tragic or comic.

iv. Drama – is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet etc, performed in a theatre, radio or television. The term "drama" comes from a Greek word meaning “action”

II. Origin of Theatre

How theatre began is hard to state but it is generally believed to have evolved from religious activities. It is even more speculative to determine the point at which rituals became theatre but certain clues lead us to find answers from observing the nature of theatre in prehistoric time. The several patterns of drama and ritual inherent in human activities back then and today.


The figures of cave paintings and engravings in Southern France at about 40,000-10,000 BCE prove these arguments because they depict half-human, half-animal figures. They appear to be dancers wearing the heads and skins of animals, suggesting the early use of mask and costume.


Some aspects of these rituals included personifying the natural elements and assigning them abstract qualities as spirits and gods. By wearing masks and performing certain movements, designated persons could act as these deities. Sacred dances were performed to make nature respond to man’s aspiration - to bring rain, to cause good harvest or successful hunt, and to drive out evil.


In ancient Egypt, religious ritual adopted a detailed form of theatrical enactment. The source of materials for these ritual performances was the several animal-headed gods and the stories of the soul’s journey after death into the other world. Priests were thought to have impersonated the deities by wearing stylized masks and reciting hymns and prayers. Evidence of these are linked to carvings depicting masked dancers, dated at 3500 BCE, have been found in Egypt.


Ritual dramas like this were performed to ensure the fertility of women, cattle, and crops and to endow the spirit of the community and its leaders with vigor for the new year.

III. Western Theatre

Theatre developments follow influences of particular regions of the world and it is shaped by the culture, experiences and aspirations of the people.


Ancient Greece

The first time theatre truly freed itself from religious ritual to become an art form was in Greece in the 6th century BCE when the dithyramb was developed. This was a form of choral song chanted at festivals in honour of Dionysius, the god of wine, fruitfulness, and vegetation. Originally, it celebrated his rejuvenation of the earth; later, it drew on Homeric legends for its subject matter.


Ancient Greece

According to Greek tradition, the actor and playwright Thespis invented the drama when he augmented the chorus of the dithyramb with a single actor who wore masks to portray several different characters. With the possibility of dialogue between the actor and the chorus, more complex themes and modes of storytelling could be developed.


Ancient Greece The Theatre The outdoor setting for performances of Greek drama traditionally comprised three areas: a large circular dancing floor (orchēstra in Greek) on which the action took place and in the centre of which was an altar to Dionysus; behind this, a scene-building and dressing room (skēne in Greek, whence “scene”), a low architectural facade to which painted scenery could be fitted, sometimes on revolving panels (periaktoi); and around the orchēstra, a semicircular auditorium cut into a hillside and fitted initially with wooden benches and later with stone or marble seats.


Ancient Greece

The Theatre

The steep rake and layout of the auditorium enabled audiences of about 10,000 to 20,000 to sit in reasonable proximity to the players. They also enhanced the acoustics. An important stage device used in tragedy during the 5th century BCE was the crane (mēchanē), which served to fly in the gods (deus ex machina) at the end of the play.


Ancient Greece

The Theatre


Ancient Rome

If the quality of theatre is reflected in the values of the civilization out of which it grows, then this is vividly illustrated by the fate of theatre in Roman times. Suffering from vulgarized public taste, a lack of originality, and a preference for spectacle over seriousness, nearly all of the Roman plays were imitations or loose translations of Greek dramas, even to the extent of their being performed in Greek costume.


Ancient Rome

Eventually, after 400 years of competing with chariot races, gladiatorial fights to the death, and the spectacle of criminals and religious and ethnic minorities being torn apart by wild animals, theatre came to an apparent end.

Several factors must be taken into account in explaining why this happened, but perhaps the main reason lay in the way Roman authorities used circuses and public games, at which theatrical performances took place, to divert the public from economic and political dissatisfaction


Ancient Rome

The number of official festivals proliferated. In 240 BCE, when drama was first included, the games lasted less than a week. By the 1st century CE there were 60 days of games throughout the year, and, 300 years after that, 175 days were devoted to games, with plays being performed on 100 of them. Most of these festivals were secular, and theatre soon lost its close ties with religious celebrations.


Italian Forms

In spite of the lack of originality shown by dramatists, there were in Italy a number of native comic traditions that helped to shape the style of Roman comedy. The Feminne verses (fescennia locatio) were bawdy, improvised exchanges sung by clowns at local harvest festivals and marriage ceremonies.


Italian Forms

These are thought to have combined with a tradition of performances by masked dancers and musicians from Etruria to form saturae, medleys consisting of jests, slapstick, and songs. The historian Livy says that in 364 BCE these Etruscan players were summoned to Rome at a time of pestilence to appease the gods with their dancing and music.


Medieval Theatre

During the Iddle Ages, theatre began a new cycle of development that paralleled the emergence of the theatre from ritual activity in the early Greek period. Whereas the Greek theatre had grown out of Dionysian worship, the medieval theatre originated as an expression of the Christian religion. The two cycles would eventually merge during the Renaissance.


Medieval Theatre

Between the Classical and early Renaissance periods, theatre was kept alive by the slenderest of threads—the popular entertainers who had dispersed to wander, alone or in small groups, throughout Europe. These were the mimes, acrobats, dancers, animal trainers, jugglers, wrestlers, minstrels, and storytellers who preserved vital skills that survive in the theatre today.


Medieval Theatre

They also brought a duality to theatre that still exists: popular theatre and the literary theatre were to grow side by side, feeding off and nourishing each other. During the late Middle Ages these popular entertainers found a more secure place at royal courts and in the households of the nobility, where they acted, sang, and played music at their masters’ festivities. The written texts that they developed for performance were, especially in France, literate and often sharply satirical.


Medieval Theatre

When Christianity spread through Europe, clerics had great difficulty discouraging the wealth of local folk traditions that flourished in rural communities. Eventually, the reforming bishops decided that it was better to regulate than to prohibit them, so the church began incorporating pagan festivals into its own liturgical calendar and remythologizing local rituals.


Liturgical Drama

The tradition of medieval liturgical drama stems directly from the mass itself, a complex ritual containing many theatrical elements in its function as a visible reflection of the invisible world. Because it was believed that harmony expressed religious values, an attempt was made from the 9th century to increase the musical effectiveness of the plainsong of the church. Antiphonal singing, in which the choir was divided into two parts, was developed.


Liturgical Drama

Drama themes had their sources from Bible themes like Mary’s Visit to the tomb. During the 11th and 12th centuries, the Nativity, along with other biblical themes, received similar treatment. To accommodate these dramas, the playing areas were extended from the altar to various locations throughout the church. Sometimes scenes were suggested by raised platforms, and machinery was developed to facilitate effects, such as angels descending.


Liturgical Drama

The clergy’s intention of making the key episodes of the liturgy as vivid and accessible as possible to illiterate congregations was so successfully realized that by the end of the 12th century the plays incorporated spoken dialogue, partly in the vernacular.


Mystery Cycles Once the theatre had been moved outside the church, production of the plays was gradually taken over by the laity, and performances were given entirely in the vernacular. The number of short plays proliferated until they were organized into great cycles covering the whole biblical story from the creation to the last judgment, though centering on the Passion and designed to express the humanity as well as the divinity of Christ. Comprising up to 50 short plays, these cycles were sometimes performed over two or three days. These were staged on decorated platforms or wagons.


Mystery Cycles

the factor of entertainment became increasingly important, as this was secular theatre, the religious theme notwithstanding. It was the comic characters, especially the devils and bufoons, who were most popular, and it was here that there may have been an element of professionalism, with the minstrels and jongleurs adding their own skills and brand of humour.


Morality Plays

Morality plays which appeared during the 15th Century were virtually sermons dramatized through allegory. They portrayed the span of human life in abstract terms, with Mankind or Humanum Genus setting out on a pilgrimage in which he encountered a whole range of vices and virtues such as Ignorance, Humility, and the Seven Deadly Sins, all of which contended for possession of his soul.


Morality Plays

The principal themes were the choice between good and evil, the transitory nature of life, and the immediacy of death, reflecting a medieval preoccupation with the conflict between the spirit and the flesh. Such concerns were particularly relevant at a time when trade and finance were rapidly expanding, offering merchants the prospect of great personal wealth and a life of material luxury.

IV. African Theatre

Histo-Cultural Ties in African Theatre

Societies in Africa have rich traditions that border on their history and reflect their beliefs. Each community has unique characteristics that set them apart from others and this is as a result of their history, experiences as a community, historical antecedents, religious beliefs or other social factors. Their indigenous performances are therefore windows through which one can understand the history, vocation, religious beliefs, social concerns and aspirations of the people. In essence it is signature of the community with which it can be identified.

IV. African Theatre

Folklore and Orality in African Theatre Performances

Many traditional African performances exist in unwritten form. The poetic prowess of bards in African tradition and they value they add to the society in preserving history is a good example African oral performance on equal level with many written forms of literature. A bard is a professional poet or singer whose possesses exceptional skills in composing and singing verses in honor of heroic achievements of princes, brave men or significant events.

IV. African Theatre

Form of Performances

In most African religions, the ritual expresses a need to communicate with supernatural forces, especially with the ancestors whose spirits live on. This need for exchange between the supplicant and the gods is expressed through offerings, sacrifices, entreaties and prayers. The structure of ritual space (as marked off by the protagonist) always conveys the desire to bring together the celebrants and those who share the same preoccupations.

IV. African Theatre


The principal objective of this central action is, obviously, the efficacy of the ritual, but artistic arrangement and acting are not completely foreign to it. The dance, for example, despite its religious origin, is not merely physical movement of a sacred nature. Ritual dancers are also creators of beauty in so far as they also stylize their bodies and movements.

IV. African Theatre


IV. African Theatre

Masking

In such traditional ceremonies, for example, the mask is considered the material representation of a spiritual presence assuring the presence of the ancestors among the living. It can symbolize animals as well as humans. The mask, therefore, is an emblem, a sign which is not only used to erase the personality of the wearer, but which also identifies the wearer with an ancestor or a supernatural being. It can also enable the wearer to take in the appearance of a creature belonging to another species while still retaining ancestral connections.

IV. African Theatre

Masking

The mask, in this sense, tells a story, as it seeks out a supernatural past or present that it both directs and invigorates, participating in either the cohesion of the group or as an aggressor in a hostile situation. It should be noted too that the mask does not have to be simply something covering the face, but can include garments which cover partially or even fully the wearer’s body. Always displayed in motion (as dance) the dramatic function of masking is clear in all African communities. When connected to representations of gods, masking also almost always inspires dance and music, elements of social integration and the most characteristic elements of cultural life on the African continent.

IV. African Theatre

Social Perspectives Secular comic theatre arising mostly from folk celebrations also existed and still exists in Africa, especially during harvest times and during family ceremonies. A collective entertainment, these performances’ principal aims were to represent mores observed in daily life. The setting was generally simple and was largely dependent upon the whims of the master of ceremonies and the events being celebrated. Including both men and women and intended for a large rural public, these performances varied from light entertainment to community satire and were characterized by virtuosity in areas such as mime, verbal skills, acrobatics, song and dance

V. Nigerian Theatre

Theatre development in Nigeria is an ongoing experience. Like it was pointed out earlier, traditional theatres have their origin in the religious practice of the people. The feasting and libation are acts of communion and fellowship with the ancestors. Varieties of traditional festival rite among the Jukun, Mumuye, Ndola, Wurkun and indeed several ethnic groups manifests in masquerades, symbolizing the return of the ancestors to visit their descendants in the human world.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Such rituals are manifested in religious festivals of the Yoruba group as the Egungun, Sango, Oro, Obatala, Ifa, Oshagiyan; among the Hausas in form of the pre-Islam and Arabian Bori spirit medium, Saro dance, Dodoo and Yakamanci; the Bornu puppet dance of the Kanuri group; the Mmous and Ekpe festivals among the Igbos; the Egwu festival among the Igala; Akume in Tiv group, Edjo of the Urhobos etc. It also existed as secular forms of Egungun among the Yoruba, Ikaki of the Kalabari, the Kwah Hir puppet dance of the Tiv. These secular forms are purely for entertainment.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Iki Fong performance in Kpambo, Ussa LGA. The masquerade in female form is believed to mediate between mortals and the divine in meeting the desires of the community in fertility of the land and humans.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Dances are often prominent in festivals as some scholars have asserted that music is the pivot around which other festival activities revolve. In most performances, almost all theatrical elements are integrated and freely interwoven. Spectacle is created by displaying of masquerades, puppets, mime and other stylized dances. Costumes, props, choreographic movements and audience create a total theatre experience.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Colonial period

The Colonial period of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century saw the introduction of the European operas in the Lagos colony among the educated elites, and in Abeokuta and Ibadan but it was predominantly European focused but evolvement of the more literary form of indigenous drama started by the secularization of the religious Egungun to become Egungun Alaare (secular masquerades)- a masked performer who is predominately given to entertainment.

V. Nigerian Theatre

The impact of the western culture on Colonial Nigeria led to the evolvement of Alarinjo (touring theater performers) from the masked secular masquerades in the 1940s.This culture combine mine, colorful costume, music, traditional drumming, and folklore. The adaptation of the Alarinjo culture led to the evolvement of professional folk opera troupes. The pioneer of this culture is Hubert Ogunde, other troupes of this era include, Kola Ogunmola, Duro Ladipo, Oyin Adejobi, Moses Olaiya and Funmilayo Ranco.

V. Nigerian Theatre

The rise of these Troupe was influenced by the Christianization of the Western region of Colonial Nigeria, as the Roman Catholic Church introduced a form of theatre which includes hymns, recitations, and farce to portray its messages to a mixed audience of the educated elites and non-educated natives.

V. Nigerian Theatre

The evolution of drama was not limited to the Western region only, as some educated returnees in the Eastern region, unlike their western counterparts, chose to the page drama by publishing novellas which are an adaptation of the Europe classics, Prominent among such include Thomas Orlando Iguh and O.A. Ogali.

By the early 50’s when the nation was caught in nationalistic fever, the drama started becoming more of a page and the arrival of James Ene Henshaw, pioneered this culture

.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Post colonial period

The post-colonial drama culture shifted to Ibadan as early as 1960 among the university based elitists led by accomplished playwright and theater practitioner, Wole Soyinka of the University of Ibadan who was commissioned to write the nation’s independence play he titled “A dance in the forest” other educated playwrights such as J.P. Clark, Ola Rotimi arose around the same time .In 1960, he formed the Orisun theater group and the 1960 Masks.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Post colonial period The formation of the Mbari Club-a cultural center for African writers, artists and musicians by Ulli Beier-a German Jewish Lecturer at the University of Ibadan, in 1961marked the beginning of another phase in the Nation’s drama and theater evolution. Prominent members of the club include Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Okigbo, J.P. Clark, Mabel Segun, Demas Nwoko, Arthur Nortje, South African Ezekiel Mphahlele, Frances Ademola, Sudanese El Salahi among others. This Club also serves as an open air performance venue where Soyinka “The trials of brother Jero” and Clark” song of a goat” were premiered.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Post colonial period

In 1962, Ulli Beier co-founded another Mbari Mbayo club, though with another meaning different from the Igbo ‘creation” proposed by Achebe with Yoruba’s “when we see, we shall be happy” meaning with Dramatist Duro Ladipo and South African Mphalele in Osogbo, where Ladipo staged his plays and mentored other artists like Twins seven, and in 1963, the Eastern region branch of the Mbari club was founded. The prominent playwrights of this period include Wale Ogunyemi, and the first female playwright Zulu Sofola and Tess Onwueme.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Post colonial period The Mbari clubs consolidated the post-independence evolution of drama in Nigeria and together with the roles of Veterans like Hubert Ogunde, Kola Ogunmola, Oyin Ladipo, Moses Olaiya they created a robust drama and theatre culture in Nigeria, but the impact was short-lived with the break out of the civil war in 1967. Post civil war period saw the emergence of radical playwrights with socialist leanings in the late 1970s, a break from the traditional liberal-conservative group of the pre-civil war. Such writers include Femi Osofisan, Bode Sowande, Tunde Fatunde, Olu Obafemi and Kola Omotoso.

V. Nigerian Theatre

Social function to the society

Nigerian theatre has served social function of a mirror to the society, dwelling on themes that trend in the society, pointing out the ills and showing what ought to be done. It has evolved in so many ways through its forms and even though theatre going in its traditional form has dwindled save for academic institutions, a revival in neo-theatre forms is rapidly emerging across Nigeria and accepted by the audience.

References

https://peakng.com/history-of-drama-in-nigeria/. Accessed September 2020.

Ousmane Diakhaté and Hansel Ndumbe Eyoh (No date). The Roots of African Theatre Ritual and

Orality in the Pre-Colonial Period. http://www.critical-stages.org/15/the-roots-of-african-theatre-ritual-and-orality-in-the-pre-colonial-

period/#:~:text=In%20their%20scheme%20of%20things,its%20origins%20lost%20in%20prehistory.&text=It%20is%20to%20rituals%2C%20dances,for%20such%20an%20African%20definition.

Rea, Kenneth Grahamme. Western Theatre. https://www.britannica.com/art/Western-theatre. Accessed September 2020.

Ukwen, K. R. (2018) Dialectics on Changing Patterns in Kuteb Masquerade Performances.

Alarinjo: Journal of Theatre and Media Arts. A Publication of the Department of Theatre and Media Arts, Federal University, Oye Ekiti. Jonathan Mbachaga (Ed).1 (1). 154-166.

Umaru, Philip J. and K.R Ukwen (2017). Feminine Mask and Masking in Kuteb Iki Fong Masquerade Theatre. Banchi: Nassarawa Journal of Theatre and Media Studies, 4 (1). 199-212.

https://peakng.com/history-of-drama-in-nigeria/













http://www.critical-stages.org/15/the-roots-of-african-theatre-ritual-and-orality-in-the-pre-colonial-period/





























































































https://www.britannica.com/art/Western-theatre









notes on pfa 111: theatre origin and development

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