Quarto

Refers to the size of a published book created from sheets of paper that have been folded twice. When sewn together along the second fold and ripped along the first, eight pages are produced. In the case of Shakespeare, the word is used of certain printed copies of his plays that appeared during his lifetime, usually in "bootleg" versions (see by contrast the folio edition). Before the advent of copyright laws, publication of plays during the author's life was strongly resisted, as this would have made the works available to rival companies. When such plays did appear, usually against the wishes of the playwright, they often did so in badly corrupted versions. For example, the first edition of Hamlet (1603) is believed to be a reconstruction of the play from memory by the actor who played Marcellus. Much of the text seems merely paraphrased, but the stage directions are probably authentic. The second edition of Hamlet (1604) is more reliable. These two editions of the play are known as the First and Second Quarto (or Q1 and Q2).

Realism

The attempt to so faithfully duplicate the appearance of the real world in art that viewers might conceivably be fooled into accepting the imitation for the thing itself. In the theatre, realism usually refers to a style of production perfected in the nineteenth century, when vast expense and labour were devoted to achieving the kinds of all-consuming illusions that today are more commonly associated with movies. Because the theatre's technical equipment, and the audience, must be hidden from view to achieve such illusions, theatrical realism is often associated with darkened auditoriums and picture-frame or proscenium-arch stages.

Repertoire

Used to refer either, in general, to the sum total of plays that are considered stage-worthy at a given time, or to the particular list of plays that can be readied for performance by an individual theatre company (or performer).

Repertory

A system of scheduling plays non-consecutively by alternating them with other plays from a company's current repertoire. The repertory or "rep" system is very rare in North American commercial theatre.

Restoration Comedy

A genre of witty and sexually uninhibited drama associated with the London theatres in the decades after 1660, when King Charles II was "restored" to the English throne. It was known for its pungent satire, obsession with the habits of the upper classes, and cynical depiction of human customs, particularly the institution of marriage. Also see comedy of manners.

Role-Playing

The pretended adoption of the identity or function of another person. All acting, of course, is a type of role-playing. The impersonation of others is a common theme in drama and appears within the plots of countless plays.

Romance

A dreamlike genre of fiction or storytelling in which the ordinary laws of nature are suspended, in which statues come to life, shipwrecked men emerge from the sea unharmed, and troubled or broken worlds are magically healed at the end, often by daughters, and often in pastoral settings.

Romanticism

A widespread movement in art and culture, beginning in the later eighteenth century, that aimed to throw off the shackles of neoclassicism. Rejecting all rules and rational principles, Romantic art emphasized feeling, stark contrasts, extreme or abnormal psychological states, as well as the inner world of dreams, fantasies, and the supernatural. Natural and untutored "genius" was prized over technical mastery, untamed and "sublime" nature over civilization. Some Romantic poets did produce works for the stage, such as Goethe, Schiller, Byron, and Shelley, but Romanticism in the theatre more often took the form of violently emotional acting, particularly the kind made famous by Edmund Kean. Romanticism also manifested itself throughout nineteenth-century theatre in melodrama and Gothic plays, with their intense villains, brooding heroes, spooky vampires, and dark medieval castles.


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