Crash Course Theater

Welcome to Crash Course Theater! Are you in drama club? Want to know about the history of theater? Maybe learn some theater history? Have a lot of fun? This is the series for you! We learn about the history and workings of the dramatic arts, together.

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Episode 31, Season 1
Zola, France, Realism, and Naturalism

19th century playwrights remade the French theater – first with Realism, then Naturalism.

12:06
Episode 30, Season 1
Race Melodrama and Minstrel Shows

19th century racism contributed to a unique and troubling performance culture in America.

13:04
Episode 29, Season 1
North America Gets a Theater...Riot

How did American theater develop after the Revolutionary War?

12:07
Episode 9, Season 1
Hrotsvitha, Hildegard, and the Nun who Resurrected Theater

Meet Hrotsvitha: a cool, 10th century nun/playwright who influenced a new era of theater.

11:01
Episode 22, Season 1
Pre-Columbian Theater, Spanish Empire, and Sor Juana

American theater existed before Europeans arrived, and the Spanish greatly influenced it.

11:06
Episode 15, Season 1
Shakespeare's Tragedies and an Acting Lesson

Shakespeare's tragedies had some jokes, and they changed the way tragedies were written.

11:29
Episode 18, Season 1
Where Did Theater Go?

In the 1600s, English theater had to go into hiding, from PURITANS. Enter: WOMEN.

12:54
Episode 16, Season 1
Comedies, Romances, and Shakespeare's Heroines

Let's take a look at Shakespeare's comedies, romances, problem plays and heroines.

10:46
Episode 14, Season 1
Straight Outta Stratford-Upon-Avon – Shakespeare's Early Day

How a young Shakespeare stormed into London's theater – and wrote some pretty good plays.

10:52
Episode 13, Season 1
The English Renaissance and NOT Shakespeare

Let's take a look at London theater and the playwrights who set the stage for Shakespeare.

12:17
Episode 12, Season 1
Pee Jokes, the Italian Renaissance, Commedia Dell'Arte

Painting, music, architecture, and plays with fart jokes were all thriving from 1300-1500.

10:43
Episode 10, Season 1
Get Outside and Have a (Mystery) Play

After European churches changed their minds on theater, drama became an outdoor activity.

11:10
Episode 8, Season 1
The Death and Resurrection of Theater as... Liturgical Drama

As Christianity rose in the west, theater declined. But it returned – via Catholic Mass!

11:59
Episode 7, Season 1
Nostrils, Harmony with the Universe, and Ancient Sanskrit Th

Thanks to Bharata Muni, we can tell you quite a bit about Ancient Sanskrit theater.

12:02
Episode 5, Season 1
Dances to Flute Music and Obscene Verse. It's Roman Theater,

Turns out, Roman theater looks A LOT like Greek theater.

11:52
Episode 3, Season 1
Tragedy Lessons from Aristotle

Let's look at Aristotle's rules for theater, and how they can be used for catharsis.

11:55
Episode 4, Season 1
Greek Comedy, Satyrs, and Aristophanes

How did Greek comedy evolve out of tragedies? And how did that become real comedy?

11:02
Episode 1, Season 1
What Is Theater?

1.What is theater? And 2. Is it spelled -re or -er? The first question is a bit trickier.

13:35
Episode 2, Season 1
Thespis, Athens, and The Origins of Greek Drama

Western theater arose in Athens, Greece from religious rituals – including RITUAL MADNESS.

9:52
Episode 27, Season 1
Why So Angry, German Theater?

After Germany was unified, we got Sturm, Drang, Weimar Classicism and Goethe.

11:09
Episode 28, Season 1
The Rise of Melodrama

In the 18th century, audiences were ready for some really, really dramatic theater.

11:34
Episode 25, Season 1
China, Zaju, and Beijing Opera

Let's discuss wizard theater and the rise of classical Chinese theater and Beijing Opera.

10:51
Episode 24, Season 1
All Night Demon Dance Party - Kathakali

Learn about the all-night dance shows in India that culminate in killing a Demon.

10:13
Episode 23, Season 1
Japan, Kabuki, and Bunraku

Under the Shoguns, we get Kabuki and Bunraku. And Samurais get in trouble for watching it.

11:51
Episode 20, Season 1
Rules, Rule-Breaking, and French Neoclassicism

The French Neoclassical revival involved a lot of rules – and some rule-breaking.

12:40
Episode 17, Season 1
English Theater After Shakespeare

Thanks, Shakespeare! Let's talk about Ben Jonson, revenge tragedies, and court masques.

11:50
Episode 6, Season 1
Roman Theater with Plautus, Terence, and Seneca

Roman dramas lifted stories and characters directly from Greek dramatists like Menander.

11:28
Episode 26, Season 1
England's Sentimental Theater

English Sentimental Comedies weren't that funny, but they were definitely sentimental.

11:37
Episode 19, Season 1
The Spanish Golden Age

Spain was having kind of a moment in the 16th and 17th centuries.

10:40
Episode 21, Season 1
Molière - Man of Satire and Many Burials

Meet Renaissance France's theater greatest playwright: Molière.

11:11
Episode 11, Season 1
Just Say Noh. But Also Say Kyogen

Noh, and its counterpart Kyogen are some of the most revered theater forms in Japan.

12:20

Crash Course Theater

Episodes