An act is a part of a play defined by elements such as rising action, climax, and resolution. A scene normally represents actions happening in one place at one time and is marked off from the next scene by a curtain, a blackout, or a brief emptying of the stage.[1]
The elements that create the plot of a play and divide it into acts include the exposition, which sets up the rest of the story by giving basic information. Another element is the inciting incident, which starts all the action that will follow. Going along with the inciting incident, the major dramatic question is formed, which holds the rest of the play. The majority of the play is made up of complications, which change the action. These complications lead to the crisis, which is the final plot point. At this point, the major dramatic question is usually answered. Finally, the play culminates with a resolution, or the dénouement, where everything comes together and the situation has been resolved.[4] These elements of the plot are the main things used to divide a play into acts and sometimes scenes. In some scenarios, the play may not end with a resolved situation; it may leave the audience on a peak and have a sequel to it, otherwise known as a cliffhanger.
Though there is no limit to the number of acts in a dramatic work, some may have been derived from different interpretations of Aristotle's Poetics, in which he stresses the primacy of plot over character and "an orderly arrangement of parts",[5] and others may have been derived from Freytag's Pyramid.[6]
HistoryEdit
Roman theatre was the first to divide plays into a number of acts separated by intervals. Acts may be further divided into scenes.[7] In classical theater, each regrouping between the entrances and exits of actors is a scene, while later use describes a change of setting.[citation needed]
Modern plays often have only one level of structure, which can be referred to as either scenes or acts at the whim of the writer, and some writers dispense with firm divisions entirely.[citation needed] Successive scenes are normally separated from each other in either time or place, but the division between acts has more to do with the overall dramatic structure of the piece. The end of an act often coincides with one or more characters making an important decision or having an important decision to make, a decision that has a profound impact on the story being told.[citation needed]
Contemporary theatre, in line with screenwriting and novel forms, tends towards a three-act structure. Many operettas and most musicals are divided into just two acts, so, in practice, the intermission is seen as dividing them, and the word act comes to be used for the two-halves of a show whether or not the script divides it into acts.
A one-act play is a short drama that consists of only one act; the phrase is not used to describe a full-length play that does not utilize act-divisions. Unlike other plays which usually are published one play per book, one-act plays are often published in anthologies or collections.[8]
In a three-act play, each act usually has a different mood. In the most commonly used structure, the first act has a lot of introductory elements (that is, who, what, when, where, why, and how); the second act is usually the darkest, with the antagonists having a greater compass; and the third act has a resolution (dénouement), often with the protagonists prevailing.
Act one: The conflict of the story is discovered. The exposition, the introduction of the protagonist and other characters that the protagonist meets, take place,[9] as well as the dramatic premise and inciting incident (the incident that sets the events of the story in motion) occurs approximately halfway through the first act.
Act two: The main character encounters an obstacle that prevents the character from achieving his or her dramatic need. This is known as the complication. The main character reaches his or her lowest point, seems farthest from fulfilling the dramatic need or objective, and seems to have no way to succeed.[9]
Act three: The climax occurs as well as the resolution (dénouement), a brief period of calm at the end of a play where a state of equilibrium returns.[9]
Until the 18th century, most plays were divided into five acts. The work of William Shakespeare, for example, generally adheres to a five-act structure.[10] This format is known as the five-act play, and was famously analyzed by Gustav Freytag in Die Technik des Dramas (Dramatic techniques). The five acts played specific functions in the overall structure of the play similar to that of Freytag's pyramid.[11][12]
A similar five-part structure is also used in traditional Japanese Noh drama, particularly by Zeami Motokiyo. Zeami, in his work Sandō (The Three Paths), originally described a five-part (five dan) Noh play as the ideal form. It begins slowly and auspiciously in the first part (jo), building up the drama and tension in the second, third, and fourth parts (ha), with the greatest climax in the third dan, and rapidly concluding with a return to peace and auspiciousness in the fifth dan (kyū).[13]
^"Resolution". literaryterms.net. January 23, 2016. from the original on August 19, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
^"The Internet Classics Archive | Poetics by Aristotle". classics.mit.edu. from the original on February 26, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
^Freytag, Gustav (1863). (in German). Archived from the original on January 16, 2009. Retrieved January 20, 2009.
^Encyclopedia International. Encyclopedia International. Grolier. 1963. p. 46. from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2020. ACT, major portion of a play. It may have one or more components, called scenes. It derives from the Roman theater, which was influenced by the earlier Greek theater's practice of separating sections of the ...
^M., Dunn, Francis (1996). Tragedy's end : closure and innovation in Euripidean drama. Oxford University Press. ISBN0-19-508344-X. OCLC 896946798. from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ abcCannell, S. J. (n.d.). What is the three-act structure? [Lecture transcript].
^Snuggs, Henry L. (1960). Shakespeare and Five Acts: studies in a dramatic convention. New York: Vantage Press.
^Bunting, Joe (August 22, 2022). "Five Act Structure: Definition, Origin, Examples, and Whether You Should Use It In Your Writing". The Write Practice. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
^Callaghan, Fija. "The Five-Act Structure: The Foundation of an Engaging Story". Scribophile. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
^Quinn, Shelley Fenno (Spring 1993). "How to write a Noh play – Zeami's Sandō". Monumenta Nipponica. 48 (1): 58–62. doi:10.2307/2385466. JSTOR 2385466.
drama, other, uses, disambiguation, major, division, theatre, work, including, play, film, opera, ballet, musical, theatre, consisting, more, scenes, term, either, refer, conscious, division, placed, within, work, playwright, usually, itself, made, multiple, s. For other uses see Act disambiguation An act is a major division of a theatre work including a play film opera ballet or musical theatre consisting of one or more scenes 1 2 The term can either refer to a conscious division placed within a work by a playwright usually itself made up of multiple scenes 3 or a unit of analysis for dividing a dramatic work into sequences The word act can also be used for major sections of other entertainment such as variety shows television programs music hall performances cabaret and literature Contents 1 Acts and scenes 2 History 3 Varieties 3 1 One act plays 3 2 Three act plays 3 3 Five act plays 4 Other media 5 See also 6 References 7 Further readingActs and scenes EditAn act is a part of a play defined by elements such as rising action climax and resolution A scene normally represents actions happening in one place at one time and is marked off from the next scene by a curtain a blackout or a brief emptying of the stage 1 The elements that create the plot of a play and divide it into acts include the exposition which sets up the rest of the story by giving basic information Another element is the inciting incident which starts all the action that will follow Going along with the inciting incident the major dramatic question is formed which holds the rest of the play The majority of the play is made up of complications which change the action These complications lead to the crisis which is the final plot point At this point the major dramatic question is usually answered Finally the play culminates with a resolution or the denouement where everything comes together and the situation has been resolved 4 These elements of the plot are the main things used to divide a play into acts and sometimes scenes In some scenarios the play may not end with a resolved situation it may leave the audience on a peak and have a sequel to it otherwise known as a cliffhanger Though there is no limit to the number of acts in a dramatic work some may have been derived from different interpretations of Aristotle s Poetics in which he stresses the primacy of plot over character and an orderly arrangement of parts 5 and others may have been derived from Freytag s Pyramid 6 History EditRoman theatre was the first to divide plays into a number of acts separated by intervals Acts may be further divided into scenes 7 In classical theater each regrouping between the entrances and exits of actors is a scene while later use describes a change of setting citation needed Modern plays often have only one level of structure which can be referred to as either scenes or acts at the whim of the writer and some writers dispense with firm divisions entirely citation needed Successive scenes are normally separated from each other in either time or place but the division between acts has more to do with the overall dramatic structure of the piece The end of an act often coincides with one or more characters making an important decision or having an important decision to make a decision that has a profound impact on the story being told citation needed Contemporary theatre in line with screenwriting and novel forms tends towards a three act structure Many operettas and most musicals are divided into just two acts so in practice the intermission is seen as dividing them and the word act comes to be used for the two halves of a show whether or not the script divides it into acts Varieties EditOne act plays Edit Main article One act play A one act play is a short drama that consists of only one act the phrase is not used to describe a full length play that does not utilize act divisions Unlike other plays which usually are published one play per book one act plays are often published in anthologies or collections 8 Three act plays Edit See also Three act structure In a three act play each act usually has a different mood In the most commonly used structure the first act has a lot of introductory elements that is who what when where why and how the second act is usually the darkest with the antagonists having a greater compass and the third act has a resolution denouement often with the protagonists prevailing Act one The conflict of the story is discovered The exposition the introduction of the protagonist and other characters that the protagonist meets take place 9 as well as the dramatic premise and inciting incident the incident that sets the events of the story in motion occurs approximately halfway through the first act Act two The main character encounters an obstacle that prevents the character from achieving his or her dramatic need This is known as the complication The main character reaches his or her lowest point seems farthest from fulfilling the dramatic need or objective and seems to have no way to succeed 9 Act three The climax occurs as well as the resolution denouement a brief period of calm at the end of a play where a state of equilibrium returns 9 Five act plays Edit nbsp Shakespeare s plays generally use a five act structure Until the 18th century most plays were divided into five acts The work of William Shakespeare for example generally adheres to a five act structure 10 This format is known as the five act play and was famously analyzed by Gustav Freytag in Die Technik des Dramas Dramatic techniques The five acts played specific functions in the overall structure of the play similar to that of Freytag s pyramid 11 12 Act One Exposition and inciting incident Act Two First major turning point and progressive complications Act Three Rising action and climax Act Four Falling action Act Five Resolution For tragedies a catastrophe is added before it A similar five part structure is also used in traditional Japanese Noh drama particularly by Zeami Motokiyo Zeami in his work Sandō The Three Paths originally described a five part five dan Noh play as the ideal form It begins slowly and auspiciously in the first part jo building up the drama and tension in the second third and fourth parts ha with the greatest climax in the third dan and rapidly concluding with a return to peace and auspiciousness in the fifth dan kyu 13 Other media EditAs part of a television program each individual act can be separated by commercials In film a number of scenes grouped together create a story The three act structure is commonly referred to in film adaptations of theatrical plays See also Edit nbsp Arts portalActingReferences Edit a b Baldick 2004 Turco 1999 Waters Steve 2010 The Secret Life of Plays London Nick Hern Books p 32 ISBN 978 1 84842 000 7 Resolution literaryterms net January 23 2016 Archived from the original on August 19 2020 Retrieved August 17 2020 The Internet Classics Archive Poetics by Aristotle classics mit edu Archived from the original on February 26 2017 Retrieved February 10 2017 Freytag Gustav 1863 Die Technik des Dramas in German Archived from the original on January 16 2009 Retrieved January 20 2009 Encyclopedia International Encyclopedia International Grolier 1963 p 46 Archived from the original on July 24 2023 Retrieved August 23 2020 ACT major portion of a play It may have one or more components called scenes It derives from the Roman theater which was influenced by the earlier Greek theater s practice of separating sections of the M Dunn Francis 1996 Tragedy s end closure and innovation in Euripidean drama Oxford University Press ISBN 0 19 508344 X OCLC 896946798 Archived from the original on November 21 2021 Retrieved August 9 2021 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link a b c Cannell S J n d What is the three act structure Lecture transcript Snuggs Henry L 1960 Shakespeare and Five Acts studies in a dramatic convention New York Vantage Press Bunting Joe August 22 2022 Five Act Structure Definition Origin Examples and Whether You Should Use It In Your Writing The Write Practice Retrieved July 24 2023 Callaghan Fija The Five Act Structure The Foundation of an Engaging Story Scribophile Retrieved July 24 2023 Quinn Shelley Fenno Spring 1993 How to write a Noh play Zeami s Sandō Monumenta Nipponica 48 1 58 62 doi 10 2307 2385466 JSTOR 2385466 Further reading EditBaldick Chris 2004 The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms Oxford Oxford University Press ISBN 978 0 19 860883 7 Turco Lewis 1999 The Book of Literary Terms The Genres of Fiction Drama Nonfiction Literary Criticism and Scholarship Hanover University Press of New England ISBN 0 87451 954 3 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Act drama amp oldid 1169448281, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
