Theater, JOL-MAC
There's no business like show business! Nothing quite matches the immediacy and electricity of a live dramatic performance, a fact which may help explain why the art form has persevered from its ancient origins up through the present day. During the 20th century, live theater demonstrated an unexpected tenacity in the face of tough competition from film, television, video, the Internet, and other media.
Theater Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Jolson, Al
Al Jolson was a popular American singer and blackface comedian of the musical stage and motion pictures, from before......
Jon Stewartâs Final Daily Show
After 16 years, Jon Stewart ends his run as host of The Daily Show on August 6, 2015. Stewart took over for Craig......
Jones, Inigo
Inigo Jones was a British painter, architect, and designer who founded the English classical tradition of architecture.......
Jones, Leslie
Leslie Jones is an American comedian and actress known for stand-up comedy specials and screen roles that showcase......
jongleur
jongleur, professional storyteller or public entertainer in medieval France, often indistinguishable from the trouvĂšre.......
Jonson, Ben
Ben Jonson was an English Stuart dramatist, lyric poet, and literary critic. He is generally regarded as the second......
Jouvet, Louis
Louis Jouvet was an actor, director, designer, and technician, one of the most influential figures of the French......
Juba, Master
Master Juba was known as the âfather of tap danceâ and the first African American to get top billing over a white......
Judy
Judy, puppet character, brutalized wife of the hunchbacked...
juggler
juggler, (from Latin joculare, âto jestâ), entertainer who specializes in balancing and in feats of dexterity in......
Juilliard School
Juilliard School, internationally renowned school of the performing arts in New York, New York, U.S. It is now......
Kabuki
Kabuki, traditional Japanese popular drama with singing and dancing performed in a highly stylized manner. A rich......
Kamerny Theatre
Kamerny Theatre, small, intimate theatre founded in Moscow in 1914 by the Russian director Aleksandr Tairov (q.v.)......
Kaminska, Ida
Ida Kaminska was a Polish-born Yiddish performer and theatre manager who achieved international stature. The daughter......
Kanze school
Kanze school, school of nĆ theatre (q.v.) known for its emphasis on beauty and elegance. The school was founded......
Kaprow, Allan
...
Karagöz
Karagöz, (Turkish: âBlack Eyes,â or âGypsyâ), type of Turkish shadow play, named for its stock hero, Karagöz. The......
Kasperle
Kasperle, most prominent puppet character in Germany and Austria, where Kasperltheater became synonymous with puppet......
kathak
kathak, one of the main forms of classical dance in India, other major ones being bharatanatyam, kathakali, manipuri,......
kathakali
kathakali, one of the nine recognized classical dance forms of India, along with bharatanatyam, kathak, manipuri,......
Kaufman, George S.
George S. Kaufman was an American playwright and journalist, who became the stage director of most of his plays......
Kaye, Danny
Danny Kaye was an energetic, multitalented American actor and comedian who later became known for his involvement......
Keaton, Buster
Buster Keaton was an American film comedian and director, known as the âGreat Stone Faceâ of the silent screen.......
Keene, Laura
Laura Keene was an actress and the first notable female theatre manager in the United States. Mary Moss, as her......
Keith, Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin Keith was an American impresario who founded the most powerful circuit of theatres in vaudeville......
Kellar, Harry
Harry Kellar was the first great magician native to the United States. Called the âdean of magicâ and âthe most......
Kelly, Emmett
Emmett Kelly was one of the great American circus clowns, best known for his role as Weary Willie, a mournful tramp......
Kelly, Gene
Gene Kelly was an American dancer, actor, choreographer, and motion-picture director whose athletic style of dancing,......
Kemble, Charles
Charles Kemble was a theatrical manager, the first to use appropriately detailed historical sets and costumes on......
Kemble, John Philip
John Philip Kemble was a popular English actor and manager of the Drury Lane and Covent Garden theatres in London,......
Kemble, Roger
Roger Kemble was an English actor and theatre manager and founder of the famous Kemble family. Kembleâs fancy was......
Kempe, William
William Kempe was one of the most famous clowns of the Elizabethan era. Much of his reputation as a clown grew......
Kern, Jerome
Jerome Kern was one of the major U.S. composers of musical comedy, whose Show Boat (with libretto by Oscar Hammerstein......
Key, Keegan-Michael
Keegan-Michael Key is an American actor, comedian, and screenwriter best known as one half of the comedic duo Key......
Keys, Alicia
...
khyÄl
khyÄl, any of several Hindustani folk-dance dramas of RÄjasthÄn, northwestern India. KhyÄl dances date from the......
Kiki de Montparnasse
Kiki de Montparnasse was a French cabaret performer, painter, and artistsâ muse who acquired her nickname for being......
Kingâs Men
Kingâs Men, English acting company that adopted the name the Kingâs Men after it came under the patronage of James......
Kirkwood, James
James Kirkwood was an American librettist, actor, author, and playwright who, together with Nicholas Dante, wrote......
Kitano Takeshi
Kitano Takeshi is a Japanese actor, director, writer, and television personality who is known for his dexterity......
Klein, Robert
Robert Klein is an American comedian, actor, and singer who, along with Richard Pryor and George Carlin, transformed......
Knievel, Evel
Evel Knievel was an American motorcycle daredevil who captivated audiences with his death-defying stunts. As a......
Kopit, Arthur
Arthur Kopit was an American playwright best known for Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamaâs Hung You in the Closet and Iâm......
Korean drama
Korean drama, television series in the Korean language originating in South Korea. First produced in the 1950s,......
Kortner, Fritz
Fritz Kortner was a famous stage and film actor of the 1920s German avant-garde who, after his return from exile......
Kovacs, Ernie
Ernie Kovacs was an American television comedian. Kovacs created the television comedy variety show The Ernie Kovacs......
kuchipudi
kuchipudi, one of the nine recognized classical dance forms of India. Kuchipudi is indigenous to the state of Andhra......
Kusama, Yayoi
Yayoi Kusama was a Japanese artist who was a self-described âobsessional artist,â known for her extensive use of......
Kushner, Tony
Tony Kushner is an American dramatist who became one of the most highly acclaimed playwrights of his generation......
kyĆgen
kyĆgen, brief farce or comic interlude played during a Japanese Noh (lyric drama) cycle, expressed in the vernacular......
La MaMa
La MaMa, nonprofit institution founded in New York City in 1961 that is a leader in avant-garde and Off-Off-Broadway......
Laberius, Decimus
Decimus Laberius was a Roman knight with a caustic wit who was one of the two leading writers of mimes. In 46 or......
Laliberté, Guy
Guy Laliberté is a French Canadian performer and entrepreneur who cofounded (1984) the acrobatic troupe Cirque......
Lane, Nathan
Nathan Lane is an American stage, film, and television actor, best known for his work in musical comedies, notably......
Lanier, Nicholas
Nicholas Lanier was an English composer, singer, and painter, who probably introduced Italian monody into England.......
Lauder, Sir Harry
Sir Harry Lauder was a Scottish music-hall comedian who excited enthusiasm throughout the English-speaking world......
Lawes, Henry
Henry Lawes was an English composer noted for his continuo songs. Henry Lawes became a gentleman of the Chapel......
Lawes, William
William Lawes was an English composer, prominent during the early Baroque period, noted for his highly original......
Lawrence, Martin
Martin Lawrence is a star who was featured in the hit television sitcom Martin from 1992 to 1997. He parlayed his......
lazzo
lazzo, improvised comic dialogue or action in the commedia dellâarte. The word may have derived from lacci (Italian:......
Ledoux, Claude-Nicolas
Claude-Nicolas Ledoux was a French architect who developed an eclectic and visionary architecture linked with nascent......
Lee, Gypsy Rose
Gypsy Rose Lee was an American striptease artist, a witty and sophisticated entertainer who was one of the first......
Lefuel, Hector-Martin
Hector-Martin Lefuel was a French architect who completed the new Louvre in Paris, a structure that was seen as......
Lemper, Ute
Ute Lemper is a German singer, composer, and actress considered to be the foremost modern interpreter of the music......
Leno, Dan
Dan Leno was a popular English entertainer who is considered the foremost representative of the British music hall......
Leno, Jay
Jay Leno is an American comedian and writer who became host of The Tonight Show (1992â2009, 2010â14). Leno was......
Lerner, Alan Jay
Alan Jay Lerner was an American librettist and lyricist who collaborated with composer Frederick Loewe on the hit......
Letterman, David
David Letterman is an American late-night talk-show personality, producer, and comedian, best known as the host......
Lewis, Shari
Shari Lewis was an American puppeteer and author who entertained and educated children on a series of television......
Lillie, Beatrice
Beatrice Lillie was a sophisticated-comedy star of British and American revues, perhaps the foremost theatrical......
limelight
limelight, first theatrical spotlight, also a popular term for the incandescent calcium oxide light invented by......
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, travertine-clad cultural complex on the western side of Manhattan (1962â68),......
Linkletter, Art
Art Linkletter was a Canadian-born American broadcasting host who was known for his amiable ad-libs and his ability......
Linnebach lantern
Linnebach lantern, theatrical lighting device by which silhouettes, colour, and broad outlines can be projected......
Lion King, The
The Lion King, award-winning stage musical directed by Julie Taymor and adapted from the 1994 Disney animated film......
List of Famous Game Shows
Game shows were first introduced to audiences on radio broadcasts in the mid-1930s, and they have been captivating......
List of Survivor Winners
On May 31, 2000, the first episode of Survivor aired, and the show forever changed American television. An immediate......
List of Television Series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an entertainment-industry juggernaut. Starting with its first film release,......
little theatre
little theatre, movement in U.S. theatre to free dramatic forms and methods of production from the limitations......
Littlewood, Joan
Joan Littlewood was an influential British theatrical director who rejected the standardized form and innocuous......
liturgical drama
liturgical drama, in the Middle Ages, type of play acted within or near the church and relating stories from the......
Living Newspaper
Living Newspaper, theatrical production consisting of dramatizations of current events, social problems, and controversial......
Living Theatre, The
The Living Theatre, theatrical repertory company founded in New York City in 1947 by Julian Beck and Judith Malina.......
Lloyd Webber, Andrew
Andrew Lloyd Webber is an English composer and theatrical producer whose eclectic rock-based works helped revitalize......
Lloyd, Marie
Marie Lloyd was the foremost English music-hall artiste of the late 19th century, who became well known in the......
Locke, Matthew
Matthew Locke was a leading English composer for the stage in the period before Henry Purcell. By 1661 Locke had......
Loesser, Frank
Frank Loesser was an American composer, librettist, and lyricist, who achieved major success writing for Broadway......
Loewe, Frederick
Frederick Loewe was a German-born American composer and collaborator with Alan Jay Lerner on a series of hit musical......
Logan, Joshua
Joshua Logan was an American stage and motion-picture director, producer, and writer. Best known as the stage director......
Lonsdale, Frederick Leonard
Frederick Leonard Lonsdale was a British playwright and librettist whose lightweight comedies of manners were admired......
Lopez, George
George Lopez is an American comedian, actor, and talk show host known for his effusive stage persona and comically......
Lord Chamberlainâs Men
Lord Chamberlainâs Men, a London-based theatrical company with which William Shakespeare was intimately connected......
Lord Strangeâs Men
Lord Strangeâs Men, prominent Elizabethan acting company. A household troupe of Lord Strange, they toured the provinces......
Louis, Victor
Victor Louis was one of the most active of late 18th-century French Neoclassical architects, especially noted for......
ludi scaenici
ludi scaenici, (Latin: âstage gamesâ), in ancient Rome, theatrical performances associated with the celebration......
Lupino family
Lupino family, one of Englandâs most celebrated theatrical families. The earliest traceable Lupinoâwho spelled......
Lyceum Theatre
Lyceum Theatre, playhouse on Wellington Street, just north of the Strand, in the Greater London borough of Westminster.......
Mabley, Moms
Moms Mabley was an American comedian who was one of the most successful Black vaudeville performers. She modeled......
Mac Low, Jackson
Jackson Mac Low was an American poet, composer, and performance artist known for his âchance methodâ style of poetry......
Mac, Bernie
Bernie Mac was an American comedian and actor who parlayed a stand-up comedy act of edgy, autobiographical humor......