A play, or stageplay, is a form of literature written by a playwright, almost always consisting of dialogue between fictional characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than reading. The term "play" or "straight play" is often used in contrast to a "musical", which refers to a play based on music, dance, and songs sung by the play's characters. For other uses, see Literature (disambiguation). ... A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or drama. ... For other uses, see Dialogue (disambiguation). ... A fictional character is any person, persona, identity, or entity that is created from ones imagination or from an adaption of an existing entity. ... Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ... Buskers perform in San Francisco A performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which one group of people (the performer or performers) behave in a particular way for another group of people (the audience). ... This article is about the learning activity. ... The Black Crook (1866), considered by some historians to be the first musical[1] Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining music, songs, spoken dialogue and dance. ... For other uses, see Dance (disambiguation). ...

Many people (especially scholars) read plays for pleasure, or study them in an academic manner. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed or read. So, the term "play" can refer to both the written works of playwrights and to their complete theatrical performance.^[1] George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856–2 November 1950) was a world-renowned Irish author. ...

Richard Monette, who held the longest tenure of Artistic Director at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival (1994-2007), said that plays on the shelf are literature, whereas plays on the stage are theatre.^[2] The Stratford Festival of Canada is a summer-long celebration of theatre. ...

See also

Lists

• List of basic theatre topics
• List of Canadian plays
• List of films based on stage plays or musicals
• List of plays made into feature films

Theatre or theater is the branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, mime, puppets, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed any one or more elements of the other performing arts. ... This is an incomplete list of plays created by Canadian playwrights. ... This is a list of feature films based on stage plays or musicals. ... This is a list of plays that have been made into feature films. ...

Related topics

• Closet drama
• Drama
• Dramatis personæ
• Playwright
• Theatre
  • History of theatre
• Screenplay
• Musical Theatre

A closet drama is a play that is not intended to be performed onstage, but read by a solitary reader or, sometimes, out loud in a small group. ... For other uses, see Drama (disambiguation). ... Dramatis personæ is a Latin phrase (literally the persons of the drama), recorded in English since 1730 but in international use, for the characters in the plot of a play, and is used to refer collectively to the characters represented in a dramatic work (various forms of theater, but also... A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or drama. ... Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ... // Main article: Sanskrit Plays Folk theatre and dramatics can be traced to the religious ritualism of the Vedic peoples. ... Sample from a screenplay, showing dialogue and action descriptions. ... The Black Crook (1866), considered by some historians to be the first musical[1] Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining music, songs, spoken dialogue and dance. ...

References