Crash Course
Thespis, Athens, and The Origins of Greek Drama: Crash Course Theater #2
This week on Crash Course Theater, Mike is acting like theater started in Greece. Well, for the western theater, this is true. The earliest recorded drama in the west arose in Athen, and these early plays grew out or religious ritual....
Crash Course
Why So Angry, German Theater? Crash Course Theater #27
Theater had a slow start in Germany, mainly because Germany wasn't really a thing until *relatively* recent times. After Germany finally became a unified state, it had a couple of really important theatrical movements. Today we'll talk...
Crash Course
Hrotsvitha, Hildegard, and the Nun who Resurrected Theater: Crash Course Theater #9
When last we saw Theater, it was just making its way back in the West, by sneaking a little drama into the Easter mass. In today's episode, we're talking about Hrotsvitha, the cool 10th century nun from Lower Saxony who was maybe the...
Crash Course
All Night Demon Dance Party - Kathakali: Crash Course Theater #24
This week, we're headed back to India to learn about the all night dance shows that culminate in killing a Demon (metaphorically): Kathakali! This form arose in the Kerala region of India, and tells traditional Indian stories, but with...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: The battle of the Greek tragedies - Melanie Sirof
The world of modern theater owes its roots to the tragedians of Ancient Greece. As far back as the 5th Century BCE, actors and playwrights were entertaining the masses with intriguing stories. Melanie Sirof unveils the ancient theatrical...
Crash Course
Get Outside and Have a (Mystery) Play: Crash Course Theater #10
Not long after drama reappeared in the unlikely home of European churches, the church decided again it didn't like theater. And so, the budding dramatic scene was kicked out into the harsh elements of the outdoors. So, they started...
TED Talks
TED: Walk with Little Amal, a theatrical journey celebrating the refugee experience | Amir Nizar Zuabi
In a staggering display of creativity and community, theater director Amir Nizar Zuabi introduces "The Walk": a theatrical journey following a nine-year-old refugee girl named Amal (represented by a giant, lifelike puppet) as she makes...
Crash Course
England's Sentimental Theater: Crash Course Theater #26
This week, we're headed back to England to learn about Sentimental Comedies. They weren't that funny, but they were definitely sentimental. The people of England were shaking off the Restoration hangover, and bawdy plays no longer had a...
Crash Course
Roman Theater with Plautus, Terence, and Seneca: Crash Course Theater #6
In which Mike delves into the theater of ancient Rome. It wasn't all gladiators and Christian-killing, you know. There was theater, too. Roman drama drew heavily on Greek drama. So heavily, in fact, that many of the stories and...
Crash Course
What Is Theater? Crash Course Theater #1
Welcome to Crash Course Theater with Mike Rugnetta! In this, our inaugural week, we're going to ask the two classic questions about theater. 1.What is theater? And 2. Is it spelled -re or -er? Well, there's a clue to question two in the...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The origins of ballet - Jennifer Tortorello and Adrienne Westwood
Can you imagine a party where every movement and every visual detail were governed by a complex system of rules and procedures? For centuries, such rituals were commonplace for European nobility. And while they've gone out of fashion, we...
TED Talks
Ben Cameron: Why the live arts matter
How can the magic of live theater, live music, live dance compete with the always-on Internet? Ben Cameron offers a bold look forward to a world where live arts matter more than ever -- to link humans together at a primal level of shared...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why should you read "Waiting for Godot"? - Iseult Gillespie
Two men, Estragon and Vladimir, meet by a tree at dusk to wait for someone named "Godot." So begins a vexing cycle where the two debate when Godot will come, why they're waiting and whether they're even at the right tree. The play offers...
Curated Video
The Magic of the Theater: Exploring the World of Plays and Performances
In this video, Nova takes the viewers on an adventure to learn about the magic of the theater. Exploring the different roles and genres in theater, Nova explains how plays are created and performed live. The video also introduces the...
Curated Video
Movie Palaces: Escaping Hardship in the Glamour of Cinema
The creation of movie palaces during the Great Depression and World Wars provided a much-needed escape for people of all backgrounds. These opulent theaters offered a taste of luxury, allowing ordinary citizens to experience the grandeur...
Curated Video
Starmaking and the Formation of United Artists
In the early 1910s, movie studios began developing the "star system," which created and promoted national stars like Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin. These stars became central to the studios' marketing efforts, leading to...
Curated Video
Unleashing Creativity: Exploring the Power of Imagination
In this video, Lolita the lizard visits the show "Human Nature" to talk about creativity. Lolita shares how lizards express their creativity by changing colors and blending in with their environment. She also tells a story about a girl...
Curated Video
The Cultural Significance of Movie Palaces
For more than a century, visiting a movie palace or attending a theater performance has been a magical and transformative experience. This video highlights how theaters have historically served as cultural hubs where people could escape...
Curated Video
A New Life for Old Theaters as Multi-Use Spaces
The Art House Convergence has become a vital resource for community-based, mission-driven cinemas, fostering a renewed appreciation for independent theaters. Over the past decade, there has been a resurgence in the number of these...
Curated Video
Preserving the Magic: The Struggle to Save Historic Theaters
The decline of traditional movie theaters resulted significant cultural loss, as the shared experience of watching films in grand, communal spaces fades. With the rise of streaming platforms, fewer films are shown in theaters,...
Great Big Story
Rediscovering the glass armonica, the forgotten sound of history
Explore the enchanting world of the glass armonica, an 18th-century invention by Benjamin Franklin, and its unique music.
Curated Video
Theatre Coordinator
Marcel is the Coordinator and Technical Director at the Lake Zurich High School Performing Arts Center. Marcel does everything from building sets and designing lights to "supervising forty kids with power tools". Find out what goes into...
Curated Video
How to Make Animals Shadow Puppets
Use your hands to make animals shadows and amuse your little ones tonight. Look through the video to see how to put your hands together to make shadows look like the following animals: elephant, deer, chicken, bird, crocodile...