|
Quad (play)
''Quad'' is a television play by Samuel Beckett, written and first produced and broadcast in 1981. It first appeared in print in 1984 (Faber and Faber) where the work is described as " piece for four players, light and percussion" and has also been called a "ballet for four people." It consists of four actors dressed in robes, hunched and silently walking around and diagonally across a square stage in fixed patterns, alternately entering and exiting. Each actor wears a distinct colored robe (white, red, blue, yellow), and is accompanied by a distinct percussion instrument (''leitmotif''). The actors walk in sync (except when entering or exiting), always on one of four rotationally symmetric paths (e.g., when one actor is at a corner, so are all others; when one actor crosses the stage, all do so together, etc.), and never touch – when walking around the stage, they move in the same direction, while when crossing the stage diagonally, where they would touch in the middle, they a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Television Play
A television play is a television programming genre which is a drama performance broadcast from a multi-camera television studio, usually live in the early days of television but later recorded to tape. This is in contrast to a television movie, which employs the single-camera setup of film production. United Kingdom From the 1950s until the early 1980s, the television play was a television programming genre in the United Kingdom. The genre was often associated with the social realist-influenced British drama style known as "kitchen sink realism", which depicted the social issues facing working-class families. '' Armchair Theatre'' ( ABC, later Thames, 1956–1974), '' The Wednesday Play'' ( BBC, 1964–1970) and ''Play for Today'' (BBC, 1970–1984) received praise from critics for their quality. ''Armchair Theatre'': 1956–1974 ''Armchair Theatre'' was a British television drama anthology series, which ran on the ITV network from 1956 until 1968 in its original form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Woodblock (instrument)
A woodblock (also spelled as two words, wood block) is a small slit drum made from a single piece of wood. The term generally signifies the Western orchestral instrument, though it is descended from the Chinese woodblock. Alternative names sometimes used in ragtime and jazz are clog box and tap box. In orchestral music scores, woodblocks may be indicated by the French ''bloc de bois'' or ''tambour de bois'', German ''Holzblock'' or ''Holzblocktrommel'', or Italian ''cassa di legno''. The orchestral woodblock of the West is generally made from teak or another hardwood. The dimensions of this instrument vary, although it is either a rectangular or cylindrical block of wood with one or sometimes two longitudinal cavities. It is played by striking it with a stick, which produces a sharp crack. Alternatively, a rounder mallet, soft or hard, may be used, which produces a deeper-pitched and fuller "knocking" sound. On a drum kit, a woodblock is traditionally mounted on a clamp fixed t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swamp
A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in creating this environment. Swamps vary in size and are located all around the world. The water of a swamp may be fresh water, brackish water, or seawater. Freshwater swamps form along large rivers or lakes where they are critically dependent upon rainwater and seasonal flooding to maintain natural water level fluctuations.Hughes, F.M.R. (ed.). 2003. The Flooded Forest: Guidance for policy makers and river managers in Europe on the restoration of floodplain forests. FLOBAR2, Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 96 p. Saltwater swamps are found along tropical and subtropical coastlines. Some swamps have hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodic inu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alligator
An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additionally, several extinct species of alligator are known from fossil remains. Alligators first appeared during the Oligocene epoch about 37 million years ago. The name "alligator" is probably an anglicized form of ', the Spanish term for "the lizard", which early Spanish explorers and settlers in Florida called the alligator. Later English spellings of the name included ''allagarta'' and ''alagarto''. Evolution Alligators and caimans split in North America during the early Tertiary or late Cretaceous (about 53 million to about 65 million years ago). The Chinese alligator split from the American alligator about 33 million years ago and probably descended from a lineage that crossed the Bering land bridge during the Neogene. The moder ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Videotape
Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocassette recorders (VCRs) and camcorders. Videotapes have also been used for storing scientific or medical data, such as the data produced by an electrocardiogram. Because video signals have a very high bandwidth, and stationary heads would require extremely high tape speeds, in most cases, a helical-scan video head rotates against the moving tape to record the data in two dimensions. Tape is a linear method of storing information and thus imposes delays to access a portion of the tape that is not already against the heads. The early 2000s saw the introduction and rise to prominence of high-quality random-access video recording media such as hard disks and flash memory. Since then, videotape has been increasingly relegated to archival and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Film (film)
''Film'' is a 1965 short film written by Samuel Beckett, his only screenplay. It was commissioned by Barney Rosset of Grove Press. Writing began on 5 April 1963 with a first draft completed within four days. A second draft was produced by 22 May and a 40-leaf shooting script followed thereafter. It was filmed in New York City in July 1964. Beckett and Alan Schneider originally wanted Charlie Chaplin, Zero Mostel and Jack MacGowran, however they eventually did not get involved. Beckett then suggested Buster Keaton.Schneider, A., On Directing Samuel Beckett’s Film' Explains Schneider: "During a transatlantic call one day (as I remember) he shattered our desperation over the sudden casting crisis by calmly suggesting Buster Keaton." In print: Schneider, "On Directing ''Film''" (Grove, 1969), 67. James Karen, who was to have a small part in the film, also supported having Keaton.According to Karen, he had urged Schneider to consider the 68-year-old Keaton when MacGowran’s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Split Screen (film)
In film and video production, split screen is the visible division of the screen, traditionally in half, but also in several simultaneous images, rupturing the illusion that the screen's frame is a seamless view of reality, similar to that of the human eye. There may or may not be an explicit borderline. Until the arrival of digital technology, a split screen in films was accomplished by using an optical printer to combine two or more actions filmed separately by copying them onto the same negative, called the composite. In filmmaking split screen is also a technique that allows one actor to appear twice in a scene. The simplest technique is to lock down the camera and shoot the scene twice, with one "version" of the actor appearing on the left side, and the other on the right side. The seam between the two splits is intended to be invisible, making the duplication seem realistic. Influences An influential arena for the great split screen movies of the 1960s were two world's f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slow Motion
Slow motion (commonly abbreviated as slo-mo or slow-mo) is an effect in film-making whereby time appears to be slowed down. It was invented by the Austrian priest August Musger in the early 20th century. This can be accomplished through the use of high-speed cameras and then playing the footage produced by such cameras at a normal rate like 30 fps, or in post production through the use of software. Typically this style is achieved when each film frame is captured at a rate much faster than it will be played back. When replayed at normal speed, time appears to be moving more slowly. A term for creating slow motion film is overcranking which refers to hand cranking an early camera at a faster rate than normal (i.e. faster than 24 frames per second). Slow motion can also be achieved by playing normally recorded footage at a slower speed. This technique is more often applied to video subjected to instant replay than to film. A third technique uses computer software post-processing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freeze Frame Shot
In film and video, a freeze frame is when a single frame of content shows repeatedly on the screen—"freezing" the action. This can be done in the content itself, by printing (on film) or recording (on video) multiple copies of the same source frame. This produces a static shot that resembles a still photograph. ''Freeze frame'' is a term in live stage performance, for a technique in which actors freeze at a particular point to enhance a scene or show an important moment in production. Spoken word may enhance the effect, with a narrator or one or more characters telling their personal thoughts regarding the situation. Examples Film *The first known freeze frame was in director Alfred Hitchcock's 1928 film ''Champagne''. *An early use of the freeze frame in classic Hollywood cinema was Frank Capra's 1946 Christmas film ''It's A Wonderful Life'' where the first appearance of the adult George Bailey (played by James Stewart) on-screen is shown as a freeze frame. *A memorable free ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Close-up
A close-up or closeup in filmmaking, television production, photography, still photography, and the comic strip medium is a type of shot (filmmaking), shot that tightly film frame, frames a person or object. Close-ups are one of the standard shots used regularly with medium and long shots (cinematic techniques). Close-ups display the most detail, but they do not include the broader scene. Moving toward or away from a close-up is a common type of zooming (filmmaking), zooming. A close up is taken from head to neck, giving the viewer a detailed view of the subject's face. History Most early filmmakers, such as Thomas Edison, Auguste and Louis Lumière and Georges Méliès, tended not to use close-ups and preferred to frame their subjects in long shots, similar to the stage. Film historians disagree as to the filmmaker who first used a close-up. One of the best claims is for George Albert Smith (film pioneer), George Albert Smith in Hove, who used medium close-ups in films as earl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Schneider
Alan Schneider (December 12, 1917 – May 3, 1984) was an American theatre director responsible for more than 100 theatre productions. In 1984 he was honored with a Drama Desk Special Award for serving a wide range of playwrights. He directed the 1956 American premiere of Samuel Beckett's '' Waiting for Godot'', Edward Albee's ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' and ''Tiny Alice''; the American première of Joe Orton's ''Entertaining Mr Sloane'', Harold Pinter's '' The Birthday Party'', as well as Pinter's ''The Dumb Waiter'', '' The Collection'', and a trilogy of Pinter's plays under the title ''Other Places'' (including '' One for the Road'', '' Family Voices'', and ''A Kind of Alaska''); Bertolt Brecht's ''The Caucasian Chalk Circle''; ''You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running''; and Michael Weller's '' Moonchildren'' and ''Loose Ends''. Schneider also directed Samuel Beckett's only direct foray into the world of film, entitled '' Film''. The short subject st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Journal Of Beckett Studies
The ''Journal of Beckett Studies'' publishes academic articles relating to the work of Samuel Beckett, (1906–1989), the Irish poet, dramatist and playwright. Published twice yearly by Edinburgh University Press in April and September, it was established in 1976, under the editorship of John Pilling and James Knowlson. It was edited from 1989 by Stan Gontarski and is now edited by Mark Nixon (University of Reading) and Dirk Van Hulle (University of Antwerp The University of Antwerp ( nl, Universiteit Antwerpen) is a major Belgian university located in the city of Antwerp. The official abbreviation is ''UA'', but ''UAntwerpen'' is more recently used. The University of Antwerp has about 20,000 stud ...). Each issue contains an introduction, essays or notes, review essays and reviews of books and performances. The journal alternates between themed issues overseen by guest editors, and general issues. References External links * The Samuel Beckett SocietyBeckett Inte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_(cropped).jpg "Click for more on -> Close-up")