Final Thoughts

I apologize for the late submission, but I just had to get two-cents in here!
This term has been a very interesting experience for me. I have always had an interest in history and of course I have always loved theatre, but I had never had much knowledge of how theatre developed into the form we're studying.
I'm the type that will always attempt to argue the abstract, even if it doesn't align with my actual opinion. The discussion we had at the beginning of the year was, for the most part, one of those circumstances. I felt that although events which involved spectacle and entertainment could be considered "theatrical", I wouldn't consider them "theatre". Studying the many evolutionary forms of the art and the different ways that they have expanded and developed, has not altered my opinion much... it has, however, widened the spectrum of what I perceive as theatre. A chant, based on religious practices, would not fit my definition of theatre, but, knowing that theatre came from rituals worshipping Dionysus, theatre and choral chanting are much more closely related than I ever would have guessed.
Theatre is incredibly universal. It could almost be used as an example of convergent evolution, where different sects of the same species develop a similar skill at a similar time. Theatre has risen out of a variety of cultural practices, but has always been connected by the elements of storytelling and spectacle. From Europe to Asia, theatre has been a means of communication and entertainment, a way of connecting the masses through story. I'm sure if we delved into Native American culture we would see similarities in several of their practices as well.
The power of communication is one we're all familiar with.  The different styles of theatre are tailored to fit the needs of the society at the time, but it also has the power to influence change (we see this in Shakespeare's age, with the development of his language style). It is both influenced by society and also influential to society. As Oscar Wilde said "life imitates art almost as much as art imitates life".

- Sabrielle