La Traviata: Opera Terms and Plot

Music

• Aria is a vocal piece expressing emotion and showcasing a singer's skill.
• Recitative, in opera, allows a singer to use rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Its main function advances the plot and conveys the characters' emotions.
• Libretto explains the plot and storyline of an opera.
• In La Traviata's ending, Violetta dies in Alfredo's arms after Giorgio Germont arrives to apologize.
• Violetta hosts a party in Act I of La Traviata to celebrate her recovery.
• In Germont's Visit (La Traviata), Germont, Alfredo's father, unexpectedly visits Violetta in Act II/ Scene 1. His visit is to prevent scandal from tarnishing his family's reputation.
• Bel Canto is an operatic style where arias are often broken into two sections, one slow and thoughtful, and one fast and passionate ("Beautiful singing").
• Scene and setting in theatrical production marks the beginning of a new scene with each change in location or time.
• The acts of La Traviata reveal Violetta's changing emotions.
• Vocal techniques in La Traviata, like dynamics and phrasing, express subtle emotions, enhancing character depth.
• In the end of La Traviata, Violetta dies in Alfredo's arms after Giorgio Germont arrives to apologize.
• Color in La Traviata's costumes and set design creates visual symbolism and the full emotional tone of scenes.

Arts

• Balance in Roman Theater is the symmetrical arrangement of seating sections.
• Color in Satyr Play helps establish the mood in satyr play lighting design.
• Black in Medieval Theater was the color traditionally associated with evil characters.
• Balance in Romeo and Juliet is evident in the choreography of the dance sequences.
• Satyr Play is a Greek theater play with comic elements, lightening the overall mood of a serious play with a happy ending.
• Deus ex Machina is a Baroque theater play referencing a god introduced to rescue the hero in a dangerous situation.
• Commedia dell'arte is an Italian comedy and a humorous theatrical presentation by professional players in troupes.
• Religious Rituals are considered the earliest form of theater.
• Romantic: NOT a type of drama during ancient Greek theater, but Comedy, Satyr, and Tragedy are.
• Melodrama is a dramatic work that puts characters in danger to appeal to the emotions.
• Western Classical plays influence Philippine theatrical performance by providing inspiration, themes, and motifs that can be adapted and incorporated into traditions.
• Classical opera influenced the language in Philippine theatrical performances, enriching the vocabulary and linguistic complexity of scripts.
• Filipino Zarzuelas incorporate arias and choral numbers within a dramatic narrative, influenced by Western classical form.