dramatis
Play's named roles
Dramatis appears almost exclusively in the Latin phrase dramatis personae, meaning the characters in a play or narrative.
A theater program's dramatis personae lists the roles and the actors playing them.
The term extends to any cast of characters in a situation: the dramatis personae of the scandal included senators, lobbyists, and one very nervous accountant.
Story's central figure
- antagonistOne who opposes another
- conflictOpposition between parties
- tensionStretched or strained state
- climaxPoint of greatest intensity
denouement · resolution · plot · subplot · foreshadowing · flashback · characterization · arc
Raised performance platform
- scriptWritten words for performance
- monologueUninterrupted solo address
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
- soliloquyDramatic speech to oneself
scene · act · rehearsal · performance · costume · blocking · direction · aside
Unified group or outfit
- troupeTraveling group of performers
- actorsThose playing roles
- performersThose who entertain audiences
- thespiansStage performers collectively
company · principals · leads · supporting · extras · understudies · castmates · ingenues
protagonist
Story's central figure
- antagonistOne who opposes another
- conflictOpposition between parties
- tensionStretched or strained state
climax · denouement · resolution · plot · subplot · foreshadowing · flashback · characterization · arc · backstory
stage
Raised performance platform
- scriptWritten words for performance
- monologueUninterrupted solo address
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
soliloquy · scene · act · rehearsal · performance · costume · blocking · direction · aside · entrance
ensemble
Unified group or outfit
- troupeTraveling group of performers
- actorsThose playing roles
- performersThose who entertain audiences
thespians · company · principals · leads · supporting · extras · understudies · castmates · ingenues · character actors
- dramatic effectHeightened emotional impact
- dramatic characterFictional person performed
- dramatic pauseIntentional silence for emphasis
- dramatic monologuePoem as character's speech
- dramatic languageExaggerated or emotional wording
- dramatic themesCentral ideas in theater
dramatic, dramatize, melodramatic, dramatist, dramatically, dramatizing, dramatizes, dramatization, dramatized