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Chorus
Chorus, in Greek drama a group of actors who stand aside from the main action of the play and comment on it, as in the tragedies of Aeschylus and Sophocles; Euripides made less use of the traditional chorus, concentrating some of its functions in one person who was much more closely concerned with the fate of the protagonists. In the comedies of Aristophanes the chorus performs the same function as in the tragedies, but points the satire of each play by being dressed in some relevant disguise—birds, frogs, wasps—and by being more closely concerned with the intimate and bawdy aspects of the plot.
On the Elizabethan stage the Chorus was the speaker of an introductory prologue, a legacy from Euripides handed down via the Roman closet dramas of Seneca. He spoke either at the beginning of the play, as in Henry VIII, or before two or more acts, as in Romeo and Juliet, Henry V, and, in the person of Gower, in Pericles Prince of Tyre. In the late 19th-century English theatre the chorus was the troupe supporting singers and dancers. They had always accompanied the principal actors in burlesque, extravaganza, and pantomime, but it was not until about 1870 that the ‘chorus girl’ became a player in her own right. At first she was asked to do no more than wear lovely clothes and move gracefully in unison with her companions, often accompanied by handsome but fairly static ‘chorus boys’. By the 1920s chorus girls were wearing fewer clothes and reached a high standard of precision dancing. The men were often dispensed with at this time, but after the Second World War, under the influence of the American musical, the chorus, both men and women, often took a much larger share in the plot. |
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PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Chorus." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Chorus." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-Chorus.html PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Chorus." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-Chorus.html |
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chorus
cho·rus / ˈkôrəs/ • n. (pl. -rus·es ) 1. a large organized group of singers, esp. one that performs together with an orchestra or opera company. ∎ a group of singers or dancers performing together in a supporting role in a stage musical or opera. ∎ a piece of choral music, esp. one forming part of a larger work such as an opera or oratorio. ∎ a part of a song that is repeated after each verse, typically by more than one singer. ∎ a simple song for group singing, esp. in informal Christian worship. 2. (in ancient Greek tragedy) a group of performers who comment on the main action, typically speaking and moving together. ∎ a simultaneous utterance of something by many people: a growing chorus of complaint. ∎ a single character who speaks the prologue and other linking parts of the play, esp. in Elizabethan drama. ∎ a section of text spoken by the chorus in drama. ∎ a device used with an amplified musical instrument to give the impression that more than one instrument is being played: [as adj.] a chorus pedal. • v. (-rused , -rus·ing ) [tr.] (of a group of people) say the same thing at the same time: they chorused a noisy amen. |
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"chorus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "chorus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-chorus.html "chorus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-chorus.html |
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chorus
chorus in the drama of ancient Greece. Originally the chorus seems to have arisen from the singing of the dithyramb , and the dithyrambic chorus allegedly became a true dramatic chorus when Thespis in the 6th cent. BC introduced the actor. First the chorus as a participating actor tied the histrionic interludes together; later, as a narrator, it commented on the action and divided it, creating acts. And as tragedy developed the chorus shrank in size and actors increased in number. Aeschylus began with a chorus of 50, but the number was soon decreased to 12. Sophocles used a chorus of 15. In the 3d cent. BC the comic chorus contained only seven persons and in the 2d cent. BC only four, the tragic chorus having disappeared altogether. The chorus had ceased to play a vital part in the drama; Euripides assigned to it lyrics not necessarily integrated with the action. Ultimately it was dispensed with in comedy as well. |
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"chorus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "chorus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-chorusGr.html "chorus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-chorusGr.html |
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chorus
chorus in ancient Greek tragedy, a group of performers who comment on the main action, typically speaking and moving together; a single character who speaks the prologue and other linking parts of the play, especially in Elizabethan drama.
The word is recorded from the mid 16th century (denoting a character speaking the prologue and epilogue in a play and serving to comment on events), and comes via Latin from Greek khoros. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "chorus." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "chorus." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-chorus.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "chorus." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-chorus.html |
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Chorus
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"Chorus." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Chorus." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300291.html "Chorus." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300291.html |
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chorus
chorus in Greek drama and dramatic pieces modelled thereon XVI; band of singers XVII; musical composition to be sung by this; refrain or burden XVIII. — L. — Gr. khorós dance, band of dancers, choir.
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T. F. HOAD. "chorus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "chorus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-chorus.html T. F. HOAD. "chorus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-chorus.html |
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chorus
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"chorus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "chorus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-chorus.html "chorus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-chorus.html |
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chorus
chorus
•Arras, embarrass, harass
•gynandrous, polyandrous
•Pancras • charas • Tatras • disastrous
•ferrous • leprous • ambidextrous
•Carreras, mayoress
•scabrous
•cirrus, Pyrrhus
•chivalrous
•citrous, citrus
•ludicrous • tenebrous
•Cyrus, Epirus, papyrus, virus
•fibrous • hydrous • Cyprus
•retrovirus • monstrous
•brachiosaurus, brontosaurus, canorous, chorus, Epidaurus, Horus, megalosaurus, pelorus, porous, sorus, stegosaurus, Taurus, thesaurus, torus, tyrannosaurus
•walrus
•ochrous (US ocherous)
•cumbrous • wondrous • lustrous
•Algeciras, Severus
•desirous
•Arcturus, Epicurus, Honduras
•barbarous • tuberous • slumberous
•Cerberus • rapturous
•lecherous, treacherous
•torturous • vulturous • Pandarus
•slanderous • ponderous
•malodorous, odorous
•thunderous • murderous
•carboniferous, coniferous, cruciferous, melliferous, odoriferous, pestiferous, somniferous, splendiferous, umbelliferous, vociferous
•phosphorous, phosphorus
•sulphurous (US sulfurous)
•Anaxagoras, Pythagoras
•clangorous, languorous
•rigorous, vigorous
•dangerous • verdurous
•cankerous, cantankerous, rancorous
•decorous • Icarus • valorous
•dolorous • idolatrous
•amorous, clamorous, glamorous
•timorous
•humerus, humorous, numerous
•murmurous • generous • sonorous
•onerous • obstreperous • Hesperus
•vaporous • viviparous • viperous
•Bosporus, prosperous
•stuporous • cancerous
•Monoceros, rhinoceros
•sorcerous • adventurous • Tartarus
•nectarous • dexterous • traitorous
•preposterous • slaughterous
•boisterous, roisterous
•uterus • adulterous • stertorous
•cadaverous • feverous
•carnivorous, herbivorous, insectivorous, omnivorous
•Lazarus
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"chorus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "chorus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-chorus.html "chorus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-chorus.html |
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