ABSTRACT
Theatrical reality is the opposite from regular, mundane reality. It is compressed in time and space and has a dramatic structure missing from everyday life. To Shakespeare, the whole world was a stage. Reality becomes dream. In the European theatre, tragedy as well as comedy had its origin in the Dionysian Rites of Ancient Greece. Dionysos is the god of fertility, wine, and ecstasy and is associated with disguise and transformation. Actors masquerade as imitators. This duplicity, if executed succinctly, endangers our perceptions and undermines truth. Acting is synonymous to deception, exploits our weakness for appearances over reality. In Rome, thespians were part of the slave system. Even those actors who became favorites of the Emperor were denied freedman status. Production-wise animation has less connection to the legitimate stage than live-action films. But the production process of live action and animated films is based on a similar premise.
