Unofficial practice for MTEL Theater (45): playwriting, acting and directing, design and production, theater history, theater education, each answer sourced.
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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson. Bank checked October 12, 2026.
Subarea I: Playwriting, performance and direction 15
A director casts every role with no attention to an actor's race or ethnicity. What is this practice called?Wikipedia, "Color-blind casting", lead and Terminology (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0003
A playwright assembles a script from interviews, newspapers and government reports about a real event, without altering the speakers' words. Which genre is this?Wikipedia, "Documentary theatre", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0001
A rehearsal calendar for a musical lists a Sitzprobe. What happens at it?Wikipedia, "Sitzprobe", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0003
A script has short scenes set to music and a simple moral story, with a hero, a villain and a maiden who has been wronged. Which form, popular in Britain from the 1780s, does it follow?Victoria and Albert Museum, The story of theatre, Melodrama (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0001
An acting class describes how a character moves under four headings: Body, Effort, Shape and Space. On whose work is this movement analysis based?Wikipedia, "Laban movement analysis", lead and Categories of movement (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0002
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Subarea I: Playwriting, performance and direction, continued
An ensemble builds a script from weeks of collaborative improvisation, then performs the piece in a fixed form. What is this method of theatre-making called?Wikipedia, "Devised theatre", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0001
The director Keith Johnstone developed Theatresports in Calgary in 1977. What sets this form of improvisation apart?Wikipedia, "Theatresports", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0002
In a musical, which member of the company understudies several chorus, dance or other smaller roles?Wikipedia, "Understudy", Similar tasks (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0003
In Die Technik des Dramas (1863), Gustav Freytag outlined five sections of a story. Which section comes directly after the climax?Wikipedia, "Story structure", History (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0001
In long-form improvisation, which structure introduces characters and themes and then has them recur in a series of connected scenes?Wikipedia, "Harold (improvisation)", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0002
The Meiningen Ensemble, a German troupe active from about 1860 to 1890, had great influence on Western theatre. What did it develop?Wikipedia, "Meiningen Ensemble", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0003
Uta Hagen taught at the Herbert Berghof Studio in New York and wrote Respect for Acting. What was her most substantial contribution to the teaching of acting?Wikipedia, "Uta Hagen", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0002
Which actor-training system of Vsevolod Meyerhold's relied on motion rather than on language or illusion?Wikipedia, "Biomechanics (Meyerhold)", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0002
Which nineteenth-century genre, developed by the French dramatist Eugène Scribe, is known for concise plotting and a largely standardized structure, with little emphasis on characterization?Wikipedia, "Well-made play", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0001
Why does a production give preview performances before its official opening?Wikipedia, "Preview (theatre)", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0003
Subarea II: Design, production and management 8
A company plans to stage a musical. Which license covers performing its songs as part of the dramatic work?Wikipedia, "Grand rights", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0004
A raked stage slopes upward, away from the audience. How did the rake give the word "upstage" its meaning?Wikipedia, "Rake (theatre)", Upstaging (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0005
A scrim hangs across the stage. How is it lit so that it looks nearly transparent and a scene appears behind it?Wikipedia, "Scrim (material)", Applications to stage lighting (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0005
In the McCandless method of stage lighting, an object is lit from three angles. Where are two of the lights placed?Wikipedia, "Stage lighting", on the McCandless method (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0005
Large proscenium theatres hang a heavy fabric curtain immediately behind the proscenium arch, called the safety curtain. What is it for?Wikipedia, "Safety curtain", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0005
Who has the main job of supplying or raising the money for a theatre production, and oversees its budget and contracts?Wikipedia, "Theatrical producer", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0004
Who oversees a theatre's facilities and the personnel who deal with the audience, such as ushers and ticket vendors?Wikipedia, "Front of house", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0004
Who works with the scenic designer and the director to draw up plans, choose materials and get the venue ready for a safe and efficient production?Wikipedia, "Technical director", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0004
Subarea III: Theater history and dramatic literature 12
According to Aristotle, Athenian tragedy began in which hymn, one that was sung and danced to honor Dionysus?Wikipedia, "Dithyramb", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0006
According to Aristotle, which change did Aeschylus bring to Greek tragedy?Wikipedia, "Aeschylus", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0007
The architect Inigo Jones and the playwright Ben Jonson worked together for James I and Charles I. Which form of festive courtly entertainment did they produce?Victoria and Albert Museum, The story of theatre, The court masque (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0007
Arthur Miller's The Crucible (1953) dramatizes the Salem witch trials of 1692 to 1693. For what did Miller write the play as an allegory?Wikipedia, "The Crucible", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0008
In kabuki, what are onnagata?UNESCO, Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity: Kabuki theatre (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0009
The Moscow Art Theatre, founded in 1898 by Konstantin Stanislavski and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, achieved fame when it staged the major works of which playwright?Wikipedia, "Moscow Art Theatre", lead and History (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0007
Peking opera has four main role types. Which one is the clown?Wikipedia, "Peking opera", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0009
Tennessee Williams coined a term for a play, such as his The Glass Menagerie, in which a lead character narrates events drawn from that character's memory. What is the term?Wikipedia, "Memory play", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0008
What did Britain's Licensing Act of 1737 do to the theatre?Victoria and Albert Museum, The story of theatre, Stage censorship (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0006
Which company, begun in a Massachusetts town in 1915, gave Eugene O'Neill and Susan Glaspell their start?Wikipedia, "Provincetown Players", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0008
Which Nigerian playwright, the author of Death and the King's Horseman, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986?The Nobel Prize in Literature 1986, NobelPrize.org, summary; Wikipedia, "Wole Soyinka", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0009
Which term names the medieval forms of dramatic performance that took their stories from the Bible or the lives of the saints?Wikipedia, "Liturgical drama", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0006
Subarea IV: Theater education 5
A touring company describes its work as TYA. What does that branch of the theatre arts cover?Wikipedia, "Theatre for Young Audiences", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0010
Brian Way founded Theatre Centre in London in 1953. How did he believe plays for children in an educational context should be performed?Wikipedia, "Brian Way", on Theatre Centre (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0010
In opera and musical theatre, what is a libretto?Wikipedia, "Libretto", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0011
In the forum theatre created by Augusto Boal, what may a "spect-actor" do?Wikipedia, "Forum theatre", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0010
Radio drama has no visual component. What does it rely on so that the listener can picture the characters and the story?Wikipedia, "Radio drama", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Theater (45), objective 0011
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test objectives of MTEL Theater, field 45, as the test information guide prints them on the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure website (https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/Content/StudyGuide/MA_SG_OBJ_45.htm and https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/MA045_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-12): 100 multiple-choice questions and 2 open-response items in 4 hours; multiple-choice subareas I Playwriting, Performance, and Direction of Dramatic Works (36 to 38 questions, 30% of the score, objectives 0001 to 0003), II Design, Production, and Management of Dramatic Works (18 to 20, 15%, objectives 0004 and 0005), III Theater History and Dramatic Literature (31 to 33, 25%, objectives 0006 to 0009) and IV Theater Education (11 to 13, 10%, objectives 0010 and 0011), and the open-response subarea, 20%. This bank holds 15, 8, 12 and 5. Every fact was read on 2026-10-12 in the public page named under its question: Wikipedia articles, the Victoria and Albert Museum's history of theatre in Britain, the UNESCO Representative List entry for Kabuki theatre and NobelPrize.org. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
This MTEL Theater practice test asks 40 questions of our own on field 45, from playwriting to theater education. It is unofficial: not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson.
Read the full guide
Subareas and weights
The test objectives give playwriting, performance and direction 30% of the score, design, production and management 15%, theater history and dramatic literature 25%, and theater education 10%, with 36 to 38, 18 to 20, 31 to 33 and 11 to 13 questions. This bank holds 15, 8, 12 and 5.
The clock
With an online proctor, the MTEL site gives 2 hours 15 minutes for the 100 multiple-choice questions. A timed run here keeps that pace: 40 questions in 54 minutes.
What the real test adds
Two open-response assignments carry the other 20% of the score and may relate to topics in any subarea. They are written analyses, so they are not practiced here.
With an online proctor, the multiple-choice section closes at the optional 15-minute break: you cannot go back to it afterward.
Questions and answers
Is there an official MTEL Theater practice test?
Yes. The MTEL site lists a Theater practice test with multiple-choice question analyses, beside sample questions and a sample open-response assignment. This page is separate: its questions are our own, each naming its objective and its source.
How many questions are on the MTEL Theater test?
2 open-response assignments and 100 multiple-choice questions, in 4 hours of testing time. The MTEL site adds that tests may include questions that do not count toward the score.
What is the passing score for the MTEL Theater test?
The MTEL site gives a qualifying score of 240. That score also counts the two open-response assignments, so the number right on this page carries no verdict.
What does the MTEL Theater test cover?
Eleven multiple-choice objectives: playwriting, acting, directing, producing and managing, design, the history of drama, British and other European drama, drama of the United States, drama of other world traditions, theater education, and theater's ties to other arts and disciplines.