Final answer:
The phenomenon of being able to relate to human experiences when observing theatrical performances is called catharsis. It involves a sense of empathy and community among the audience and actors. Theatre enables a unique and immediate emotional response, different every time, making it a powerful and enduring art form.
Step-by-step explanation:
Plays are said to be an enduring expression of significant human experience. We can often relate to these experiences when we observe performances. This is the phenomenon known as catharsis.
The immediacy of theatre's effects on an audience member is part of its power. The empathy we experience towards characters as we grieve, hope, and rage for them during the performance is a result of our investment in the actors on stage.
Theatre is powerful because it grounds itself in universal concepts. It fosters a sense of community, as the audience and performers experience the action together and undergo a common emotional reaction, which differs significantly from the experience provided by films or other media.
Theatre also presents a once-in-a-lifetime experience, as the specifics of a production vary each day, making the emotional response immediate and unique. This unique experience contributes to the long-lasting art form of theatre which has been evolving over two and a half millennia.