Fighting Theatre
Forget other kinds of theatre - they all end the same way every time.
Now, the fighting theatre is a completely different deal - sometimes the hero wins, other times the villain might seize the day. The spectators even bet on who will win, hoping their favorite actor won't get too wounded to be in another play.
The Fighting Theatre is a very Vulborish art form, combining acting and fighting into a piece of art.
History
Nobody really knows when Fighting Theatre first became a part of the Vulborish culture, but the idea had already been experimented with when Eternal Chieftain Kalsad claimed Vulborim as his. It's safe to say that it has been part of Vulborish culture for at least two millennia.
The execution has staid more or less the same since the very beginning. One big change that has happened is that sharp weapons aren't allowed anymore since at one point there weren't enough actors to keep the Fighting Theatre running. Another change was when female actors were banned from the Theatre back when females lost most of their rights in Vulborish society, along with all Fighting Theatre plays depicting women in a positive light.
Execution
The stage has fewer props than ordinary theatre. This has a practical reason since props would be in the way during the fighting - and the Fighting Theatre has a lot of fighting. The spectators are behind a wall, separated from the stage for their own safety.
Fighting Theatre plays have scripts, albeit short scripts, which are built up with a short introductory drama followed by the fight itself. After the fight, there is a short epilogue written in two versions. Which version that's played out is depending on who wins the actual fight.
The fight itself isn't scripted, even when the play is based on a legend or a historical event with one clear winner. This makes every new performance a unique experience bringing the same people back over and over again.
All roles that join in the fighting part of the play have at least one understudy in case the main actor gets critically hurt during the fight. No tradition based on violence will be without any injuries or deaths, after all, and having to cancel a show would make the spectators displeased. All Fighting Theatre actors know this risk, though, yet still they want to take part. The glory and adrenaline of the fight is drawing them in.
Betting Among Spectators
Being a Fighting Theatre actor doesn't pay too well. To compensate against the low pay the venue arrange bets among the spectators on who will win the fight. The winner will get a percentage of the collected pot, and the rest will be divided between the spectators who bet on the winner of the fight, the amount based on how much they bet.
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