Ensemble cast

An ensemble cast is a cast in which the principal performers are assigned roughly equal amounts of importance in a dramatic production. This kind of casting became more popular in television series because it allows flexibility for writers to focus on different characters in different episodes. In addition, the departure of players is less disruptive to the premise than it would be if the star of a production with a regularly structured cast leaves the series.

Major awards for ensemble casts

Film

• National Board of Review Award for Best Cast (United States)
• Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (United States)

Television

• Gemini Award for Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series (Canada)
• Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (United States)
• Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (United States)

Examples with ensemble casts

Plays

• Cats (1981)
• Glengarry Glen Ross (1983)
• You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1967)

Television series

• Lost (2004-present)
• Heroes (2006-present)

Movies

• The High and the Mighty (1954)
• Airport (1970)

Operas

• Le Nozze di Figaro (1786)
• Cosi Fan Tutte (1790)
• The Barber of Seville (Il Barbiere di Siviglia) (1816)

See also

• All-star
• Polyphony (literature)