Theatre in Society [1 ed.] 9781792472657

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we THEATRE IN SOCIETY

Kennesaw State University Department of Theatre & Performance Studies

THEATRE IN SOCIETY

Kennesaw State University Department of Theatre and Performance Studies

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CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1

Performance Studies

CHAPTER

2

Roots of Theatre

CHAPTER

3

Acting

CHAPTER

4

Directing

CHAPTER

5

Theatrical Design

CHAPTER

6

Dramaturgy & Stage Management

CHAPTER

7

The Playwright

CHAPTER

8

Musical Theatre

CHAPTER

9

Global Theatre

iii

CHAPTER

Performance

HUMAN

COMMUNICATION

1

Studies

AS PERFORMANCE

All human communication is an act of performance, In its most general sense, performance is the execution of an action. Performance also provides some language or vocabulary that helps explain how people communicate. To illustrate this viewpoint, we might follow a hypothetical student, Eric, through a typical day to see if we can understand his behavior in performance terms. Eric begins the morning by getting ready for school. He goes for his daily run, eats breakfast, showers, and gets dressed. With each of these activities we could view him as preparing for the performances that he will engage in during the day. He assesses how his body performs and then judges whether his clothing is a suitable costume for the roles he will have to play that day. Eric’s actions so far are private or backstage, “warm-ups” for the day’s activities, After leaving the house, Eric drives to school, In doing so, he follows the rules of the road,

playing the role, perhaps unconsciously, of a private citizen obeying the law. Once at school, Eric plays the familiar role of student in a series of classes. He turns off his cell phone and recognizes that his instructors have expectations about the language students should use in the classroom. In his second class, Eric wants to make a point and rehearses in his own mind what he plans to say. When the instructor calls on him, however, the rehearsal fails to pay off. Eric blows his lines by saying something he did not intend. Throughout the day, Eric encounters various friends. Playing the role of friend, Eric’s language becomes more casual, less carefully planned than in the classroom. Eric recognizes that his friends view him in a variety of ways—as witty, attentive, distant, supportive, and so on. His perception of

From Performance Studies: The Interpretation of Aesthetic Texts, Second Edition, by RonaldJ. Petias and Tracy Steph by Kendall Hunt Pubishing Company. Reprinted by permission,

Shaffer.

Copyright

© 2007

their views feeds into how Eric sees himself. By talking with his friends, he comes to realize that they look at him in certain ways and expect certain behaviors from him. They anticipate that Eric will engage in certain scripts, and Eric is more likely than not to fulfill their expectations. Eric also realizes that his talk is, in part, determined by how he perceives each of his friends.

With some friends, he typically enjoys intense discussions about political issues; with others, he often reflects upon past high school days. Eric and his friends, then, take on the role of friend or

audience for each other, selecting language that is appropriate to the role. They decide on scripts to present in each other's presence and they understand, to some extent, why they present them in certain contexts. After school, Eric goes to his part-time job at McDonald’s. He is quite aware that much of his behavior at work has been carefully scripted and that the restaurant has been thoughtfully designed for maximum efficiency and economy. The manager insists that Eric greet customers with the standard line, “May I help you?”, that Eric always respond to a request for “a small order of fries” with the gentle corrective, “Regular?”, that Eric present himself as friendly and polite, and so on. The boldly printed menu above the cashiers’ heads, drive-up window, napkin dispensers, food trays, and trash receptacles are set pieces and props designed to move customers through their meals with speed. Even the tile flooring, the plastic chairs, and the brightly painted walls encourage customers to eat quickly and leave, Eric starts home after his shift at work. On the way, he stops at the grocery store to buy a few things. Here he plays the role of customer, exchanging a few socially scripted words with the cashier: Eric:

Hi, how are you?

Cashier:

Fine, thanks. (Rings up groceries.) That will be $5.87. Thanks for shopping at_______. (Returns change.)

Eric:

Thank you. Have a nice night.

Cashier:

You too.

Both Eric and the cashier know that the most efficient way to complete the transaction is to stick to their predictable, socially-set lines. Once home, Eric greets his roommate. They share stories of interest from the day’s events. They both play the role of storyteller and, in so doing, decide what is worth telling and how they might best tell it. In the telling, they make sense of their world, not only for each other, but also for themselves. Soon, Eric begins to unwind from his performances of the day, He takes off his shoes and collapses in his favorite chair. Eric’s performances are once again private, done for himself, and judged by himself. This brief sketch of Eric’s day suggests that there is considerable power in conceiving of human communication as performance. Performance, as a model for explaining human action, specifies how people communicate with themselves and one another. The example of Eric’s day helps clarify this line of thinking in several ways. First, all communicative acts are performances, done on various private or public stages. When people speak, they do so within a particular situation. Eric’s speech is influenced by the contexts in which he finds himself. Eric speaks differently, for instance, in class and at work. Eric, then, performs upon various stages—settings that influence his talk.

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Second, all communication is motivated by individual desires. Human actions carry specific intentions and are driven by conscious and unconscious thoughts and feelings. When Eric speaks to his roommate, he has particular goals or aims. Maybe he wants his roommate to do more of the chores around the apartment,or maybe he wishes that his roommate would stop studying and join him at a party next door, More generally, he may hope that his actions appear warm and considerate, that his stories seem witty and entertaining, that his talk sounds intelligent, and so on. Eric’s communication, then, is not random; it is motivated, propelled by his desires and intentions. Third, all communication is scripted by (1) cultural and linguistic expectations, and the unique

characteristics of each individual speaker. People are both products and producers of their culture. They follow established principles or conventions for using language and participating in their culture and, at the same time, generate their own talk, placing their individual stamp on

what they say. Eric’s speech reflects his membership in a particular community, a social group that has contributed significantly to who Eric is. Eric knows what is expected of him if he wishes to follow the “rules” of his culture. Eric is also a unique individual, capable of creating his own talk, his own original scripts. His contributions in part define his culture. As a participating cultural member, Eric communicates with others and, in so doing, helps determine how his culture might be understood. Fourth, all communication is a process in which people create meaning. In trying to communicate their thoughts and feelings through language, people most often feel they can use language effectively enough to make others understand them. When Eric speaks to his instructors, his friends, and others, he trusts that he can translate his thoughts and feelings into clear speech, a process of putting his meaning into spoken language. What Eric decides to say is also an indication, implicitly or explicitly, of what he thinks is worth saying. In this sense, all of Eric’s statements are statements of value. As Eric considers his feelings and observations, he selects what he believes merits speech. Finally, all communication is open to interpretation. Eric's talk is interpreted by others to express certain meanings and values. Perhaps Eric and those with whom he communicates share a similar sense of what Eric says. Or perhaps a considerable discrepancy exists between what Eric believes he said and what others think Eric means. In short, sometimes others see Eric as a successful communicator, and sometimes they do not. All communication, then, is an interpretive

process in which people attribute meaning and value to speech. It should be clear that to think of human communication as performance is to reject the stereotypic, negative connotations sometimes associated with performance. To perform in the presence of others is not a means of hiding one’s “real self.” It is not a question of concealing who one really is behind a number of public roles. The root of performance is to make, to do—not to fake. Performance is a process in which individuals display and create themselves through the roles they elect to portray. One's “real self” is a composite of all these roles. People are what they do. They define themselves by their actions and by their talk. Thus, we might best classify humankind, not as homo sapiens, the intelligent species, but as homo histrio, the performing species.” This label suggests that people fundamentally are performing creatures (istrio) who engage in an ongoing process of giving speech to their thoughts and feelings. Through the act of performing, people make their lives meaningful and continuously define and redefine themselves in the presence of others.

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3

EVERYDAY STORYTELLING Stories shape our lives. The stories that get told, remembered, and even recorded influence how we see ourselves and others, how we understand our communities and our roles in them, and how we might proceed into the future. The next section focuses on these stories, usually oral in nature,

and their prevalence in our everyday private lives. We look at stories we might tell as well as those stories told to us by others. Finally, we explore methods for collecting and creating aesthetic performances of these stories to be shared in public. The Stories We Tell One thing we all have in common is stories. We tell stories and have stories to tell, and others tell stories to us and have stories to tell about us. Stories are a routine part of our everyday lives. As Eric’s day comes to a close, he chooses and shares stories of the day’s events with his roommate,

Sean. In this way, Eric offers what he deems amusing, exceptional, or significant in his life. By choosing to narrate certain moments in his day, he makes these moments even more important he selects and frames these moments for further consideration. Sean, then, becomes an audi-

ence for the story. His reaction to the story communicates the story's potential power to Eric. Depending on Sean's response to the story, Eric may alter it for future tellings. For example, he may exaggerate a portion Sean found funny or edit language Sean considered offensive. In addition, if Sean finds the story to have some value, he may adopt the story and tell the story to others as well, emphasizing those elements he found to be important. For example, Eric may tell Sean a story about an interaction he had with his girlfriend, Rachel, to communicate what a good boyfriend he is. In the story, Eric proudly describes doing Rachel's laundry so she could study for a difficult test. From Sean's perspective, however, the story portrays Eric as a pushover. Sean, then, tells the story to others to communicate what of to do in a relationship. Thus, the tone and theme

of the story change substantially in just one telling. By telling the story in the first place, Eric relinquishes some control over its telling and releases it into the world. This extended example highlights many qualities of everyday storytelling. The transactions between Eric, Rachel, Sean, and Eric and Sean's future audiences render stories as dynamic, communal, and aesthetic artifacts of culture. We will elaborate on these terms. First, stories are

dynamic; they are always changing. These changes include the details, theme, and tone of the story, the audience and context of the tellings, and the tellers. The story in our example faces many potential changes. As suggested, depending on Sean's response to Eric's first telling of the story, Eric may alter several details. He may exaggerate certain segments or edit certain words. These changes are minor; however, once Sean tells Eric’s story to his chosen audience, the theme and tone of the story shifts entirely causing major changes to the story. In addition, if Eric tells the story in a future setting to another audience, the theme and tone may change as well. A casual story of a simple interaction between boyfriend and girlfriend may become an emotional story representing a relationship that lasted a lifetime. Rachel, for instance, may narrate the event as the first time she knew she loved Eric. The dynamic nature of stories contributes to their power. Some stories are told once and forgotten, but others become significant markers of life events. Stories, then, are often malleable enough to serve many tellers and situations and may even become a rallying point for communities.

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Second, stories are communal; stories not only shape community but are shaped by community. To be specific, stories are not created in a vacuum. Stories are usually about one’s experiences in the world and interactions with others. Our perceptions of events are influenced by those around us, and in turn, influence how we narrate those events. In our example, Eric’s interaction

with Rachel is an important component of his day. We know this because he chooses to tell Sean a story about this interaction over many other daily interactions. We also know that Sean is a valu-

able audience member in Eric's eyes. Whether Sean's presence as a roommate is convenient or not, Eric decides to engage him with a story. Eric could just as easily keep the story to himself. In this way, the story further links Eric and Rachel, as well as Eric and Sean. In addition, the story may shape how Sean perceives Eric and Rachel as well as their relationship, and Sean's reaction to the story may influence Eric’s future interactions with both Rachel and Sean. In a broader stroke, the

story also has potential to define relationships for a generation of its listeners. The possibilities of one story's impact on a community are infinite. In any case, a story is created and exists in a world inhabited by people who understand themselves through stories. Third, stories are aesthetic artifacts; they are extraordinary units of ordinary talk that employ heightened communication and often aspire toward art. A story is extraordinary in that it has already been selected as special out of the myriad of events in one’s day, experience, or life. We do not narrate everything that happens to us. Even the most observant and talkative among us would find this impossible. Thus, we tell stories.We select moments from daily living to represent

our lives. Stories are past events told in the present and sometimes saved for the future. While a conversation exists in the present tense, stories are almost always told in the past tense.As such, a

story may be lifted from ordinary conversation and used multiple times in multiple settings. These settings may range from a private conversation with another to a more public event like a lecture or family gathering. In each telling, the story is edited and enhanced for the audience at hand. After many tellings, the story becomes skillfully crafted and told, often achieving artistic status for its audience, and probably attaining repetitive, predictable qualities. In this way, the story also becomes a cultural artifact. Meaning literally “something made by skill or craft,” artifacts distinguish themselves from other cultural forms, according to Barbara Babcock, “by their tangible sustainability and relative imperishability.”’ Stories as artifacts become valuable and persistent objects in culture communicating the past and informing the future.

Myths, Legends, and Folktales The last section focused on everyday stories that originate with one teller and function as dynamic, communal, and aesthetic artifacts of culture. Other types of storics, however, cannot be traced to

one teller. Rather, certain stories are collective creations belonging to particular communities at a particular time. These stories institute group traditions and values through narrated events which may or may not be true. We might call these types of stories myths, legends, or folktales. According to folklore professor Dan Ben-Amos, these kinds of oral narratives distinguish themselves in their relationship to truth and reality. While myths and legends usually have some basis in truth, folktales (closely related to fairytales) generally are inherently untrue, While Ben-Amos admits that these categories are not discrete or universal, all of these types of stories embody certain beliefs and customs from the culture in which they emerge.‘ Even though some element in the story may engender disbelief, listeners should attend to the tale nevertheless for all the truth it holds. We provide definitions and examples of each using Ben-Amos' classification system. CHAPTER 1

Performance Studies

5

A myth is believed to be true, and according to Ben-Amos, features supernatural beings that

exist beyond the boundaries of human time and space. Greek mythology is the most common example of the power of myths. The ancient Greeks’ stories of their gods and heroes explained the origin of their world and were believed to be true for centuries. Contemporary myths are also believed to be factual by their tellers, and supernatural beings still play an important role in mythmaking. The ghost story is a good example of a modern myth, and those who tell these stories swear by their truth. Stories of aliens and UFOs would also fall under the category of myth. Today, some myths forego supernatural figures. However, the characters who inhabit urban myths often behave in ways that are extraordinary or even superhuman. We have all heard about the mother who miraculously lifted the car off of her child in an emergency situation. Contemporary myths turn everyday events into stories of heroism or warning. College campuses abound with stories like these. Incoming college students are inundated with stories of fraternity and sorority initiation rites, impossible professors, unbelievable road trips, and unforgettable pranks. While many of these stories may have begun as everyday tales, only characters and themes remain after years of telling and their verifiable truth becomes increasingly diminished. For example, one popular story depicts an ongoing feud between a fraternity and a sorority. The women refused to socialize with the men because they felt the men acted in inappropriate and immature ways. In turn, the men disliked the women because they felt the women were uptight and self-righteous. However, one Saturday morning, it seemed the men decided to bury the hatchet. They sent milk

and doughnuts over to the sorority house with a note of apology. Of course, the women immediately began to gobble the doughnuts and guzzle the milk amazed at the kind gesture, At that

moment, a knock on the front door stopped their consumption. Outside a courier delivered an unmarked envelope to the cheerful sorority president. As she opened the envelope, she could not believe her eyes. An 8x10 photograph revealed the entire fraternity in swim trunks, swinging doughnuts on their fingers and standing in buckets of milk! While we do not know if this story is true, we do believe it communicates particular values to a collegiate community, First, on the most

basic level, the story portrays certain fraternity men as inappropriate and immature and certain sorority women as uptight and self-righteous. In addition, the story recognizes the potential rifts between sororities and fraternities. The story also implies that the good prank is a valued commodity in fraternity culture. Finally, the story depicts the fraternity men as not to be trusted and the sorority women as being naive and gullible, and depending on the context, teller, and audience, this myth may be seen as either a story of heroism or of warning. Legends purport to be true and usually depict the actions of identifiable people in specific places and times. These actions are often extraordinary, involving interaction with supernatural beings or forces. One of the authors, Tracy Shaffer, grew up hearing a legend of this sort about her great-grandfathcr, Bart, the father of fifteen children in rural Mississippi in the early 1900s.

She tells the story here: As a farmer, my great-grandfather Bart traveled into town with his horse and buggy on a weekly basis to run errands. On one particular day, he allowed a neighbor to ride in with him. During the day, the sky grew dark, and clouds threatened a terrible storm. Upon dropping the neighbor off at home, the neighbor's wife, worried for Bart's safety, invited him to stay until the storm blew over. As a dedicated husband and father, Bart declined the invitation and weathered the storm back

to his farm. During his sleep that night, the storm raged and the wind howled,

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but like many storms, the rain and wind ushered in a beautiful morning. At the break of day, Bart saddled his horse and headed out to assess the damage. As he got closer and closer to the neighbor's house, the trees began to resemble Christmas trees, filled with colors and textures. As Bart looked closer, he realized that the trees were strewn with household objects. Clothing, furniture, tools, and toys hung

from the branches like ornaments. When he turned the bend in the road that faced his neighbor's house, he stopped stunned. The house was no longer there! Apparently, a tornado had demolished the house and all of its contents.

As a young girl, Shaffer was terrified by this story. Even though it was not mentioned, she knew the neighbor and his family had died in that storm. Why was a story like this told toa child?

As she got older, she began to understand the value of the story. The legend was full of details about her great-grandfather's (and grandmother's) daily habits and transportation in rural Mississippi great-grandfather’s helpful, stoic, and determined learned that her great-grandfather’s selflessness and

life. Through the story, she learned about in the early 1900s. She also learned about character. Finally, the story had a moral. devotion to his family saved his life. If he

the her She had

worried about himself and stayed at the neighbor's house, he would have perished as well; but

because he was committed to his family, his life was spared. Legends serve many functions. The above story informs, advises, warns, and entertains. The

story creatively teaches about everyday culture and values of ancestors as well as models the responsible behavior to which Shaffer should aspire. The story becomes a meaningful, personal totem as well as a historical document. Washington Irving’s 1817 short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” functions in the same way. The story centers on traveling schoolmaster Ichabod Crane's courtship of Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter of a local farmer. Themes of outsider versus insider, country versus city, and brains

versus brawn emerge as readers learn that hometown tough Brom Bones also has eyes for Katrina. Following a party one night, after Ichabod and Katrina share a dance in front of the glaring Brom Bones and after lots of spooky tales have been told, Ichabod departs for home on his horse, Gunpowder. As he heads home through the graveyard, he is chased by what he believes to be the headless horseman, a terrible creature described in local lore. The next day, Gunpowder shows up, but Ichabod has disappeared, frightened away by the “headless horseman.” Still popular today, this published legend is said to be based on individuals Irving knew, and with or without the supernatural force, depicted the superstitions of a rural community for

Irving's sophisticated New York City audience. The story also illustrates the divergent values of city folk and country folk, siding with the rural community as Ichabod is portrayed as a ridiculous fool by the end of the tale. In addition, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” functions as a morality lesson since Ichabod only courted Katrina for her family’s fortune and got what he deserved. As a historical document, the story continues to portray what rural life (and all of its institutions) was like in the early nineteenth century. Folktales are based on fiction and fantasy and are inhabited by characters often in unidentifiable times and places allowing the suspension of disbelief to rule. Also, because the characters and settings are often nondescript, folktales may be produced and reproduced in different cultures. Little Red Riding Hood, originally from France, is an excellent example of the same story told in many different versions and can be seen in the story of Lon Po Po from China and the story of Little Red Cap from Germany. All of these stories share the same theme: a little girl wanders off

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the path and encounters a wolf who threatens her life. In the end, she either saves herself or is

saved by a woodsman. While this story never aspires to be true, the moral of the story is crystal clear: do not stray from the path and always beware of strangers. Folktales like this are often important tools for teaching children the values of a given culture. Interestingly, folktales are constantly adapted for adult audiences as well. Variations of Little Red Riding Hood exist in a multitude of forms. Numerous novels, short stories, films, and plays have adapted the theme for modern use. For example, certain film scholars argue that the psycho serial killer plot found in the contemporary horror film is really just an updated version of Little Red Riding Hood. Obviously, the themes that folktales address bear telling again and again. Folktales, along with myths and legends, entertain culture, but they also enable a culture to instruct its

members and exert a certain social control over their actions. Myths, legends, and folktales exemplify the power of a story to exist for generations, to be shared orally across cultures, and to finally be documented as an essential artifact of a culture,

Collecting Stories: Oral History and Ethnography Oral history is a method of valuing and recording unwritten stories that matter to a culture, stories that were once only collected in memory and preserved by being passed down by word-of-

mouth. Traditionally, oral history attempted to collect and document stories from ordinary people who recounted firsthand experiences for researchers such as journalists, anthropologists, sociologists, and folklorists. Written transcripts of stories were created from the spoken word. In the 1940s, modern oral history began with the availability of tape recorders to collect and preserve oral stories in their original form. However, written transcripts of stories also remain a viable way to collect and preserve these histories. Oral history projects are an important way to obtain histories that have not been valued or documented. According to Trevor Lummis, “It is an ideal method for studying the recent past of unorganized workers, domestic life, attitudes and ideology at the grass roots, the experience of childhood, or indeed any historical dimension of the recent

past that can be explored through lived experience.” We include oral history in our exploration of everyday stories because this method is a wonderful way to begin the process of dialogic engagement. By locating and collecting the oral stories of those with whom you may come into contact on a regular basis, you will come to understand those persons better. As we said earlier, your first task is to make sense of what is being said. By recording someone else’s story, you make a commitment to spend time with that story and make it meaningful. This act alone introduces you to multiple interpretations of experience. Recently, a performance in the HopKins Black Box theatre at Louisiana State University introduced its audience to multiple interpretations of the experience of Hurricane Katrina. Danielle Sears Vignes collected several oral histories of the residents of Saint Bernard Parish, a community located just south of New Orleans that was literally wiped off the map by the storm. Vignes’ research meditated on the variety of responses the residents had to losing their homes, businesses, and community. At least three themes emerged during the production. Many residents were ready to “pick up and move on,” leaving the parish behind to build their futures elsewhere while others vowed “to stay put,” citing the parish as the only home they had ever known. Others only wanted to reflect on the events or their memories of a place that had been changed forever. Vignes’ performance is a potent example of the value of oral history. The residents portrayed in her

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performance have insightful and poignant observations on perseverance in times of trouble, the importance of family, neighbors, and community to identity, and the tangible and intangible qualities of a place. Thanks to Vignes’ desire to collect and share these stories through performance, these important experiences were documented beyond the community in which they lived. The example of Vignes’ performance illustrates that oral history is just the starting point for the performance of stories. Oral history is the selecting and collecting of stories, but we ask that you take it one step further. Again, the central interest of performance studies is dialogic engagement through the means of performance. Yes, one can come to understand another better by collecting her story, but the processes of enactment and translation enable further, and often deeper, understanding. In Vignes’ performance, audiences were introduced to multiple reactions to the storm, but Vignes herself came to understand her community and their diverse response in visceral and meaningful ways. Ethnography is the systematic study of another culture using fieldwork methods such as participant-observation, interviewing, and journaling. Influenced by anthropology and sociology, communication and performance studies scholars committed to the ethnographic method desire to understand the other experientially. Ethnographers understand that cultures are not nouns, but verbs, That is, culture is a process; culture is created and recreated daily by the activities and rituals of cultural members. Ethnographers choose to become participant-observers in the culture they wish to understand, knowing that insights into the culture are generated in the doing, and (2)

that the knowledge generated is always an interpretation based on their unique subject positions. Based on the goals of this chapter, you might experiment with ethnographic practices to collect stories for performance. We offer a few guidelines for engaging in this process. First, before choosing a culture to study, you must ask yourself why that particular culture. Remember, an ethical impulse drives performance studies research. One should not immerse oneself into a culture to cause harm or embarrassment to that culture or because a culture seems exotic or sacred. In addition, one’s motives should not be selfish. One should not choose to interview

others simply because their difference might be entertaining or because they are easy to locate. For example, you would not collect the story of someone with a speech impediment because you think it might be funny. However, you might interview that same person because you are interested in finding out how she copes with her differently-abled body. A true dialogic engagement with another is always challenging for performers. Second, once you select those with whom you wish to engage, you should spend time with them in their world. Specifically, you should not think of them simply as a source for a performance but as an opportunity to connect with other human beings and broaden your outlook on the world. You should not begin your research with the request, “Give me your best story.” Instead, allow the stories to emerge. Spend time in conversation; let the personality of those with whom you interact and the mood of the setting generate what kinds of stories take place. Again, the goal of a project of this sort is not just to produce material for a performance. As an ethnographer, you are opening yourself up to understanding others. Finally, once you have spent some time with your chosen cultural members, choose a story for performance that communicates something significant. This does not mean that the topic has to be serious. In fact, those who tell humorous stories reveal a great deal about themselves and their cultures, Carefully consider which story sheds the most light on your subject and the culture. Also, remember that you interpret these stories based on your own life experience. No one is

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a purely objective observer of a culture. We often choose to focus on stories and storytellers that resonate with us. Oral history and ethnography allow performers to collect stories from others, stories that provide clues for understanding identity and culture. The final section of this chapter introduces two approaches to creating performances of stories for the public. These performances include stories collected from others as well as those created from your own life experiences.

Creating Stories: Everyday Life Performance (ELP) and

Personal Narrative We have already established that stories are dynamic, communal, and aesthetic artifacts of culture that hold the potential to inform, advise, warn, and entertain diverse audiences. Up until

this point, stories may still be considered an everyday, private act between two people whether in a casual or family setting or in a professional research setting. This final section introduces two approaches to creating storytelling performances for the public. First, we suggest a variation on Robert Hopper's method of Everyday Life Performance (ELP) for the performance of the collected stories of others. Second, we encourage the performance of personal narratives, creating and staging one’s own story as an aesthetic act. Robert Hopper (1945-1998) was a communication scholar devoted to the aesthetics of conversation, and during his too-short career, he created at least four public performances based on

everyday conversation. Hopper asked his students to collect and replicate in performance the conversations of others. To accomplish this task, students were taught a process that enabled them to perform as closely as possible the original conversation. This method insisted that students pay attention to and perform the speaker's dialect, pronunciation, rate and volume of talk, and even

duplicate the mistakes made during the conversation. Students were able to achieve this task by: (1) taping a conversation and making a typed transcript of the conversation, marking the transcript for increases in volume, timed pauses, etc.; (2) performing the conversation using tape and

transcript; and (3) performing the conversation without the help of either tape or transcript. This demanding method resulted in incredibly close replications of the original conversations, performances that were considered data for further research in conversation analysis. However, another result was the believable enactment of others through performance. In fact, Text and Performance

Quarterly, one of the premiere journals of performance studies research, devoted an entire issue to this style of performance in 1993. As you create performances of collected stories, we suggest you try a variation of Hopper’s method, Pay as much attention as possible to what the storyteller sounded like when the story was originally told. You might also attempt to create a transcript from a recording you made of the storyteller. Include his or her unique accent, pauses, even include the mistakes made during the telling. For example, if the storyteller mispronounces a word and then immediately pronounces it

correctly, include that bit. We take moments like these for granted, but they make a story unique to the teller and can be quite telling. If you are working with video, study the storyteller’s bodily movements. Try to replicate each gesture, movement, and facial expression. Rehearse your per-

formance of the story as the original teller until you feel you have created the persona as fully as possible. Performances inspired by this method are revealing and entertaining. By emphasizing

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the storyteller’s individual voice and body and the particular moment of the telling, this type of performance allows for a deep engagement with others. Another type of story for performance is known as the personal narrative. Performing personal narratives asks you to see your own stories as aesthetic texts to be skillfully crafted for the purposes of informing, entertaining, or moving an audience. As everyday stories, myths, legends, and folktales hold the keys to understanding the beliefs, values, traditions, and customs

of a culture, and oral history and ethnographic practices unlock the doors to these potentially revealing stories, your stories as well are valuable tools to understanding your multiple identities and sharing your cultures and communities with others. As you develop your own stories for the stage, you should consider the “self” you wish to share, the setting of the telling, the shape of the

story itself, and the audience. When you tell an everyday story, consider how you create yourself as a storyteller. You may make sure everyone is really paying attention before you begin the story. You may raise your

volume or become more exaggerated. You may incorporate dramatic gestures. You might take on the accents and personalities of the other characters or persons in your story. You may even get up and act out particular moments from the story, moving the story from past tense into present tense. As you begin to consider performing your own stories as aesthetic texts, you will want to carefully craft your storytelling self. Remember, there are good storytellers and bad storytellers. You will want to develop an interesting narrator that suits the story you choose to tell. For example, if you tell a ghost story, you might want to create a mysterious narrator. If the story you tell is funny, the storyteller you create may be silly or wry. In any case, you should develop a speaker who demands an audience's attention and serves the purposes of the story. Performing your stories as aesthetic texts also requires some attention to the staging and the setting of the telling. How you move on stage may help communicate the setting of your tale as well as the emotional content of your story. Selecting props and scenic furnishings may also allow your scene to come to life as well as provide you with specific telling actions you may choose to do, The creative possibilities are endless, For example, a performer may describe a fight by pantomiming the event blow by blow, and even recreating the scene. This choice would emphasize the chaos and energy of the event. However, a performer might also describe the same fight by being completely still, narrating as a shocked and removed onlooker. In this case, the fight may emerge as even more violent than if the performer moved around a lot. The way we elect to stage stories is just as important as the narrator we create. A mysterious narrator's ghost story works different when told in dim lighting or even with the use of flashlights rather than under glaring fluorescents.

One of the most important aspects of creating aesthetic stories for the stage is the shape of the stories themselves. That is, you should pay careful attention to the wording and structure of the story. Your stories should be creative and clear. Everyday fillers such as “um” and “you know” should be edited and rehearsed out, and literary devices such as vivid description, figurative language (e.g., metaphor, personification, hyperbole), and dialogue should be considered and possibly incorporated into your text. How your tale moves from one part to another requires careful deliberation. Remember, some stories work best when the storyteller avoids a predictable chronological order. Some stories benefit from a clear resolution; others are best served by leaving them openended. The elements of an effective personal narrative vary; each story calls for its own aesthetic. Most would argue, however, that thoughtful, careful, passionate, and creative personal narratives are worth an audience's time.

CHAPTER!

Performance Studies

11

Finally, a performer performing a personal story as an aesthetic text should take the audience into consideration. Just as you would develop a narrator to tell the story, you need to imagine an audience to experience the story. Not all audiences are the same. Let us use our example of the story of the fight once more. Certain audiences would be invigorated by a good fight. In fact, you might imagine one half of the audience pulling for one fighter and the other pulling for the opponent. Another audience might be appalled by a fight. For this audience, your narrator might speak apologetically. Remember, a performance is a communicative transaction between a speaker and listeners. Taking into account the particular attitudes and values of audiences can help you shape your stories. The audience is just as important as the performer and both have a role in constructing meaning.

Telling stories in a public setting is an exciting way to share culture and community. Whether you are performing someone else's story using a version of Hopper’s ELP or sharing a carefully created story of your own, stories have the amazing ability to bring people together, to generate understanding between generations and cultures, to strengthen communal bonds, and to provide cultural critique. Simply, stories make us who we are and offer us the chance to remake ourselves again and again.

NOTES 1. A number of writers have pursued the connections between performance and communication. For example, see Kenneth Burke,

4 Grammar of Motives (New York: Prentice Hall, 1945);

Erving Goffman, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (Garden City, NY: Doubleday Anchor Books, 1959); A. Paul Hare, Social Interaction As Drama: Applications from Conflict Reso/ution (Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1985); Richard Schechner and Mady Schuman, eds., Ritual, Play, and Performance: Readings in the Social Sciences/Theatre (New York: Seabury Press, 1976); James E. Combs and Michael W. Mansfield, eds., Drama in Life: The Uses of Communication in Society (New York: Hastings House, 1976); Victor Turner, From Ritual to Theatre: The Human Seriousness of Play (New York: Performing Arts Journal Publication, 1982); and Judith Buder, Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity (New York: Routledge, 1990).

2. Fora detailed discussion of these concepts, see Dwight Conquergood, “Communication and Performance: Dramaturgical Dimensions of Everyday Life,” in The Jensen Lectures: Contemporary Communication Studies, ed. John Sisco (Tampa, FL: University of South Florida, 1983), 24-43. 3.

Barbara Babcock, “Artifact” in Folklore, Cultural Performances, and Popular Entertainments:

A Communications-Centered Handbook. Richard Bauman, ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 205. 4.

Dan Ben-Amos, “Folktale” in Folk/ore, Cultural Performances, and Popular Entertainments: A Communications-Centered Handbook. Richard Bauman, ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 102.

5.

Trevor Lummis, “Oral History” in Folklore, Cultural Performances, and Popular Entertainments: A Communications-Centered Handbook. Richard Bauman, ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 94,

12

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Performance Studies

SUGGESTIONS

FOR FURTHER

READING

Abrahams, Roger D. 2005. Everyday life:A poetics of vernacular practice. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Alexander, Bryant Keith. 2002. Skin Flint (or, The Garbage Man's Kid): A generative autobiographical performance based on Tami Spry’s “Tattoo Stories.” Text and Performance Quarterly 20: 97-114. Bauman, Richard, ed. 1992. Folklore, cultural performances and popular entertainments: A communi-

cations-centered handbook. New York: Oxford University Press. Bauman, Richard, ed. 1992. Folklore, cultural performances, and popular entertainments: A communi-

cations-centered handbook. New York: Oxford University Press. Bauman, Richard. 1977. Verbal art as performance. Rowley, MA: Newbury House. Bauman, Richard. 1986. Story, performance, event: Contextual studies of oral narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Bochner, Arthur B., and Carolyn Ellis, eds. 2002. Ethnographically speaking: Autoethnography, literature, and aesthetics. Walnut Creek, CA: Alta Mira. Burke, Kenneth. 1945.4 grammar of motives. New York: Prentice Hall. Burns, Elizabeth. 1972. Theatricality:A study of convention in the theatre and in social life. London:

Longman. Carlson, Marvin. 2004. Performance:A critical introduction, 2nd ed. New York: Routledge. Combs,

James E., and Michael W. Mansfield, eds. 1976. Drama in life: The uses of communication

in society. New York: Hastings House. Connerton, Paul. 1989, How societies remember, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Conquergood, Dwight. 1993. Communication and Performance: Dramaturgical Dimensions of Everyday Life. In The Jensen Lectures: Contemporary communication studies, edited by John Sisco, 24-43. Tampa: University of South Florida. Denzin, Norman K. 2003. Performance ethnography: Critical pedagogy and the politics of culture. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Eakin, Paul John. 1999. How our lives become stories: Making selves. Ithaca: Cornell University

Press. Fine, Elizabeth C., and Jean Haskell Spear, eds. 1992. Performance, culture, identity. Westport, CT: Praeger. Farb, Peter. 1976. Word play: What happens when people talk. New York: Bantam, Fine, Elizabeth C., and Jean Haskell Speer. 1977.

A New Look at Performance. Communication

monographs, 44: 374-89. Gingrich-Philbrook, Craig. 1998. Autobiographical performance and carnivorous knowledge: Rae

C. Wright's Animal Instincts, Text and Performance Quarterly 18: 63-79. Gingrich-Philbrook, Craig, ed. 2000. Text and Performance Quarterly 20.1. Hopper, Robert K., ed. 1993. Text and

Performance Quarterly 13.2. Goffman, Erving. 1959. The presentation of self in everyday life. Garden City, NY: Doubleday Anchor Books. Highmore, Ben. 2002. The everyday life reader. London: Routledge.

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B

Issacharoff, Michael, and Robin F. Jones, eds. 1988. Performing texts. Philadelphia: University of

Pennsylvania Press. Jefferson, Gail. 1996. On the poetics of ordinary talk. Text and Performance Quarterly 16: 1-61. Langellier, Kristin M. 1989. Personal narratives: Perspectives on theory and research. Text and Performance Quarterly 9: 243-76. Langellier, Kristin M. 1999. Personal narratives, performance, performativity: Two or three things I know for sure. Text and Performance Quarterly 19: 125-44.

Langellier, Kristin M., and Eric E. Peterson. 2004. Storytelling in daily life. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Lyman, Stanford M., and Marvin B. Scott. 1975. The drama of social reality. New York: Oxford

University Press, Madison, D. Soyini. 2005. Critical ethnography: Method, ethics, and performance. Thousand Oaks,

CA: Sage.

Miller, Lynn C., Jacqueline Taylor, and M. Heather Carver, eds. 2003. Voices made flesh: Performing women's autobiography. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. Pollock, Della, ed. 2005. Remembering: Oral history performance. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Stern, Carol Simpson, and Bruce Henderson. 1993. Performance: Texts and contexts. New York:

Longman. Schechner, Richard. 1985. Between theatre & anthropology. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Schechner, Richard. 1988. Performance theory, rev. ed. New York: Routledge. Schechner, Richard. 2006. Performance studies: An introduction, 2nd ed. New York: Routledge. Turner, Victor. 1982. From ritual to theatre: The human seriousness of play. New York: Performing

Arts Journal Publications. Stucky, Nathan. 1995. Performing oral history: Storytelling and pedagogy. Communication Education 44: 1-14. Turner, Victor. 1986. The anthropology of performance. New York: Performing Arts Journal Publications. Wilshire, Bruce. 1982. Role playing and identity: The limits of theatre as metaphor. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

4

CHAPTER]

Performance Studies

CHAPTER 2

Roots of Theatre

WHAT

IS THEATRE?

Everyone loves to be entertained. Many people enjoy viewing a Broadway show, a movie, television shows, documentaries, the circus, and sporting events. But which of these are theatre and which are not? All these forms of entertainment share common elements, but not all of them are theatre; some are merely “theatrical.” So how do we define theatre from the theatrical? In western culture we begin the definition through the elements set down for us by Aristotle in his Poetics of Tragedy. Around BC 300 a philosopher named Aristotle wrote the Poetics as a response to Plato's The Republic. In The Republic, Plato sought to define the perfect society. In his “perfect” society he listed many undesirable and desirable types of people. Among the undesirables he listed theatre people. His reasoning was that theatre practitioners made their living by being expert liars, and no one wants a liar in his community. Aristotle answered this in his Poefics by stating that acting wasnt lying, but imitation, and that actors were merely imitating an action. Clearly, this was a

very important clarification, and one that often needs restating. It is always important to keep in mind that the actor and the character are very different. Even today, fans of particular shows will confuse the actors with the character they play. The beautiful popular actress who always plays the young ingénue (the innocent maiden) role may be the most difficult, crabbiest, meanest person in

the production, whereas the actor who always portrays the villain may be the kindest, nicest, most generous person in the cast.

From The Theatrical Journey: An Imaginative Process, Second Edition, by Justin P, Walsh, Brent A. Menchinger, Lissa L. Graham,

Dazy! W, Phillipy, Matthew Crides, Copyright © 2018 by Kendall Hunt Publishing

Company. Reprinted by p

Heidi Ortega,

:

15

By stating that theatre was the imitation of an action, Aristotle took the first step toward clarifying and defining theatre. In addition to that statement, he also set down six elements that must be present for any work to be considered as true theatre. These six elements are plot, character, thought, diction, spectacle, and music.

THE ELEMENTS OF THEATRE Aristotle listed these six elements in the order that he thought were most important for theatre during his lifetime. The order of importance has varied throughout the development of theatre,

but all six elements are just as valid today as they were the day he wrote the Poetics. Aristotle used this as his model for the perfect play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. He considered this play to be the most perfect play ever written and he hoped to use it as a model for other playwrights who aspired to greatness. Let us discuss how each of these clements is employed in theatre according to the Poetics.

PLOT Plot is defined as the arrangement of the incidents as they occur. Plot and story are not the same thing. Story is linear in nature, with one event naturally flowing into the next. Stories are highly descriptive and contain a great deal of detail. Plots are not detail oriented. They only list the major events that affect the lives of the main characters. A good example of a plot is “boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back.” Notice this simple and most frequently used plot, which has three points. All plots will have a beginning, middle, and an end. Another way of putting it is they will have an exposition, a complication, and a resolution. Plots usually have more than three points,

but they must have at least three. To illustrate the differences between story and plot Aristotle's

example of the perfect play, Oedipus Rex is used.

The Story of Oedipus Rex The king and queen of Thebes wish to have a baby, but

are unable to conceive. When they go to consult with an oracle about why the gods have not granted them a child, they are foretold that they will have an offspring who will murder the king and have an incestuous relationship with his mother. Deeply disturbed the royal couple discovers that they are going to have a child. Unable to abort the child a few months later they have a son, who they abandon on a hill, hoping he will die from exposure. A shepherd finds the young child and delivers him to a barren king and queen in the nearby city of Corinth. The grateful royals reward the shepherd who goes off to seek more fortune. The boy, whom they name Oedipus, grows fast and strong into manhood,

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CHAPTER2

Roots of Theatre

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visit to the oracle. During his visit the oracle informs him it is his fate to kill his father and have sexual relations with his mother. Terrified, Oedipus flees his kingdom boasting how he has outwitted the gods, and escaped his fate. On his travels he meets an older man leaving the city of Thebes who is looking to find a hero who can help his city which is under siege by a ravenous beast known as a Sphinx. The older man orders Oedipus to move so he may have the right of way in order to seek help for the city. Oedipus, a prince by birth, proudly refuses to give the man the right-of-way, and insists the man move from the road. An argument erupts between the two men, which leads to violence and the accidental death of the old man. Still very young, and not knowing what to do, Oedipus flees from the scene and goes into hiding. Some time later Oedipus emerges and visits Thebes to see if he is wanted for the crime of murder. When he arrives he discovers

the city is still under the grip of the Sphinx. He makes a deal with the city that if he defeats the Sphinx, as the prince of a neighboring city, he will be wedded to the widowed queen and made king of Thebes. Oedipus agrees and easily outwits the Sphinx, saving the city. Oedipus marries queen Jocasta and is crowned king of Thebes. Oedipus proves himself to be a wise and kind ruler. His people love him and he loves his people. He is devoted to their well being, and to the good of the city. He also proves himself to be a good husband and caring father to the four children he and his queen deliver. For the next 20 years Oedipus is very careful never to return to Corinth so that the oracle’s prophecy can never be fulfilled. Upon hearing of the natural death of his parents, thereby making him the king of two cities, Oedipus also discovers there is plague on Thebes. His people are dying slowly and terribly. Oedipus searches high and low for a cure, but to no avail. Finally he goes to the oracle that tells him the gods are angry and the only way to lift the plague is for the murderer of Laius, the previous king, to be discovered. Oedipus swears to not only discover the murderer but to avenge his death by banishing the murderer. The city reacts strongly

to Oedipus’ decree as banishment is considered to be the highest form of punishment. Criminals preferred death to a life of exile and humiliation. Oedipus investigates the circumstances surrounding King Laius’ death until finally his wife Jocasta realizes that Oedipus is the son she abandoned many years ago and left for dead. Ashamed of her crime and unable to deal with the fact her husband, with whom she has had four children is actually her son, she hangs herself. Oedipus, coming to confront his wife about the fact that she is also his mother, discovers her body, and he blinds himself stating how he once could see but was blind to the truth, but now he will live a life blind but seeing the truth. The city begs Oedipus to not live a life of exile, but to stay and rule them, as they love him. Oedipus refuses. He leaves his beloved city in order to lift the plague. The plague indeed lifts from the city and the people are saved.

The Plot of Oedipus Rex 1. 2.

There is a plague on Thebes. The king discovers the plague was sent by the gods and the only way to lift it is to punish the murderer of the former king.

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The king launches an investigation to find the murderer. ‘The king discovers that he is the son and murderer of the former king, and the husband to his mother. The king banishes himself in order to right the wrong. The plague is lifted from Thebes.

CHAPTER 2

Roots of Theatre

7

Notice how the plot of Oedipus Rex actually starts toward the end of the story. The play version of Oedipus Rex ultimately delivers all the information in the story, but it is delivered in a different manner. Information has to be uncovered through the conflict between the characters. This increases the tension and the suspense, thereby creating more entertainment for the audience member.

CHARACTER Character is defined as the people or the personifications who inhabit the play. We use the word personification because authors do not always use human beings as their subjects. In the Greek plays, often the gods were major figures. In today’s theatre, however, animals, fantastical beings, or even inanimate objects can take on human characteristics. Although these creatures would be considered “non-persons,” they function as one.

There are many different types of characters who function in many different ways in the play’s structure. The first and most important type of character is the main character. Main characters are the characters around which the story revolves. There are two types of main characters, the protagonist and the antagonist. The protagonist is the character with whom the audience sympathizes. It is the character whom we identify with the most strongly. He or she is occasionally portrayed as “the good guy” who never makes a mistake, never flaws morally, and who rushes to protect the poor defenseless ingénue. Superman would be an excellent example of this kind of protagonist. He fights for “Truth, Justice, and the American Way.” But not all protagonists take on this form. Often the protagonist is a awed individual who makes mistakes. This makes him more approachable because we, as an audience, can identify with him more. Oedipus, while a good man at heart, is

a very flawed individual. Unable to accept his destiny, he runs away from home. He is arrogant and boasts of having outwitted the gods. He is cowardly by not accepting his responsibility for the death of the man on the road. While he is flawed, we still like him. We can identify with him

because he is flawed. The antagonist is the main character in opposition to the protagonist. Occasionally this person is portrayed as “the bad guy” who has no redeeming qualities and who sets obstacle after obstacle in the path of our hero. However, just as not all protagonists are perfect, not all antagonists are

perfectly evil. Consider a story that revolves around a love triangle. We may be routing for one character over another to win the girl's affections, but that doesn’t mean the other character is bad

or evil, it is just the incorrect choice. Another type of character is a supporting character. Supporting characters are often confused with main characters; in that, they are extremely well developed, and the audience cares greatly about their well being. The main difference is that the main conflict of the play doesn’t revolve around them. While they may prove to be very important resources to the main characters, they are not the audience's main concern.

Our next type is a minor character. These characters act as facilitators of action. We know very little about them or their background, and truthfully, we care very little about them. Usually they leave quickly (having accomplished their purpose) or die early in the action. They may act as the protagonist's motivation for his actions; “I must avenge the death of my father.” The last type of character is the supernumerary. A supernumerary is a character who acts as a background or a filler. They are almost like living scenery; in that, their function is to make the 18

CHAPTER 2

Roots of Theatre

surrounding “come to life” for the audience. Often supernumeraries are referred to in the theatre as spear-carriers. This is an old nickname recognized by theatre practitioners because oftentimes the supernumerary in classic plays functions as a palace guard who bars the door or protects the

king with his spear at his side. Although this isn’t the only function a supernumerary plays, the term stuck and is often employed even in contemporary plays.

THOUGHT In BC 20, there lived

a Roman philosopher named

Horace who studied the Poetics and the other

documents of Aristotle. He took the time to write an epistle called The Art of Poetry. In his letter

Horace clarified Aristotle’s concept of thought by stating that the purpose of theatre is intended

for the delight and the profit of the audience. What he meant by this was that theatre should entertain and enlighten. Audiences should have fun and enjoy theatre; however, it should also

enrich them in some way. Theatre should have a purpose—a message that is related through the action and delivered to the audience in an entertaining manner. This profit should come in the

form of Aristotle's third element of thought. The thought of the play is the author's message. All plays have something to say; some sort of moral to the story or statement about the human condition. Sometimes the thought is very easy to understand. In a simple play it is usually stated and

often repeated. In a more complex play it may be harder to grasp, but thought is always present, as profit is a vital ingredient to the theatergoer’s experience.

DICTION Diction refers to the words that are used and the manner in which they are utilized. For instance, some plays are written using poetry and some are written using prose. Many plays use poetic structures and rhythms in order to entertain the audience, or to help the viewer gain a greater

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CHAPTER

2

Roots of Theatre

19

understanding of what is important. Shakespeare used a poetic meter called iambic pentameter to help his audiences gain a greater understanding of the play. Whenever Shakespeare broke the very strict iambic rhythmic pattern, this let the audiences know that what was being said at this point was very important and they should pay closer attention. While iambic pentameter isn’t the only poetic meter used in theatre, it is the most popular, and probably one of the most effective. When a play uses prose it becomes important for authors to pay close attention to the concept of theatrical decorum. Decorum means expectations. If I were to write about a character that rode in the rodeo and wore cowboy boots, a 10-gallon hat, chaps, spurs, and carried a lasso he would

be expected to speak in a certain manner. If he were to enter a scene saying “Oh, Jolly Good, let's have a spot of tea,” that would seem ridiculous. It wouldn't be fitting for his character. Each word becomes extremely important when shows are written in prose. The author must decide what language is appropriate and what language is inappropriate for each character. Even one misplaced word can discredit a well-thought-out and well-plotted play by making a character appear less realistic.

SPECTACLE Spectacle refers to the visual dimension of the play. This includes the set, costumes, lights, visual effects, pyrotechnics, projections, actors, props, and so on. If it’s something you see, it is spectacle, Many people, when they imagine a spectacle, think it needs to be big, and indeed spectacle is often of grand proportions. Many shows have hydraulic devices bringing on huge pieces of scenery. Miss Saigon boasts a helicopter landing in the middle of the stage during one of the major dramatic moments. Obviously magnificent visuals are going to affect the audience emotionally. It will awe them and excite them. However, a darkened stage with a single actor speaking softly in a pool of light will also affect the audience visually. Depending on the actor's posture, costuming, and lighting, this simple visual effect could impress the audience with the actor's courage, his strength, or his solitude and loneliness. The visuals of a production are carefully planned out, and must never be dismissed as a minor factor in the overall effectiveness of a production.

MUSIC The last of Aristotle’s six elements is Music. While this may seem like a simple concept, throughout history, it has been the one element that has caused the most arguments and discussions. Aristotle, when mentioning music said, “And music should be obvious, and we shall move on with our discourse.” Little did he know he would be studied, over two millennia later, in classrooms all over the world. Maybe, had he known, he would have been more precise in his definition. Scholars

for ages have debated whether he meant all plays must contain music, or all language must be sung. There is some evidence the Greeks sang their plays—this ultimately led to the invention of opera. No one really knows what he meant, but what most scholars have come to accept is that music is the aural dimension of the play, This makes sense; if you accept spectacle to be the visual aspect, then music being the aural aspect goes to follow. Therefore, music is all that is heard; songs, music, sound effects, the sound of the actors’ voices, the sound of the actors walking, and so on. If

you hear it, it’s the music of the play.

20

CHAPTER 2

Roots of Theatre

Let us return to our original question. What is theatre? According to Aristotle, it is the imitation of an action that includes the six elements of plot, character, thought, diction, spectacle, and

music. But times have changed. In Aristotle's day there was no photography, no radio, no film, and no television, How do we distinguish these forms from the purely theatrical? In 1968, a Polish director and theoretician named Jerzy Grotowski addressed these forms among many other issues in his book Towards a Poor Theatre. Grotowski asserted that for a performance to be considered theatre it required a live actor and a live audience. In adding those two simple clements Grotowski successfully contemporized Aristotle's definition of theatre hence giving us the standard we use today.

GLOSSARY Antagonist: is a character in opposition to the protagonist. Aristotle: was a philosopher and an author of the Poetics. He defined acting was an imitation of an action, Character: is the second of Aristotle’s elements of theatre; the people or personifications in the

play. Diction: is the fourth of Aristotle’s elements of theatre. It refers to the words that are used and

the manner in which they are utilized. Main Character: is the character around which the story revolves. Minor Character: is a character who acts as facilitator of action. Music: is the sixth of Aristotle’s elements of theatre. It is the aural dimension of the play.

Plato: was a philosopher and an author of The Republic. He defined acting as lying and decried

the art form. Plot: is the first of Aristotle's elements of theatre. It is the arrangement of the incidents as they occur. Poetics: was written ca. BC 335. It is a book in which all Western theatre bases its theories and practices.

Protagonist: is the character with whom the audience sympathizes. It is the character whom we identify the most. The Republic: was written ca. BC 375 by Plato. This important work defines the perfect society. It condemns the actor as a liar who should be outcast from the society. It is the first writing still in existence that discusses how theatre should be approached. Spectacle: is the fifth of Aristotle’s elements of theatre. It refers to the visual dimension of the

play. Supernumerary: is a character who acts as background or filler. He has no lines and functions almost like living scenery.

CHAPTER 2

Roots of Theatre

21

Supporting Character: is a character who may prove to be a very important resource to the main character, but who is not the audience’s main concern.

Thought: is the third of Aristotle's elements of theatre. It is the message the playwright is trying to get across in the play.

22

CHAPTER2

Rootsof Theatre

CHAPTER

3

Acting

WHAT

IS ACTING?

What does it mean to act? Things that might come

to your mind

are such things as: to pre-

tend; to take on the persona of another; to per-

form; to entertain; to portray human

emotion

etc. All of these are correct, on some level. But

D Heidk Caliwell Ortega

to boil down what it means to act, to a specific idea, I will quote the great acting teacher Sanford Meisner, “The foundation of acting is the reality of doing.”To act means to perform an action to achieve or attempt to achieve a desired outcome. Think a minute about the actions you take, on a daily basis. What is it you needed to accomplish today? What are the actions you need to take to get that thing done? Are there people or events that will help or hinder your ability to get that thing done? Do you have to alter your

actions, the things you do, to get what you want, or does accomplishing the thing come easily, to

you? These are some basic questions an actor asks themselves about any character that they might portray, just as you go about accomplishing your needs and wants, on a daily basis.

From

TAy Theatrical Journey: An Imaginative Process, Socond

EdGdon, by Justin P. Walsh, Brent A. Menchinges, Lisea L. Graham,

Daryl W. Phillipy, Matthew Crider, Copyright © 2018 by Kendall

Hunt Publishing Company.

Heidi Ortega,

Reprinted by permission

23

Plays are always about the most important aspects of people’s lives. To create drama there is conflict. The character has to take an action to overcome the conflict. The actor portrays the character and takes on their actions to achieve a victory in the conflict. This is the foundation of bringing the words on a page to life. The actor must, first and foremost take action. They must DO something to accomplish what the words on the page have set out to do!

WHY

WOULD

YOU WANT TO ACT?

This is the question many people ask themselves or oftentimes, parents ask of their children who

might be thinking about a life in the theatre. There are many pros and cons to pursuing acting as a career. Certainly, the pros are many, they include: personal accomplishment, fulfillment of intellectual pursuits and fulfillment of artistic pursuits, the theatre is a wonderful community of people, the aspect of performing in front of a live audience is thrilling, and finally you may attain some fame and fortune, if you are lucky. You might be saying to yourself, “sign me up, this sounds great” but hold on a second, the actors life also has its cons. Being an actor often means your life is filled with fear, the fear of not knowing when the next role will fall your way. The fear of how to pay all those bills inevitably creeps in. Depression is an aspect of being an actor. Depression from being rejected for roles is an on-going experience. I often say, “If I had a nickel for every time I was turned down for a role, I'd be a rich man”. Depression from living a nomadic and uncertain life is sometimes enough to drive many an actor out of the business. Many actors are forced to have several jobs, to make ends meet. More actors live in poverty than those actors who “make it rich”. And lastly, I would say many actors sacrifice what we would call a “normal life”. Oftentimes, actors forgo marriage and children and a steady life in pursuit of a life in the theatre.

Another question many people ask is about talent. “Do I have the talent it takes to become an actor?” First and foremost actors must represent human beings, and to do that they must know something of humankind; what we might call a cultivation of a rich humanity, This means having intellectual curiosity about all modes of human understanding; history, literature, philosophy, theology, science, the arts, athletics. Actors have to develop

their common

sense, their powers of

observation and perception. Actors typically have to have empathy, tolerance and understanding

for all human beings and sound general knowledge of one’s own society and culture are all aspects of what it takes to become an actor. 24

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DEVELOPING TALENT Ultimately becoming an actor does require great effort, study and drive. To become a successful actor one must undertake the development of their instrument. For the actor their instrument is their self, their mind and body. The physiological aspect of the actor's instrument is the actor's physical being. This is voice and movement. The actor needs training in “voice, voice, and more voice” through voice training the actor learns techniques for breathing, phonation, resonance,

articulation, pronunciation, phrasing, dialects (cither learning them or getting rid of your own). Actors also do a lot of speech training which includes the projection of the emotional meaning, of the playwrights words. Actors also train their bodies in the area of movement. This includes learning physical relaxation, muscular control, economy of movement, physical rhythms, dance, mime, fencing, acro-

batics and strength training.

The psychological aspect of the actor’s instrument is the actor's mind. This includes: Imagination: the actor's imagination is the willingness and ability to day dream and fantasize and personalize the experiences of a fictional character, so that they become real enough to

the actor to convey the sense of reality to the audience. Empathy: is the actor's ability to personalize the circumstances of the play and the human characteristics, whether they are good or evil, moral or immoral.

Creativity: if you can imagine it you can create it, the two go hand in hand; it is the actor/artist’s persistent drive to create that

is essential to becoming and maintaining a career as an actor. The actor is always discovering ways to bring their unique attributes to bear when creating a character from the words on a page.

Discipline: is probably the most important aspect of becoming a successful actor, however, many

actors lack this fundamental

skill. Discipline for the actor requires the need for the actor to

® Justin P Walsh

continue developing their artistic process. Actors must be disciplined in their rehearsal process, in their ability to work within the confines of the play script, but to also be able to have an independent voice, as an artist.

THE ARTISTS OF DIONYSUS Imitating, playing and performing are all a common part of our everyday existence. These activities provide us with pleasure. They are a way of sharing experiences; or a way of making commentary on our contemporary society. There is something magical about the act of transformation.

The great power of the actor to become someone else is one of the extraordinary aspects of the art.

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Actors and audiences can be and often are mesmerized by the actor's ability to transform themselves. It has done so for over 2500 years. As we know people have been performing the roles of other human beings and sometimes gods since Thespis first enacted them in 534 BCE. The earliest performers organized themselves into professional guilds, known as The Artists of Dionysus. These guilds employed large numbers of performers and other personnel. These touring troupes of performers were highly prestigious throughout the various city-states of Greece. The ability of these performers to transform themselves to tell stories, whether they be tragic or comic, was

highly regarded. However, even Thespis met with criticism when he first performed, in Athens, Greece. There have been critics of acting almost as long as there have been actors. The question, which has challenged those who would pursue “the craft”, the art of acting is; what is the best way to go about portraying a character? There are two notions of acting, Presentational and Rep-

resentational. The argument is which approach to acting is better? Is one better than the other? Should the actor present the character or try to become the character, to represent them? “How to act” has been a point of discussion, debate and pondering for 2500 years. Actors, directors, philosophers, psychologists, and teachers have asked this question; what is acting and how is it done? how does someone become someone else? does an actor act from the “outside in”, or from the

“inside out”? is acting art or craft? can acting be taught? The best answer is that for “today’s” actor both approaches to acting the presentational and the representational are necessary components of the actor's training. The actor must be skilled in the technical aspects of acting and the instinctual aspects of acting. It might be useful to keep in mind that the original Greek actors were, in fact, priests. They performed plays in honor of the god Dionysus. These actors needed to possess a sense of magnitude both physical and spiritual. The actor/priest needed to possess passion and power to capture the truth of mythology and the religious experience. The nature of Greek tragedy requires an elevation of spirit; the style of speaking must reflect the elevated stature of the characters, they, were after all, gods, heroes, kings, queens, princes and princesses. The most important quality that Greek actors brought to their art was an expressive and well trained voice. In fact, Aristotle defined the art of acting as “the right management of the voice to express various emotions.” The poetic and operatic qualities of Greek tragedies required actors to sing as well as recite the powerful verse of the tragedy. We have no real knowledge of the physical qualities of the Greek actor, however, the somewhat burdensome masks and costumes of the Greek actor would have required him to achieve size, simplicity, and selectivity. The emotional idea would have been defined by the gesture, which would flow from the center of the body—the actor's emotional core.

THE PRESENTATIONAL APPROACH (ACTING FROM THE OUTSIDE-IN) This is what we would call mimesis. Mimesis is mimicry. Actors are impersonators. There is an aura of illusion in the work of the actor. However, the art of illusion must always contain truth.

The great actors of the time were extremely skilled in the impersonation of individuals or societal morays. This is what we call the Presentational style of acting. This was the predominant style of acting for nearly 2400 years. Presentational acting is essentially an external form of acting. It

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involves all of the physiological aspects of the actor's instrument, which is their self. The actor works from the outside-in. This relies on the development of technique. This is something that can be taught. Most actor training programs have classes designed to help the actor learn how to develop their instrument, which is the physical body. The actor's voice is their most expressive

tool. The actor can train their voice through speech training. The actor focuses on supporting the breath, phonation (the production of sound), resonance (giving the word power and clarity), artic-

ulation, pronunciation, dealing with dialects, and finally connecting to the emotion contained in the language.

Other aspects of training include the expressiveness of the actor's body. This includes: movement, physical relaxation, muscular control, economy of movement, physical rhythms, dance, mime, fencing, acrobatics, strength training, and a rigorous study of human behaviors, from various historical time periods, countries, social statuses and economic statuses.

‘The great Roman orator Quintilian (35 CE — 100 CE) was the first to attempt to discern a comprehensive approach to teaching actors. Quintilian was a teacher of rhetoric. Rhetoric is the

art of using language eloquently and persuasively. An actor who is skilled in rhetoric is able to arouse the intellect and emotions of their audience. Quintilian believed that natural expression of emotion was good, because it was sincere, but are not useful to the actor because they were devoid

of art. He taught that emotions that are imitated are less sincere, but are more artful. The emphasis is placed on imagining (imitating) the real emotion, which will in return, will be expressed natu-

rally, through the voice. Quintilian also saw the study of gestures to be a kind of emotional sign language. He was the

first to have actors rehearse in front of a mirror. By using a mirror the actor was to practice specific gestures and to study their accuracy. According to Quintilian “gesture should be suited to sense rather than words.” Through this rigorous attention to detail of gestures, he was able to create a physical way of communicating emotions, so that the actor doesn’t have access to their own per-

sonal, painful feelings. He created a prescribed approach to acting. This was the foundation of acting well into the 18th century. Again, they were imitating human experience and emotion.

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These early actors were not only imitating aspects of humanity, but actors would learn “roles” by imitating other actors. This is how new actors were trained. They would observe a “master”, and learn the proper way to perform certain roles. Actors also would imitate poses found in paintings

and then use that pose effectively on the stage. There were specific rules for imitating such emotions as pity, fear, hatred, wonder, grief, jealousy and love. This presentational style of acting was the dominant style of acting for 2300 years. This does not mean that the actors throughout the ages weren't interested in portraying “Truth”, in fact they were. The English Romantic poet, John Keats declared that “Beauty is Truth.” We might say that actors were interested in presenting humanity in a beautiful way. If acting was beautiful, then by

definition, it was truthful. Both the virtues and vices of humanity were portrayed beautifully. You might say that human suffering is portrayed as beautiful. I don't want to give the appearance that the Presentational style of acting lacks truth of emotion or that there weren't innovative, imaginative, and influential actors throughout the ages. There was certainly ongoing debate between what we might call the “emotionalists” and the “anti-

emotionalists”. We know that actors of the English Renaissance were interested in playing truth-

©

Hedi Caldwell-Ortega

fully and naturally. In William Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, Hamlet gives advice to the touring troupe of actors on how to perform the scene he has written.

HAMLET BY WILLIAM Act

Ill scene

SHAKESPEARE

2

Hamlet: Speak the speech I pray you as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the tongue, but if you mouth it as many of our players do, I had as leif the town crier spoke my lines. Nor do not saw the air too much with your hand thus...Be not too tame neither, but let your own discretion be your tutor, suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you oerstep not the modesty of nature: for anything so oer-

done is from the purpose of playing, whose end both at the first and now, was and is, to hold as ‘twere the mirror up to nature...

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THE REPRESENTATIONAL APPROACH (ACTING FROM THE INSIDE-OUT) So, just as humanity has evolved and changes in beliefs based on our understanding of science, reason, philosophy, society, politics, etc., so too, has the approach to making art, theatre, music, dance has changed. This is particularly true for the art of acting. Some major influences on our belief systems, society and the arts are such things as: Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution, Karl Marx's theories of social justice, and Sigmund Freud’s development of Psychiatry. Our understanding of ourselves and our society has changed. The arts, in general, were greatly influenced by this sea of change, in thought. One of the major changes in the arts, in theatre, was the development of “realism”. Humans were now interested in questions about our mere existence. We began looking inward, to discover who we are. We began to question aspects of our society; the notion of nature vs. nurture, and human behavior. Why do we do the things, good and bad, that we do? The most influential person in the area of acting was a pragmatic questioner whose books, teaching and productions together reveal the full range of his lifelong search for truth in art was Konstantine Stanislavsky.

Konstantine Stanislavsky (1863-1938) Stanislavsky was a Russian theatre practitioner, who was the co-founder of the Moscow Art The-

atre. Stanislavsky and actors of the Moscow Art Theatre created a new style of “truth” on-stage that had never been seen before, and has now become the basis for actor training at most colleges,

universities, and acting conservatories around the world. He was greatly infuriated by a style of acting, which relied on showing off theatrical gimmicks, where actors were more

interested in

seeking the approval of the audience. The style of acting in the 19th century was more focused on the brilliance of individual actors and not the entirety of the cast or the ensemble. So, he set out

to develop a strategy to systematically train actors to play “truthfully” or “realistically”. This is what we, today, call “the Stanislavsky System”.

“The Stanislavsky System” represented a sharp break from traditional teaching. It was an attempt to analyze what actually happens when an actor acts. His system developed as a response to the problem of making characters “live” onstage. He focused on internally-based psychological methods. We must keep in mind that the presentational techniques of actor training that existed were taken for granted by Stanislavsky. Stanislavsky was interested in the psychology of a character; what are the reasons a person acts the way they do? He wanted to truthfully represent human behavior. The following list is a “nutshell” synopsis of the core tenets of the Stanislavsky System. Relaxation: Stanislavsky describes this as actors that are free of muscular tension. They move in a natural and authentic manner. Actors work from a place of what is called a state of relaxed readiness. Concentration: the actor must listen and observe the stage action as if it had never occurred before. This is described as the “illusion of the first time”. The actor must focus their attention on the events and people that are on the stage. They must not focus on themselves.

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Circle of Attention: the actor should fully concentrate on an object, person or event while on the stage. The “circle of attention” allows the actor to lose self-consciousness, as the “circle of attention” expands, to include the audience.

‘The creative “if”: This is often called the “magic if” “The actor must first of all believe in everything that takes place on the stage, and most of all believe in what he himself is doing. And one can only believe in the truth, Therefore it is necessary to feel this truth at all times, to know how to find it, and for this it is inescapable to develop one’s artistic sensitivity to truth...I speak of the truth of emotions, of the truth of

inner creative urges which strain forward to find expression, of the truth of the memories of bodily and physical perceptions...” Script Analysis: the actor must be aware of the character's background, environment, and relationships, as well as any additional information the dramatist provides; these are the

offered circumstances also known as given circumstances. From these stem the kernel of the character—the internal and external personality. Subtext: the meaning that underlies each line. This is a detailed study of the lines grouped together to create units, also called Seats. The actor then understands the “aim” of the character, so that they can answer the question, What do I want and why?

Super objective: also referred to as the spine or the through line. This is the answer to, What do I want and why? It is an “active-verb” that expresses a character's overall goal. For each scene the actor needs to be able to identify the character's SPECIFIC objective. Mind, Will and Emotion: Stanislavsky considered these as the three parts of the actor's inner landscape. If the actor’s mind, will and emotions are engaged, he will come alive. Basically we formulate our goal of what it is that we want to attain. We then engage our will in the pursuit of attaining the goal. Finally, if we are willfully engaged in the pursuit of our desire, then we become emotionally involved in the success or failure of attaining the desire. Affective Memory: this includes emotional recall and sensory recall. Emotional Memory: the actor is called upon to remember in his or her own life that parallels the emotional situation in the play. Stanislavsky cautioned against excessive use of this and later in his career turned away from this idea. We might call this empathy. Sensory Memory: part of imagination and concentration we use sense memory to impact

the five senses and to help arouse emotional recall. Sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing all impact us on an emotional level. Communion: this is the other actors and their affect on you. This is the living exchange between the actors, which rivets the audience's attention. The actors are engaged with one another and they are open and responsive to what is actually happening in the moment.

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Adaptation: this is being open and responsive to what is happening in the moment. This is a shifting of actions in response to new circumstances. Actors must adapt to what is happening in real time. Tempo-Rhythm: tempo is speed, of course, of a scene. It includes the speed of movement, speech and the playing of an action. Like a piece of music tempos and rhythms change, the same is true for a play. An actor's internal tempos and rhythms change as the emotional content of the play changes. Method of Physical Actions: is a process where the actors find everyday actions, such as eating a meal, getting dressed, doing paperwork, while speaking the lines of text. The actions are performed using behavior that enhances the dialogue and adds the element of “real life”. Stanislavsky’s impact on the modern actor is undeniable. Perhaps it has no greater impact than here, in America. His system took more than a quarter century to make its way from the Moscow Art Theatre, through the theatres of Europe and finally to America. In 1923 members of the Stanislavsky’s Moscow Art Theatre (MAT) came to America. This tour was the beginning of

a new approach to acting in America. For the first time, the American theatre witnessed the extraordinary artistic possibilities of ensemble theatre as effortlessly realized by these Russian masters. Two of Stanislavsky’s original students Maria Ouspenskaya and Richard Boleslavsky stayed in America, after the tour to introduce the “system” to American theatre practitioners. The American Laboratory Theatre is where young American actors came to learn the system.

The Group Theatre In 1931, three young theatre artists Harold Clurman, Cheryl Crawford and Lee Strasberg gathered together 28 actors to create what would become the single most influential theatre in the history of the United States: the Group Theatre. The Group Theatre was based on the Russian model a “theatre family.” It was a permanent company of actors, sharing a common aesthetic and craft. The Group was the first American theatre company that focused on creating ensemble and the Stanislavsky System of Acting. Lee Strasberg was the original teacher of the Stanislavsky system for the Group Theatre. He attended classes with original members of the Moscow Art Theatre, Maria Ouspenskaya and Richard Boleslavsky at the American Laboratory Theatre. Lee Strasberg’s work as the acting teacher for the Group focused on six of the elements of the Stanislavsky system. Strasberg’s distillation of these elements has become what we call “The Method” or “Method Acting”. These elements include: improvisation, affective memory (sense memory and emotional memory), script analysis/given circumstances, imagination and organic theatrical style. Most accounts describe Strasberg paying special attention to emotional memory. Many members of The Group felt that Strasberg put so much attention on emotional memory that it has become highly controversial in acting circles. Strasberg developed a reputation for pushing his students to extreme physical and emotional situations in pursuit of “truthful acting. “Method acting has in many ways gotten a bad reputation because of these anecdotes, However, Strasberg’s influence on modern acting in America is undeniable and his methodology and those of many of his peers and students is felt still today.

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3)

Stella Adler was an original member of The Group Theatre. She also attended classes with original members of the Moscow Art Theatre, Maria Ouspenskaya and Richard Boleslavsky at the American Laboratory Theatre. While a member of The Group Theatre she took acting classes under the instruction of Lee Strasberg, however because of Strasberg’s emphasis on Emotional Memory, she along with others, became dissatisfied with Strasberg’s teaching. In 1938, Adler journeyed to Paris, France where she met and studied with Konstantine Stanislavsky. She is the only American actor to have met and worked with Stanislavsky. Adler asked Stanislavsky about Emotional Memory. Stanislavsky had changed his views on this aspect of his system. He communicated that it was the actor's imagination (their ability to personalize the material) that is the key to becoming truthfully, emotionally involved with circumstances of the play. When she returned to The Group Theatre with a new understanding of his work, she began to give acting classes for other members, including Sanford Meisner, Elia Kazan, and Robert Lewis, all of whom went on to become notable theatrical directors and acting

teachers. This rift between Adler and Strasberg was a large part of the demise of The Group in 1941.

She started the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in 1949. Adler's “system” centered on providing budding actors with the tools, training, and discipline to grow, as artists and as human beings. She sought to develop actors who think for themselves, respect their own ideas and ideals, and use the theatre as a means to share those ideas and ideals. The four main beliefs of Stella Adler are: The Power of the Imagination: Actors’ imaginations is the most powerful source for them to draw on. The actors are asked to use their imagination to locate the fullest range of motivational force, rather than depending solely on their personal past and emotional memory. The Importance of Action: Drama depends on doing, not feeling; feeling is a by-product of doing. Adler's approach to acting depends on connecting strongly to each other by way of actions and creating dramatic events that take place between two individuals. Script Interpretation: It is the actor’s responsibility to respect the script with a willingness to read it deeply with a fertile imagination. This respect involves an understanding of where the playwright is leading the character, including understanding the character's environment and investigating the full setting of the play. The Cultivation of a Rich Humanity: The actor's instrument is the actor’s own body and brain. The actor needs to develop resources of information and experience that connect with the rest of the world—socially, culturally, historically, and politically.

Sanford Meisner: He was an original member of the Group Theatre. He also initially took classes with Lee Strasberg, but he too was unsatisfied with Strasberg’s emphasis on Emo-

tional Memory. Shortly after Stella Adler came back to the states having studied with Stanislavsky, and the belief that imagination and personalization of a play’s given circumstances, Sanford Meisner began focusing on his own approach to acting. Meisner became the head of acting at the neighborhood Playhouse in 1940. ‘This is where the Meisner Technique was born. The fundamental idea that Meisner believes is “The

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Foundation of Acting is the Reality of Doing.” Meisner insisted that actors not pretend, but that they really perform actions using their own unique behavior. To help actors do this he created a series of exercises where actors use the repetition of each other's words to focus one another on fully being with their partner. The repetition exercises accomplish several things. REPETITION,

REPETITION,

REPETITION!

When working from repetition, several things happen. 1. You are really doing something: You are listening and responding to what is being said, in an organically and truthful way. 2. It places our focus outside of ourselves and onto the other person. You lose your selfconsciousness.

3.

Emotion and behavior spring forth naturally. All kinds of unexpected energy comes forward. When you are open and responsive to your partner in the moment, then nothing else matters

but them. Sanford Meisner had another mantra that he imparted to his actors.

“An Ounce of Behavior is Worth a Pound of Words.” Meisner believed that acting is not about the words. It is about truthful behavior under imaginary circumstances. The actor should use their own behavioral instincts in connection to the imaginary circumstances of the play. And lastly, Meisner’s technique helps actors to focus on what is happening now. We call this “Living

in the Moment”. Actors should work from what is happening now. Not what they want to happen, or what they think should happen, but from what is actually HAPPENING

NOW!!!

So, as you can see there are a myriad of techniques and approaches to acting. For the artist/ actor to grow and create all they need to do is study with rigor and discover for themselves which tool or set of tools speaks to them and their artistic process.

GLOSSARY Emotional Memory: the actor is called upon to remember in his or her own life that parallels the emotional situation in the play. We might call this empathy. The Group Theatre: the first American theatre company that focused on creating ensemble and the Stanislavsky System of Acting. Konstantine Stanislavsky: set out to develop a strategy to systematically train actors to play “truthfully” or “realistically”. This is what we, today, call “the Stanislavsky System”. Lee Strasberg: the original teacher of the Stanislavsky system for the Group Theatre. Strasberg’s distillation of these elements has become what we call “The Method” or “Method Acting”. His influence on realistic acting in America is incalculable.

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Mimesis: is the ability to mimic behavior. It is the ability to impersonate all aspects of human behavior and emotion. Presentational Acting: is essentially an external form of acting. It involves all of the physio-

logical aspects of the actor's instrument. The actor works from the outside—in. This relies on the development of voice and movement technique. Quintilian: A Roman orator whose teaching on rhetoric and gesture set the benchmark for Presentational acting for 1800 years. Representational Acting: is essentially an internal form of acting. It involves all of the psycho-

logical aspects of the actor's instrument. The actor works from the inside-out. This relies on the development of imagination and empathic technique.

Sanford Meisner: an original member of the Group Theatre. Meisner insisted that actors not pretend, but that they really perform actions using their own unique behavior. He created a series of unorthodox, yet effective exercises where actors use the repetition of each other's words to focus one another on fully being with their partner, and responding truthfully to what is happening in the moment, Sensory Memory: part of imagination and concentration we use sense memory to impact the five senses and to help arouse emotional recall. Sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing all impact us on an emotional level. Stella Adler: was an original member of The Group Theatre. She is the only American actor to have met and worked with Stanislavsky directly. She was one of the most prominent acting teachers of the 20th century,

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CHAPTER

4

Directing

DIRECTOR'S ROLE IN THEATRE PRODUCTION The director is responsible for bringing the play to life, but this is not a solo role. Similar to the creative development and execution of an innovative corporate product, many people are needed to bring a play to life. In the corporate world, a team leader or CEO of a corporation may want to “one up” a competitor by introducing a new product line. The leader or CEO will begin by researching the market to find out what makes the competitor's product so popular and to determine how a current product from his or her company product can be altered to generate consumer interest and excitement. Once the research has been completed, the project is turned over to specialized teams. These teams collaborate with one another to create the final product. Theatre directors work using the same approach as corporate leaders—research and collaboration. Research Research for a director begins with reading the play, not once but many times. He or she wants to get a complete sense of the play and asks these questions: What does the play mean? What emotional response should the audience have to the play? What world do the characters live in? What is the style of the play—realistic, fantasy, presentational, etc.? What are the playwright’s intentions? After reading the play and answering these questions, the director will probably read other plays by the same playwright to get a feel for his or her work—many playwrights develop a From Interactive Introduction to Theatre; Improving Life One Act et 2 Time, Third Edition, by Daisy Folsom. Copyright © 2015 by Kendall Hunt Publishing

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noticeable style that is recognizable from play to play. The director may seek out reviews and pictures of other productions. Ifa period play is being produced, he or she may spend time studying the customs and culture of the period through examining paintings, reading histories, and listening to music. Additionally, if the playwright is available and willing, he or she may advise the director.

Conveying the Overall Concept/Theme for the Production During the first production meeting, the concept/theme needs to be concisely expressed to the other members of the artistic team. Many directors devise an emotionally charged sentence or two which conveys the entire concept/theme, illuminating both the meaning of the play and the intended emotional response from the audience. All of the designers base their work on the director's concept/theme.

Production Meetings Several production meetings take place before the rehearsal period begins, and subsequent meetings take place once a week during every week of rehearsal. In a production meeting, the designers share their progress, trouble shoot, and ask questions of one another and the director. These meetings are important, not only for artistic collaboration, but also for the continuity of the production, It is crucial that all of the design elements compliment one another in bringing to life the director's vision. Similar to a board meeting in the business world, each member of the team must communicate clearly, concisely, and respectfully, while always being willing to compromise.

Casting the Play After analyzing the play, the director writes a brief description of cach character. These descriptions will be used in all casting call announcements. Casting calls also include the date, time, and location of the audition, and what the actor should prepare—perhaps two contrasting monologues not to exceed two minutes. Professional theatre companies employ a casting director to make the audition arrangements because, in most cases, time constraints make it impossible for every auditioner to be seen by the director. A short list of potential performers is selected. On the day of the auditions, the director arrives with a pad of paper and a pencil to make notes. Water and snacks may be on hand since it will be a long day. In most cases, the performers will audition individually for the director. While the actor is auditioning, the director takes brief notes. In an effort to get to know the performer’s personality and more accurately judge their abilities, the director may ask to see an additional monologue or suggest that the actor explore a new approach to the original monologue.

At the end of auditions the director creates another short list of actors. This is referred to as a call-back list. The actors on this list will return on another day to read specific scenes from the play. After the call-back audition, the director casts the play, arranges to notify the actors, and schedules rehearsals.

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Rehearsals Before rehearsals begin, the director will score the play. He or she identifies elements such as the crisis, the climax, the resolution, and also notes each character's objectives and obstacles in an

attempt to access the overall arc and intention of the story. The director will then devise a rehearsal schedule, perhaps allowing extra time for difficult scenes. Rehearsals in the professional theatre are typically two weeks, and four to six weeks in the non-professional theatre. During rehearsals, the director is solely responsible for creating a unified production, filling the play with emotional and intellectual stimuli, and illuminating the playwright’s intent. This is hardly an easy task and is one which is best approached in a collaborative, yet firm, manner.

TYPICAL SCHEDULE

OF A FOUR-WEEK

REHEARSAL

PERIOD

First Week ‘The first rehearsal includes introductions, brief discussions of the director's concept and the set design, and a read-through of the play. What is done for the remainder of the first week varies from director to director. Some prefer to keep the actors seated at a table reading the script. This approach is particularly useful for classical texts since it encourages the actors to focus on the language of the play. Other directors introduce improvisational exercises designed to help the actors better connect with their characters. Some directors block (b/ocking—where and when the actors

move on stage) the scenes during the first week of rehearsal; others allow actors to discover their own blocking. The collaborative approach is probably best, combining the director's blocking with the actors’ discoveries. Second

and Third Weeks

Effective directors have a clear vision of the overall production and how each of the characters should be portrayed. During the second and third week of a four-week rehearsal period, most directors focus on the acting. Some use a dictatorial approach—yelling and demanding instant results. Others spend the majority of rehearsal time “coaching the actors”—asking questions related to the characters, such as given circumstances, objectives, obstacles, and relationships. Still

others create improvisations designed to allow the actors to explore—many of theses discoveries end up in the final production. Still other directors combine these approaches—less the yelling. No one responds well to verbal abuse. Of course, the director is at the helm and must have com-

plete control, but he or she is best served by practicing patience and courtesy. Somewhere between the first and third week, most of the actors’ blocking is set. Blocking is a practical necessity in any production. Practically all plays call for simple physical movement. If one of the characters is having a pizza for dinner, he or she must bring the pizza in from the kitchen, sit at the table, eat the pizza, and take the pizza box back to the kitchen. Some plays include scenes that require complex physical movement—sword fights or dancing. A scene with many characters, such as a wedding, makes blocking a particularly challenging task for the director. The director has to make sure all of the characters are seen, while also drawing the audience's attention to the central characters. If the audience’s focus is not drawn to them, much of the story

CHAPTER

4

Directing

37

will be lost. There are many techniques that directors use to give the focus to a central character. Some include: placing an actor near or on top of the largest piece of furniture, placing an actor in a doorway, placing an actor downstage center, having the other characters look at or away from one actor or costuming one actor in a bright color and having the rest of the cast in muted colors. When blocking a play, the director must consider the overall stage picture. The stage picture includes the actors, the setting, and the furniture and the properties in a scene. The stage picture changes from moment to moment as the actors move about the stage. As with any well-framed photograph, the stage picture must have an interesting and well-balanced composition. Blocking also defines relationships and the changes in relationship dynamics. For example, at the beginning of the play, before the dialogue begins, a man and a woman are sitting close together on a love seat. This establishes an intimate relationship for the audience. In the following scene, the same couple is sitting at opposite ends of the room, not looking at each other, creating tension and a feeling of distance. Blocking is not confined to the theatre but is an important part of most vocations, While in the work-place, the individual employees must consider spatial relationships when interacting with others. For example, it is inappropriate to move into another's personal space (your co-worker or customer will feel invaded), carry on important one-on-one conversations from a distance of more

than four feet (much of the conversation will be lost), or address a large group from a distance of less than five feet (the entire group will not be able to see you). End of the Third Week

and

Fourth Week

During the end of the third week the director will call for a run-through, which means the entire play is performed without stopping for any reason. Run-throughs give the actor and director an opportunity to insure that the rhythm (some moments will have a quick tempo, some will linger) and the arc—objectives, conflicts, obstacles, crisis’s, climax, and resolutions—are being fully real-

ized. Notes are given to the actors after every run-through in an attempt to polish (improve) any weak points in their performances. If any major elements are being missed, the director may call the troubled scenes in for more work. Otherwise, rehearsals will consist of run-throughs until the

technical rehearsals which begin during the final week.

Opening Night ‘The director's job is finished on opening night. At this point, all the director does is praise and congratulate the actors for their hard work. Some directors give small gifts or thank-you notes to the actors. Many times, a party is organized after the opening performance to celebrate the success of the production.

38

CHAPTERS

Directing

CHAPTER

5

Theatrical Design In the world of theatre, designers are the invisible heroes whose work is often as vital as that of

the actors. What would Phantom of the Opera be without the underground river or Miss Saigon without the helicopter? Sweeney Todd without the rotating pie shop or Romeo and Juliet without a balcony? Thanks to designers, we rarely have to face those troubling questions. We will discuss the designer as if he or she was one person when, if fact, there are usually sev-

eral: a scene designer, a costume designer, and a lighting designer. Whether there is one or several,

the designer has the job of transforming the space of the stage into the place of the play. The area in which actors perform today varies from the traditional proscenium stage with the

© Joso Seabra‘Shattemtock.com

audience facing a picture frame stage:

From Swit the Aition te the Worst A Project Based Introduction to Theater, Socond Edition,by Jefirey Kean, Mark Creter, Eleni Fragopoulos, and Prudence van Aalten. Copyright © 2020 by Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Reprinted by permission.

CHAPTERS

Theatrical Design

39

Private Collection

© Mark

Gerson Photography Bridgeman Images

Private Collection © Look and

Leam

Bridgoman

Images

to the thrust stage where the audience is on three sides:

to the open space of a gymnasium, storefront, park,or church. Each kind of playing space presents different problems to the designer. But in all cases the job of the designer is to serve the play and to create an environment appropriate to the production and the vision of the director.

Bae

CHAPTERS

Theatrical Design

Let’s follow the design process. These are not set in stone rules. But every designer must at some point in the creative process address these issues. 1. Read the script. The first reading is to get some large impressions. Is it a comedy, a drama, or something in between? Genres such as Comedy or Tragedy are no longer as distinct as they were for Aristotle, Shakespeare, or even Arthur Miller. Many quite serious plays contain humorous elements, Many comedies contain serious themes. The designer also considers what is the inherent style of the play. Style is a slippery word. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary offers this: “a particular manner or technique by which something is done, created, or performed.” Theatrical productions which have distinct characteristics are often grouped into a style. Although it has been the predominant style in the western theatre for over 100 years, Realism, as a style of production, is only one choice for playwrights. Other styles include Naturalism: an extreme form of Realism, Expressionism: seeks to depict the subjective emotions and responses that characters and events arouse in the artist, Epic Theatre: seeks to remove illusion from the theatre and engage the audience in an objective way to observe social commentary. Absurdism: proposes that life itself is absurd and the depicts the folly of trying to impose meaning. Theatre of Cruelty: seeks to affect audiences viscerally, psychologically, physically, and irrationally. ‘This is not an exhaustive list but covers the range of styles available to playwrights. Some mixture of two or more of the above is also a recent innovation in modern theatre writing. On the first reading the designer also notes the time period of the play as this will affect costumes, sets, and small properties which need to be period appropriate. 2. Read the play again. This time through the designer makes notes on specific needs mentioned in the script: physical objects, settings and locations, furniture, and special effects. Although budgeting is not a primary concern at this point in the design process, it can't be overlooked completely as impressions begin to form as to how the design needs are going to meet. 3. Now it’s time to meet with the director. It is important to understand what approach the director has in mind before making any definite design decisions. If a conflict occurs, you want it to happen early on before work has begun. Many directors will have clear ideas on how they want to approach the material. Or they may leave the designers to come up with the design concept without any input. Each director will be different and the designers must be prepared during first meetings to be flexible. At the first meeting designers often bring images and sketches which give impressions, not final products, of where the designer is leaning. That way the director can approve the general direction or suggest alternatives without having to reject anything. Remember theatre is a collaborative artform and if the final product is going to be successful it will take the creative talents of all concerned to pull it off. The outcome of the first meeting should provide all designers with a specific direction in which to work. 4. Now the actual design work begins. A set designer will work from sketches, renderings, and scale models (if they are of an age!) or CAD

software (Computer Assisted Design). Com-

puter programs such as Autocad or Vectorworks are becoming the sign work. Any beginning designer will need to become familiar programs. CAD allows the designer to try out several variations and to actual drawings and blueprints. Current programs also allow for eling. Software for costume design is also widely available. There

CHAPTERS

industry standard for dewith one or more of the looks before committing three-dimensional modare several downloadable

Theatrical Design

4)

applications that allow the costumer to avoid the time-consuming hand sketching of each individual costume. Thanks to the Internet and file sharing face-to-face meetings are not as essential as they used to be. But several more conferences of some kind will be necessary before the designs can be finalized. Once the designs have been approved, the design team prepares working drawings for the production staff to build. Each piece of scenery or costume must be highly detailed with notes on building techniques, scale drawings, or full color renderings. In a small theatre, the designers will often do their own construction or be on hand to oversee it. In larger venues designers are hired only to provide detailed plans that the in-house staff will realize. All this work needs to be done before the rehearsals begin. The production staff will need ground plans (an overhead outline of the set) to plan blocking (moving the actors around on stage) and rehearsal furniture needs, The actors will need to know how they will interact with the set and costumes.

NECESSARY SKILLS FOR THEATRE

DESIGNERS

Scene designers need to be conversant with several nonrelated skills. 1. A solid theatre background. No one who is in the theatre works in a vacuum. Collaborative skills are essential to a smooth running production team. In addition, scenic designers must

be thoroughly grounded in theatrical history, general practices, stage technology, play analysis, and a general familiarity with the needs of actors. Research ability. Scene designers do extensive research into the time period, styles, and places indicated in the script and in the general society and culture that the play is set in. While very little of this research actually makes it onto stage it informs the choices and looks the designer eventually presents. Architectural ability. The ability to envision shape, dimension, and construction in space is essential to the scene designer. But beyond the usual architectural requirements the designer must also be aware of theatrical constraints such as scene changes, audience sightlines, offstage

storage, and safe practices. Interior decoration. A large majority of plays are set indoors or contain several indoor settings. For those sets, an eye for period appropriate detail will make or break a design. Color coordination, furniture style, wall and floor décor are all required skill sets.

Creative imagination. While realism is still the predominate being written with surreal elements. This calls for designers concrete into the realm of the abstract, the visual metaphor. difficult, studying theatre history and the artists that helped good place to start.

42

CHAPTERS

Theatrical Design

style of theatre, more plays are to go beyond the real and the While teaching such a skill is shape the modern theatre is a

Costumers are much more than just fashion designers. Theatre background. Foremost, the costumer must understand the characters in the play— their social and economic status, their motivations and psychology, and their physical and professional characteristics. While scene design can set the environment of the production, the actors and their costumes are always front and center and are the very definition of what makes theatre. Their clothing is a powerful description for the audience of who and what the actors are portraying. Clothing construction. Unlike normal everyday apparel, stage costumes must be built to last months or even years of constant usage. Continual hard use cleaning are required. In addition, many costumes must be constructed in such a way as to facilitate quick changes. Materials such as furs, leathers, and heavy brocades must be simulated to avoid taxing the actors on hot

stages. All of this requires a thorough knowledge of fabrics, pattern making, tailoring, and accessorizing.

History and research. Like the scenic artist, a costumer must be familiar with clothing styles over many historical periods.

Lighting Designers Are Heavily Dependent upon Technology The roots of western theatre are in outdoor spaces which used natural light. Productions at the Athenian Festival of Dionysus were all-day affairs. Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre performed in the afternoon when the light was most conducive. However, the fickleness of weather and patron

comfort forced many theatres to move indoors requiring artificial lighting. Candles and oil lamps were the first lighting designer’s tools. Even with crude instruments some amazing effects were

Univenal History Archive/UIG/Bridgeman Images

developed.

CHAPTERS

Theatrical Design

43

In the early nineteenth century, gas lighting became widespread in cities, and theatres were

quick to adapt it for use.

wi

House,

da Wai

Woodland, CA

)

roto courtesy of ‘The Woodland Opera

—

Gaslight control panel circa 1896

Gaslight was a distinct improvement over candles as the amount of light could be controlled by opening and closing the gas valves and colored by adding different minerals to the flames. However, gas proved to be a safety hazard and many nineteenth-century theatres went up in flames because of it. When electricity became widely available at the beginning of the twentieth century,

theatres were quick to adapt it to their use. Modern stage lights allow the designer to place illumination in exact levels and colors wherever they wish. Recent innovations offer lights that can move and change colors and patterns remotely operated by computer-assisted light board controllers. The addition of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), which last many times longer than incandescent

Bridgeman

Images

bulbs and do not emit heat as well as provide a range of colors, is another valuable tool in the light designer’s arsenal.

44

CHAPTERS

Theatrical

Design

Lighting designer requirements: 1. A thorough knowledge of the tools available. Theatre technology is moving and adapting computer technology almost as fast as the computer industry itself. Lighting control boards are very sophisticated instruments capable of running highly complicated light plots including moving lights, color changers, and hundreds, if not thousands, of individual cues, But the

newer boards can also control moving scenery, accessory machines such as fog or snow generators, and sound effects. Necessary knowledge also includes the properties and abilities of each kind of lighting instrument available. Knowing how a particular instrument will perform at different angles and positions and how it will react with textures and fabrics is essential. The usual amount of time a lighting designer has to see the completed sets and costumes is short and trial and error is not an option. CAD. While computer-assisted drafting may seem most valuable to the scene designer, software is now widely available for creating light designs. Designers can even demonstrate light effects on the computer using a three-dimensional model of the set. As with scenic design, drafting plans in software allows for easy revisions as the design process evolves, which will be important for the following: a. Creative flexibility. Unlike scenic and costume work, which should be relatively set by the time rehearsals begin, lighting designs must adapt as the rehearsal process plays out. Changes in the lighting design continue through the final dress rehearsals as colors, intensity, and time duration of cues become fine-tuned. The lighting designer must maintain flexibility and a collaborative spirit. b. A feel for the theatrical. Lighting can make dramatic impacts upon a production. But the good designer knows the essential elements of theatre are the actor and play. Lighting the action is the first, second, and third rule of lighting. Failing that, all the special effects in the world will not save the production. To paraphrase: no one leaves the theatre humming the lighting.

Sound Designer Is Relatively New Position in the Theatre While music and rhythmic speaking has been a part of theatre since its roots, sound reinforcement came into its own with the introduction of modern sound equipment such as recording microphones, amplifiers, speakers, sound editing software, and wireless body microphones. The first formal theatres were placed in hillside amphitheatres, which amplified the human voice through natural acoustics. Modern productions take advantage of the technology to do much more than just support the actor's voice. Sound has also become an essential ingredient in creating environment and mood. Large spectacle musicals such as Phantom of the Opera, Hamilton, or Les

Miserables would be considerably diminished without sound reinforcement. Sound designers need to be accomplished in: 1

Thorough knowledge of available equipment such as mixing boards, editing and playback software, wireless technology, and music instrumentation and reinforcement.

bY

A solid grounding in music performance and instrumentation. A working knowledge of the science of acoustics.

. An appreciation of how the creative use of sound can enhance a performance. CHAPTERS

‘Theatrical Design

45

Projection Designers Another a fairly new position in theatre dependent upon technology is that of projection designer. Theatres used projected images as far back as the eighteenth century using mirrors and painted glass. In the mid to late twentieth century, high-powered slide projectors were used by theatres that could afford the steep price of the equipment and the slide production, With the introduction of the digital projector and computer imaging, theatrical projections became affordable and are now a significant tool in the scene designer's arsenal. Large backdrops which used to take many hours to paint now can be achieved in a matter of moments. Projected video can provide large scale movement effects. A recent touring production of Peter Pan was staged in the round with twelve video projectors aimed at the circular wall behind the audience. Computers coordinated the projectors to create 360 degrees of scenery which could move with the actors. A projection designer needs: 1. Knowledge of digital projector technology. 2. Familiarity with computers and computer graphics. 3. Knowledge of projection playback software.

46

CHAPTERS

Theatrical Design

CHAPTER

6

Dramaturgy & Stage Management

RESEARCHING AND

RUNNING THE SHOW

This chapter focuses on dramaturgs and stage managers, not because they are directly related, but because, like producers and directors, they hold special positions in a theatre organization. Their work dramatically affects the look, continuity, believability, and, ultimately, the success of the pro-

duction. Dramaturgs and stage managers are leaders/managers and collaborators as well as valued artistic members of the production staff, In commercial and regional theatres, it is paramount that these positions are filled by consummate professionals, but in community theatres, these roles, because of financial constraints, often fall to less experienced individuals. In either situation, dra-

maturgs and stage managers are crucial members of the artistic staff. This chapter provides an overview of their duties and spotlights interviews with respected professionals.

THE DRAMATURG’S RESPONSIBILITIES Dramaturgs specialize in all issues dealing with dramatic literature. Major professional companies have full time dramaturgs on staff while other theatres hire them on a show-by-show basis. Dramaturgs have many responsibilities prior to a production including researching, developing, and advising. For instance, a dramaturg might work with a marketing director in conducting surveys to determine the types of plays a theatre's audience is interested in seeing. If the audience enjoys classical works, the dramaturg may search for a title that is rarely produced, in the hope that it From Interactive Introduction to Theatre: Improving Life One Act at a Time, Third Edition,by Daisy Folsom. Copyright © 2015 by Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Reprinted by permission.

47

will intrigue the audience. In some cases, a play might be so obscure that a modern audience will have difficultly understanding its nuances. In such a case, the dramaturg will edit all or part of the script and adapt it to modern sensibilities. It could also be that the play is written in another language and needs to be translated. The dramaturg, if able, may translate the script or arrange for a translation. Perhaps the dramaturg has located an original play that he or she thinks the theatre's audience might enjoy. In this instance, the dramaturg can work with the playwright in developing the play for production. The dramaturg provides the playwright with another perspective and gives suggestions on how to improve various aspects of the play. If there is concern that the audience may be unfamiliar with the play’s historical or literary merit, genre, or playwright, the dramaturg may provide the audience with educational informa-

tion. Perhaps the theatre is interested in attracting a young audience. In this case, a dramaturg could develop workshops or mini-performances of an upcoming production and arrange for them to be presented at local schools. Finally, the dramaturg will write a short synopsis of pertinent information to be included in the program.

Production Dramaturg During the pre-production and rehearsal stages of a play, a great deal of research needs to be done. Many directors prefer to do their own research, but some find collaborating with a dramaturg during the production process is even more effective. It is helpful to first look at reviews of past productions. It is also important to find background information on the playwright and his or her previous plays. Such information can provide important clues about the play being produced. If a play is set in a country or time period unfamiliar to the production team, substantial research needs to be done in order to create a truthful production. Certainly, information regarding the

customs and political and religious beliefs of the characters will be of value to both the artistic staff and the cast. Additionally, if the play contains language that is unfamiliar and/or words that have varying pronunciations, then the dramaturg will address those issues. There are many ways to approach the analysis of a play. A dramaturg will utilize library resources such as books and journal articles and will also conduct research via the Internet. A dramaturg may also conduct interviews with specialists in fields relating to the production.

LIZ ENGELMAN

Ms. Engelman received a B.A. in theatre from Brown University and a M.F.A. in dramaturgy at Columbia University. She is a board member of the Board of the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of America having previously served as board Chair and President. Ms. Engelman’s positions have included Literary Director of the McCarter Theatre, the Director of New Play Development at ACT Theatre in Seattle, Literary Manager/Dramaturg at Seattle’s Intiman Theatre and Assistant Literary Manager at the Actors Theatre of Louisville. Ms. Engelman has had the privilege of working to develop new plays at The Playwright’s Center in Minneapolis, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, ASK Theatre Projects, New York Theatre Workshop, the O'Neill Playwrights Conference, and South Coast Rep. 48

CHAPTER 6

Dramaturgy & Stage Management

iz ENGELMAN

© Liz Eogelman

DRAMATURG

Ms. Engelman has directed new plays at these theatres: The Illusion Theatre (with Michael Dixon), Mixed Blood Theatre, The Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis, and Carleton College.

She has been a guest artist at Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Puget Sound, and Cornish College of the Arts. Additionally, she has taught playwriting at Freehold Studio Theatre Lab and The Playwrights Center. Ms. Engelman is an accomplished writer and some of her credits include co-editing several collections of plays with Michael Bigelow Dixon and two volumes of monologues on which she collaborated with Tori Haring-Smith. THE STAGE

MANAGER'S

RESPONSIBILITIES

Pre-Production The stage manager is responsible for organizing and managing the entire production from pre-production through post production. Before the rehearsals begin, the stage manager arranges and chairs several production meetings with the director and the designers. During these meetings, the stage manager will keep complete and accurate notes. After the meeting, the notes are organized, typed, and distributed to the artistic staff. Other pre-production duties include, but are

not limited to, evaluating the theatre and its equipment, locating safety equipment and fire exits, organizing all important information (safety/health concerns, rehearsal times and agenda, contact information, etc.) on an easy to read, centrally located “call board,” creating and updating a to-do list, and drawing up a master schedule for the production.

Auditions During auditions, stage managers are responsible for signing the actors in, collecting headshots and resumes, passing out sides (sections of scripts), introducing the actors to the directors at the appropriate time, and, in some cases, reading the script with the actors. At a professional theatre open call, there may be hundreds of actors which means that the stage manager is also responsible for crowd control. Rehearsals Before a rehearsal begins, it is absolutely imperative that the stage manager check the entire area for possible hazards. Accidents do happen, but many can be avoided by a complete examination of the rehearsal space, set pieces, and hand properties before the actors arrive. If an accident does occur, the stage manager should be ready to address the issue calmly and efficiently. During rehearsals, stage managers take blocking (movement) notes for the director in a prompt book. This means that before the rehearsals begin, the stage manager makes his or her own prompt book. Usually this book is composed of loose leaf 8-1/2" x 11-1/2" pages containing a copy of the script which are placed into a three-ring binder. All the other information regarding the production is also kept in the binder. It is important to divide the prompt book into clearly marked sections that include contact and scheduling information, a properties list, sound and lighting cues, scenic design and ground plan (a scale drawing of the location of the set pieces in relation to the scenery), and the running time of the production.

CHAPTER G6

Dramaturgy & Stage Management

43

One of the most important sections of the prompt book is the script itself which is, due to copyright laws, best made from the actual printed scripts. If the stage manager has two scripts available, he or she will unbind the script and adhere (using rubber cement or a glue stick) each page to its own sheet of blank, loose-leaf 8-1/2" x 11-1/2" paper. The reason for this is to create a large blank boarder around each page of script. This is where the director's blocking will be noted. In addition to a prompt book, the stage manager maintains a kit holding a variety of items that may be needed during the rehearsal. Some of these items include, but are certainly not limited to, aspirin, acetaminophen, honey, sugar, powdered cream, individual bags of tea, paper cups,

safety pins, pencils, hair pins, toothpaste, toothbrushes, hair spray, nail files, cough drops, candles, flashlights, towelettes, facial tissue, stop watch, chalk, one-inch brads, black ballpoint pens, elec-

tric extension cords, measuring tape, tailor’s measuring tape, ruler, tacks, spike tape, masking tape, and a well-stocked first aid kit. It may seem like a great deal of equipment, but having these and other items nearby can save a great deal of time and frustration during rehearsals. Remember the old adage, “Whatever can go wrong will go wrong.” A stage manager must be prepared for any situation; in fact, most professional stage managers are trained in C.P.R. and basic first aid. In addition to making blocking notations and providing needed items for emergency situations, the stage manager is responsible for running the rehearsal. This basically means that the stage manager announces to the group that the rehearsal is beginning and informs them when it is over. The stage manager will time every scene during the rehearsal in order to calculate the total running time of the production. He or she calls breaks at appropriate times (Actors Equity Association, the professional stage actors’ union, requires regular breaks for actors). The stage manager is also responsible for telephoning actors that are late to the rehearsal, although professionals are never late unless there is an emergency. The stage manager might also prompt actors when they forget lines, but this duty is frequently given to an assistant stage manager. When the rehearsal is finished, the stage manager returns the set pieces and hand props to a storage area and writes a rehearsal report. Rehearsal reports might indicate to the costumer that an outer coat is now needed in a particular scene; the sound designer may learn that a special song is needed for a scene, etc. This rehearsal report is copied and distributed to the entire artistic staff.

Running the Production While the production is in performance, the stage manager checks to make sure that the actors and running crew arrive at the scheduled times, synchronizes the opening of the theatre with the house manager, and calls actors to places. During the performance, the stage manager supervises the running crew (stage hands who move the scenery and the props). It is very important that the set changes occur quickly and smoothly—rough scene changes make a production sloppy and badly paced. ‘The stage manager also calls the show during a performance. When a stage manager is calling the show, he or she is sitting at a desk, usually in the wings, informing the sound and light board operators (via headset) when to run each of the cues. For example, a light cue might be blackout (all stage lights off). A sound cue might be gunfire and is called when a character is supposed to be shot.

50

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A major responsibility of the stage manager is to insure the integrity of the production. Some Broadway productions can run for several years and the show needs to be played the same way every night. The director does not attend every performance and, thus, cannot give notes to the

actors. The stage manager gives notes and may even call rehearsals when the show is not up to its original standard. The production needs to be archived and the stage manager is responsible for organizing and running

the photo

call. Sometimes,

the director and designers

select pictures; at other times,

selection is left to the stage manager. During the actual shooting, the stage manager needs to call actors to places and then call the needed light cues. Post Production There are several post-production duties that a stage manager must complete. Some of these might include returning the rented scripts and/or scores, devising a strike schedule, and, if desired,

writing thank you notes. This section has provided a brief overview of the duties of stage managers. There are many other responsibilities which can differ depending on the theatre and the production itself. For

example, a touring show will be handled differently than one staged in a permanent location, and a musical has responsibilities that exceed straight plays. Professional stage managers receive excellent salaries and good stage managers are always in demand.

STAGE MANAGER An

Actors’

Equity

Cunningham

has

RICK CUNNINGHAM

Association

nearly

one

stage

hundred

manager

since

professional

1980,

stage

Rick

manage-

ment credits. Some of these include Bulgarian Theatre Festival (Sopia); Roy Hart, The Roy Hart Theatre of France; German Theater Festival (Bremen);

Shakespeare for My

Father (Lynn

Redgrave); All The King’s

Men (Adrian Hall); Constant Star (Tazewell Thompson); Contemporary American Theater Festival; Trump Plaza Casino, Atlantic City; and the

Rosebud Theatre Company of New York City. He has also managed high profile events at and for the Gubernatorial Inaugurations in Massachu-

a zo ¥

setts and Delaware, the National Football League, the Points of Light Foundation, the Kennedy Center, the AstroDome, the SuperDome, the FedEx Field, and the First Night Wilmington "97-02.

RICK CUNNINGHAM

Cunningham received an M.FA. in Directing from Tulane University. Currently, he heads the M.F.A. Stage Management program at the University of Delaware—Professional Theatre Training Program and has served as the Coordinator of the Stage Management Mentoring Project for the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, 2003-2006.

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Dramaturgy & Stage Management

51

CHAPTER

SEVEN

The Playwright

SKILLS OF THE PLAYWRIGHT The playwright is nothing more than that great storyteller, however they must be able to capture that technique on paper and they themselves, especially as we know them today, are also not physically communicating the story to the audience, like that of the actors. When someone gets

in front of an audience to tell a story they are the combined creator of content and the presenter. The playwright usually is the sole creator of the content that is meant for another, the actor, who

will be presenting to the audience. As with many in history like Shakespeare who also would take small roles in his plays, writers can and do present what they write. However, typically in the standard theatre world the playwright is that secluded soul that is tucked away and surrounded by parchment and writing devices, tools, typewriter, pen, laptop, and such, in order to create that moving story that will change the audience, given the time period. Anyone can be a great storyteller and anyone can be a great writer. Typically, the skills that this profession possess is that of open-mindedness with experiences, life experiences, and researched

experience. When we look at the differences of a playwright and a novelist or a short story writer, we find that the biggest is that a playwright is writing a story that is meant to be played or presented to an audience. A novelist or story writer is creating a work that is meant to be read and that is where the communication happens. The page to the reader. In playwriting, it goes from the page to the

performers (or the stage) then to a live listening and watching audience. Because of this difference the structure of the story and writing has different needs. When reading a novel or story the writer is speaking to the reader in third person, telling us about the people and the event, using From Theatre: Understanding the Basics of Precuction, by Corey W, Ranson. Copyright © 2020 by Kendal! Hunt Publishing Company, Reprinted by permission,

53

a tone and flair of words that can captivate our imagination. For the playwright, they must write the words spoken from every character's point of view. For example, in a novel or short story it may read something like this: It was a dark night, the moon full, and from a small house on a secluded ridge over-

looking the beach, a light gleams from the kitchen window. It’s Susan, a young woman, thirty-five and obviously distracted, by the way she is washing the plates in the sink, as

if she is expecting something . . She quickly stops. It's Bob at the doorway. Her husband. He's distraught. As she looks at him, “What do you want?” she says. “I want to talk. This can't go on all night.” He mutters. “Then talk,” she groans, “it's a free country last time I checked.” “I need you to look at me,” says Bob. “Nothing I did last night was because I didn't love you.”

The same story or idea from a play script may read like this: (Lights come up onstage. It is a dark night, the moon full, and from a small house on a secluded ridge overlooking the beach. A light gleams from the kitchen window. We see a woman, Susan, a young woman, 35 and obviously distracted by the way she is washing

the plates in the sink, as if she is expecting something.) (She quickly stops. Bob enters to the doorway. Her husband. He's distraught.)

Susan What do you want? Bob I want to talk. This can't go on all night.

Susan Then talk, it’s a free country last time I checked. Bob I need you to look at me. Nothing I did last night was because I didn't love you. A few things of which to take note. Notice that the playwriting is forcing you, the reader, to speak the role as the character in the story and the introduction to and within moments are set up as what we call stage directions. Stage directions are usually that section that set us ip for what we are going into for the moment of a particular scene. What we also notice is that those moments in the play, unlike the story or novel, are not going to be given to the audience as a reader would read them. These directions are meant for the presenters, the actors, and director to interpret for

an audience as the actors live out the characters and their stories for the audience. On the contrary, the novelist or the story writer will write probably a bit more “colorful” for the reader in order to set the “tone” for the reader. The playwright will typically begin with more focus on the details of when, where, time, and place, and what we call the setting of the play. So the presenters

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can know how to exhibit what the playwright wants. Clearly, there is more imagination involved for the reader since they are taking in only words, and the actors are living images for the play. In theatre the director interprets the imagination of the writer and visualizes the staged idea for a play. So in a sense the director would be that of the reader for a novel or a short story, it’s just the director then takes it a step further which involves putting the story up on a stage. The other idea to note is that the play script is also for the actor as they practice and rehearse what is guided by a director. This is probably the primary reason for the play structure in which we are found reading for the characters in the play since that is the actor's job; to play a character. After looking at structure we can see the process and differences that may apply more to a playwright rather than a novelist or story writer. All great writers of any genre should be openminded individuals with various perspectives and a great sense of research and/or experience. Most writers tend to write from their life experiences, structure aside. However, when we take a

look at the differences between how the playwright tends to approach their work, versus the novelist or story writer, the playwright can benefit from having a clear understanding of the arts and crafts of all theatre artists since they are creating works that are to be translated onto the stage. The playwright is writing from all characters’ points of view in the script, therefore many writers benefit from not just understanding good dramatic structure and story, but character development and character viewpoints. Courses of study for a playwright may also include acting classes, theatre history, and other forms of theatre appreciation courses, or even courses that go into the design world for the stage.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A SCREENWRITER

THE PLAYWRIGHT AND

The questions a good playwright should address when writing for the stage are: “Is my play only meant for the theatre?” And “Why or why not?” Great theatre plays should not be easily transferrable to movies or TV, since they are a process that requires a different approach and style of writing. The idea of “theatricality” which is the different ways live theatre and performance can give us a creative world or story within the confines of the venue or place, the theater. This in turn forces the experience in a live theatre setting to require even more of the audience’s imagination. A good playwright should expound upon that. One of the biggest confusions is the understanding of the difference of film, TV, and plays. Typically, one may assume that when one is a stage actor, for

example, that they are also in tune and trained for the camera for movies or TV. While most great theatre actors have transferred well onto the screen, not all were meant for that transition because,

like writing, the process and the study is different. The play for the stage, first off, is live, therefore everything we take in as an audience is in real time and not recorded on screen for us to see when we feel like it. It is moving in front of us as it is happening. Because of this, it presents many challenges for the presenters, actors, performers, and also for the audiences. These are not negative challenges, but they are challenges, nonetheless. The challenges for the actors are first the technical issues, stamina, being on stage with hours of lines memorized and the ability to project the voice and body behavior consistently to a large audience for a long period of time without making mistakes. This process is very daunting to a novice of theatre, but is a beautiful challenge for the trained actor, and it still comes with nerves and talent. The challenge for the audience, and what is

probably the more difficult to grasp of the two, is that we are expected to believe that everything

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on the stage of which we are watching is the real truth of the presenters before us. The actor in front of us speaks out towards us and is in need and struggles and has conflict. We can physically touch them, talk to them, but we are “not there,” the actor is alone. We call that the fourth wall (the imaginative wall that separates the stage and the audience). Since we have the live challenges,

and we are in the same physical place as the actors, we are limited as to where we can actually go. Basically, whatever can be created on the stage is where we can be made to believe that is where we are. Just as it is common in storytelling, it is the same with plays, that we find more language from the actor, more descriptive dialogue telling about an action, as opposed to physically seeing that action take place in front of us. Why is that you may ask? Well our imaginations are far more creative and detailed than any presentation of action that could be given to us on stage. For example, if we sat and thought in our own minds what scared us, we could do more damage of

scaring ourselves than any detailed moment we could see on a stage. We know from our own personal life experiences what moves us the most, whether

it is what scares us, makes us laugh, brings

us to anger, and so forth. As audiences when we are taking in a story, play, or book, we apply our own experiences anyway. This can enhance or subdue a thought or idea being given to us by presenters, performers, or a simple novel. This is why a story or movie may be far more comical or horrific to one person and not so much to another. Therefore we can see that when watching a play we will hear more spoken words and while we will see action and physical activity between characters, it will be far less than that of recorded movies or TV shows. Movies and TV shows on

the other hand will be written with far more action and physical behavior and not as much language or “talking” between characters. In TV copy (TV script) or a screenplay (movie script) they will have an even amount or more of action that is taking place, written in the script that is to be translated to the screen. So a play tends to take more advantage of the audiences’ imagination and the movies tend to be able to really take us places. One might say plays were meant to be “heard then seen” and movies were meant to be “seen then heard.” The playwright must understand these differences to be successful for writing for the stage. If a play can be translated to a movie without any changes or adjustments to being a screenplay, then maybe the play wasn’t meant for the stage from the beginning. This illuminates that the writer must understand the process of dramatic language for the theatre and how the “live storytelling process” can feed and direct an audience's imaginations.

GOALS OF THE PLAYWRIGHT The main objectives for a playwright can vary from play to play. One of the great observations of live theatre is that theatre experiences for both the audience and the live performers are like “snowflakes” in that they are and should be their own ephemeral experience. We know this to be true with the fact that it being live will be that one time experience, but also that the different stories and styles change from story to moment to experience. Just like real life experiences all are completely different. The goals of a playwright has a large box to fill, but it is the true need for the worthiness of the play for the stage that a playwright desires to find. Worthiness, quite a daunting word, but nonetheless, a needed question of the work that a writer should consider. Does this play have a place for the stage? Is the play worth doing? And is the live experience worth the time for a sitting audience? That can be asked of any artist or sporting event, and does raise the bar high

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for playwrights, but this can and does keep the needed stories and greater writing experiences in the forefront of our well-known and professional theatres. It always is a question of time. The difference the question means to theatre as opposed to film and other events is that theatre is an extremely time consuming art that can require many hours, weeks, and months of a mixture of several collaborating artists producing together and preparing for a great and powerful moment on a particular “opening day” of live audience performance. This of course happens with any other artistic project, like movies, television, and other presenting events for sure, but theatre is far more obscure and its great moments are fewer and far between. Great theatre requires strong and great artists working diligently and committedly, on a single project that will cease after its run. Simply, more people are more interested and qualified, or are more able to do things like film, TV, radio, and sports. This is to not take away from the talents in these areas, it is just that in order for live

theatre to be what it is intended to be, a moving and powerful experience, it requires the most talented and challenging of all live presenters and artists. Therefore, for these artists to take on a new and exciting theatre piece from a playwright it must be a play that stands alone and has its own voice that deserves to be on a live stage. Can anyone write a play? Of course, and just like anyone with time, money, and resources can put on a play, the end result can also be a disappointing experience. Just as in movie making, now we have resources to make movies that may have a “professional look” with our devices and apps that has a quality that looks really good. Unfortunately, not all people with a camera should be producing movies, well not for public consumption, but we have that today. The theatre has always had humans with the capability to accomplish a conceived play or performance, and not all are “worthy,” for production or performance. Playwrights would consider what their voice means to an audience and what journey, within a story, is worth an audience’s experience, and of course the artists giving that to an audience.

PROCESS OF THE PLAYWRIGHT The playwright is a very independent job, and like any writer they must have a discipline to their work that keeps them on the map, so to speak. Many writers today of the theatre, start out at some point with that “hook experience” within the theatre. That is the experience they themselves have in the theatre that made them desire to be in the theater and then to be a storyteller in the theatre and not in novels or movies. They were an actor or they had seen plays as a child, or they had directed plays and found themselves involved in scripts and realized that was a drive within to create plays on their own, Whatever the reason, or “hook” the playwright realizes that they have found themselves in probably the loneliest position in theatre there is in being a writer. Once the writer begins their process they find it to be liberating, and at the same time very challenging. In our communication world today it is a bit easier to get one’s work out there to theatres and directors, but also it means everyone else can too. The first process of the writer must be to create, to

write. They must first write plays. The other process would then be to have their work read and produced for exposure to audiences. Most writers have more problems and challenges with the second. Getting their work out there so they can have exposure and their plays be seen, produced, and hopefully to be published by a publishing house so the play can then get into a more commercial and professional circulation.

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The Writer How many different ways can one write? That is how many ways a writer can go about their process. One way for a great writer may be non-productive for another. Specifically, good writers are always writing,

a common

exercise. This means that they probably have a running notebook, or

today, notes on their devices or laptops. Anton Chekov, famous Russian playwright of the late 1800s, kept several notebooks with seemingly random notes that have lines or sentences that seem to be thoughts. Many writers will have a process of listing off random ideas or images that trigger or could begin great story ideas. However the process begins, the playwright must eventually decide what needs to be told, In the theatre plays can be of all lengths and sizes. Most plays are full-length plays. This means that it consists of acts, which are longer moments within stories that usually consist of what we call scenes. Scenes are smaller moments with acts that move the story along. Typically a full-length play runs about ninety minutes to a couple of hours. This is dictated by what the story needs. Then there are what is called “one-acts,” these are plays that typically fit within an act and run in length about forty-five minutes to an hour. Most of the time to take in an evening of theatre, theatres will take up a couple of hours of an audience’s time, sort of like the length of a movie. This creates a more affordable and worthy evening in the theatre, as opposed to going out to take in a play that is only forty minutes, then leaving; even though some of the best plays can be found to be in the “one act” category. Since we are exploring the needs of the play, as a writer writes, sometimes that experience requires a play to be even smaller. The Actors’ Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky, for example, became famous over the last few decades for creating a new plays festival that features plays of many different lengths. Full-lengths, one-acts, then ten minute plays, play readings and even two minute telephone plays as the audience waited in the lobby to purchase tickets to a bigger play. There are many festivals across the globe today that seek out ten minute plays, also there are students from colleges around the world, through organizations like the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, that present and show ten minute, devised the-

atre plays from writers that can help them grow in their craft and learn if their play needs to be a bigger undertaking. Great writers are always in the process of writing until the play “speaks to them”—not literally of course, but typically this means they may have several plays in the works, so to speak, meaning they could be in the middle of writing as many as a few plays at a time. The writer may have plays in their desktop they haven't touched for a while and then all of a sudden they experience something or see or hear something that triggers more work to be done on a story they may already have, which could lead to something that gets to a completed draft. The Draft When a playwright is working on a play they call each completed attempt, a draft. Each ensuing adjustment or change to the script, is a newer draft. We hear the terms manuscript or script,

but writers of the theatre typically use “draft” because it seems to make it a “living document,” meaning it can still have changes made to it as it develops. After a draft is completed, a playwright will seek out actors, friends, or solicit theatre companies in hopes of getting a reading done of their draft. A reading is basically a sit down reading of the play with actors playing the parts from the scripts and acting the parts as they read it. This is done so the playwright, and usually an audience

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or an audience of the writer's peers, can hear the play. The playwright will be taking notes, there may also be a feedback session or response session from the audience to see how they received the first reading of this first draft. Most plays will go through at least a few drafts. The playwright will take notes as they get feedback from their new work and continue to develop it. It is rare that a play is written in its complete form after one draft, just like a novelist doesn't complete a book in one sitting. The feedback a writer gets is usually something that allows the playwright to hear their play. Plays must be presented on stage through a performance at some point, or at least that is the end goal for a play, therefore, playwrights are usually the only type of writer who will listen and hear their work and allow an audience to experience it as it grows to what it may become someday. A novelist, a poet, or short story writer usually doesn’t do a reading of their work before going to their publisher. The playwright, while they are the voice of the play and write for other voices through production, the play will eventually be presented by different real voices, actors. There are a few reasons a playwright will do this. First, since the writer is writing for more than a few characters, and of course not as themselves, so to speak, the playwright needs to hear the dif-

ferences and similarities in the created characters. For example, the writer may hear in a reading that one character who is the protagonist or lead character speaks using words that are established as common for that character and may come from the playwright’s own language vocabulary. Then they may hear another character, that is not related to the lead character, or may even be written to be from a different background, and they notice they use some of the same vocabulary as that lead. This would be the language of the character. It’s easy for a writer to get caught in that trap. Other elements of the play the writer is listening for in a reading are things like: the flow of the story, do the parts of the written play move the story as intended or are there elements that seem to be there for distracting reasons? Does the play have characters that serve the play? Are there characters written in that help the journey of the story for the audience, or does it feel that some characters

are there for a small bit, or distracting side show moment? ‘These ideas are usually broken into two large categories for a playwright: the “technical” and the “artistic.” The technical is basically the physical element of the play and they can be categorized in the following areas: Dramatic structure—this is the physical structure of the writing. Is the play climactic, episodic, circular, and so forth?

Type of play or genre—is it a comedy, drama, tragedy? Languages of the play—how do the words written sound for the storytelling of the play? Are the characters written with “believable” dialogue they would realistically say? Is there verse or other structure that needs to be there? What is the tone of the structure and language set for the play?—Tone is the “feeling” we get when we, as an audience, experience it. For example when you sit down in a play usually by the first handful of minutes, without being told, you should know if you are watching a comedy or a dramatic play. While we, as an audience, like surprises and unpredictability in our plays, we don’t like not knowing what genre we are watching. We want to know if it’s okay to laugh or not. Why? Well it’s live and we want to maintain our theatre etiquette and we want to be prepared for what we are about to take in. Of course, great comedy has good serious moments and great drama has great comic moments, but we can enjoy our experience more if we know what we are watching. It would be like going to a funeral and a circus

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breaks out. No matter what your role is at the funeral, we are there with an expected tone and know that, unless the deceased had a relation to the circus, we as spectators would feel

cheated in some way. The playwright would also be listening for non-technical elements in the writing, we might call them “artistic” meaning the idea, perspective, or theme of the story itself. Does the playwright feel their voice coming out of the play and is it saying what they want? The voice here means what is specific about this playwright’s storytelling to the audience. This is what usually defines a writer and also makes this writer's work relevant for the stage. Just like if an athlete tries to play a game with the style the same as another, a writer would also be seeking, listening, and learning to develop their style, this would be their voice. Not all writers have a clear voice, but those who

do tend to be more well-known, and usually that is because their work is being sought out for production.

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CHAPTER

EIGHT

Musical Theatre

From Western ‘Theatre's origins in the Greek religious rituals to 21*-century Broadway and The

West End of London, music and dance have always played a significant role in the drama. Aristotle listed music as one of the six elements of Poetry (theatre). His definition was broader than

instrumental music as it included song and vocal expression. Classical opera has its origins in Renaissance efforts to copy Greek theatre with its larger than life characters and backing chorus. Elizabethan theatre often interspersed songs and dances in the plays. Shakespeare’s Globe The-

atre had a special musician's gallery behind and above the stage. In the 1800s, Vaudeville and burlesque shows featured musical acts and extensive interaction between performers and orchestra. Melodramas used music to heighten emotion and to accompany the action. But from the middle of the 20" century to today, the genre we call musical theatre has become the most popular form of theatre in the world with megahits such as Les Miserad/es translated into dozens of languages

Bridgeman Images

and performed worldwide.

From Suit the Actionto the Word: A Project Baved Introduction to Theater, Second Edition,by Jeffrey Kean, Mark Creter, Eleni Fragopoulos, and Prudence van Aalten. Copyright © 2020 by Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Reprinted by permission

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Images Bridgeman

The American Theatre is generally credited with developing the form of the modern musical

although its elements are derived from such diverse sources as opera, ballet, British Music Halls, Vaudeville, and even 19"-century Minstrel shows. Vaudeville featured a variety of short scenes including music, skits, comedians, juggling and

novelty acts. Many of the first generation of musical theatre and cinema character actors such as Bob Hope, W. C. Fields, Judy Garland, Sammy Davis Jr., and Buster Keaton got their early training in Vaudeville. American Burlesque shows have been associated with strip tease and crude humor. But in the 1800s, it primarily featured satirical skits and songs. Minstrel shows were comedy and musical acts performed by white actors wearing black-face makeup. Ballet has a place in musical theatre history thanks to a lucky fluke. In 1866, a melodrama called The Black Crook was preparing to open when a theatre in the same town burned down leaving a French ballet troupe stranded. The producer hired the company and incorporated them into the show and was

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