Complete the following character exercise this morning in the lab.
Looking at pictures and watching people can be a goldmine for character building. As a playwright, one of the most important tasks you will have to accomplish is creating interesting characters. Boring characters make for boring plays, so it's helpful to have a few ideas about character design before jumping into the pool of monologues, scenes, and plays.
Task #1: Brainstorming Characters:
IN YOUR JOURNAL or NOTEBOOK please complete the following exercise. DO NOT TURN THIS IN. Instead, you may use it for a writing assignment.
Please take a look at the photos of people below. For each photo, give the person a name, age or age range, and 1-sentence physical description. Follow this up with a 1-sentence goal or urgent desire.
For example:
GEORGETTE MINSKY, female, age 25-30. Georgette always wears a baseball glove (even to church) and too much lipstick. She wants to witness a miracle first hand or at least win her minor-league softball team's championship trophy in memory of her dead grandma.
Create a character for any 3 of these pictures (you may do all of them, if you'd like):
Lab Task 2: Watch the following pairs of performances. Compare/contrast the quality or effectiveness of the performer and write your analysis or critique of the monologue in a paragraph response (to be turned in today by the end of class). There are 3 pairings.
To assist your answers: As you watch these scenes from Talking With, pay attention to how the playwright engages the audience and tells an interesting story that develops the single speaking character. Notice how the actor portrays this character. Are the author's words more effective or is the performance more compelling to you as an audience? What does this suggest about the nature of performance? Which performance was stronger than the other? Why? What might be some things you want to remember about writing plays for performers?
Lab Task 3: Using your character exercise from last class or this morning, write a monologue from the perspective of your created character.
Please turn in your monologue draft for participation credit by the end of class.
Looking at pictures and watching people can be a goldmine for character building. As a playwright, one of the most important tasks you will have to accomplish is creating interesting characters. Boring characters make for boring plays, so it's helpful to have a few ideas about character design before jumping into the pool of monologues, scenes, and plays.
Task #1: Brainstorming Characters:
IN YOUR JOURNAL or NOTEBOOK please complete the following exercise. DO NOT TURN THIS IN. Instead, you may use it for a writing assignment.
Please take a look at the photos of people below. For each photo, give the person a name, age or age range, and 1-sentence physical description. Follow this up with a 1-sentence goal or urgent desire.
For example:
GEORGETTE MINSKY, female, age 25-30. Georgette always wears a baseball glove (even to church) and too much lipstick. She wants to witness a miracle first hand or at least win her minor-league softball team's championship trophy in memory of her dead grandma.
Create a character for any 3 of these pictures (you may do all of them, if you'd like):
To assist your answers: As you watch these scenes from Talking With, pay attention to how the playwright engages the audience and tells an interesting story that develops the single speaking character. Notice how the actor portrays this character. Are the author's words more effective or is the performance more compelling to you as an audience? What does this suggest about the nature of performance? Which performance was stronger than the other? Why? What might be some things you want to remember about writing plays for performers?
Clear Glass Marbles (monologue, page 19-22)
Clear Glass Marbles (monologue, page 19-22)
Audition. (monologue, page 25-27)
Audition
French Fries (monologue, page 61-63)Please turn in your answers for participation credit by the end of class.
French Fries
Lab Task 3: Using your character exercise from last class or this morning, write a monologue from the perspective of your created character.
Please turn in your monologue draft for participation credit by the end of class.
If you missed it, read about Jane Martin here.
Please turn in Lab tasks 2 & 3 before you leave today. These assignments are due by the end of class. If you finish early (before the bell rings), please work on your homework assignments (reading).
HOMEWORK: If you did not complete your reading of Talking With, please do so. If you are done reading the play, please hand it in. Please read the monologue play The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler for Monday and read the handout on play ideas and the standard types of plays (two-act, one-act, 10-minute plays, etc.) Identify the writing advice in this article and take notes on key ideas from the article in your journal. Please bring The Vagina Monologues and the article to class on Monday.
NOTE: if you were absent on the first day of classes and did not write a scene for your baseline, please make sure you do. The instructions are posted below in the post for 8/31.
Please turn in Lab tasks 2 & 3 before you leave today. These assignments are due by the end of class. If you finish early (before the bell rings), please work on your homework assignments (reading).
HOMEWORK: If you did not complete your reading of Talking With, please do so. If you are done reading the play, please hand it in. Please read the monologue play The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler for Monday and read the handout on play ideas and the standard types of plays (two-act, one-act, 10-minute plays, etc.) Identify the writing advice in this article and take notes on key ideas from the article in your journal. Please bring The Vagina Monologues and the article to class on Monday.
NOTE: if you were absent on the first day of classes and did not write a scene for your baseline, please make sure you do. The instructions are posted below in the post for 8/31.
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