The Mystery of Irma Vep

Please submit your play analysis for the play you choose to read in Charles Busch's collection. This will count as a quiz grade for the marking period. You may leave your play books by the door when you leave, if you wish and I will return them to the library.

Charles Ludlam is best known for the theatrical movement: The Theatre of the Ridiculous.

"The Theatre of the Ridiculous" made a break with the dominant trends in theatre of naturalistic acting and realistic settings. It employed a very broad acting style, often with surrealistic stage settings and props, frequently making a conscious effort at being shocking or disturbing. "Ridiculous" theatre brought some elements of queer performance to avant-garde theater. Cross-gender casting was common, with players often recruited from non-professional sources, such as drag queens or other "street stars." [We see this trend continue with the plays of Charles Busch].

Plots in these "ridiculous" plays are often parodies or re-workings of pop-culture fiction, including humor and satire to comment on social issues. Improvisation plays a significant role in the plays, with the script acting as a blueprint for the action.

HOMEWORK: None. If you have any missing work, you must turn it in by Friday (the end of the marking period) for partial credit.

Our Fall Coffeehouse is being held on Nov. 8 at 7:00 in the Ensemble Theater. We'd love to see you there.

2nd 10-Minute Play Script Due; Cross-Dressing/Commedia; The Mystery of Irma Vep (Day 1)

Proofread and submit the play draft you have been working on today between 7:30-7:45. Check your grammar and play format to make sure it is correct. Use the advice from our handouts on the "art of grabbing", the "main event", your dramatic triangle, roots of action, developing a life and occupation for your characters, and review the notes on dialogue. Apply them all to your draft. Play drafts are due by 7:45. Please submit a copy of your play to our Google classroom. If you finish early, please read the information about cross-dressing/pantomime & the commedia from the handout or at the links below:

Cross-Dressing/Pantomime and the Commedia Dell'Arte 

Comedy has a long tradition in theater. The spring theater festivals from Greece began the tradition. Later in the Middle Ages, the comedy dell'arte form appeared. Read about the pantomime and commedia dell'arte tradition here today (or see your handout). Complete the graphic organizer for your notes on these articles and turn in when completed.

Cross dressing has been a common occurrence on the stage (the Greek, Roman, and Elizabethan theaters only employed male actors!) Many of Shakespeare's funniest comedies use the trope of cross-dressing, for example: Twelfth Night, As You Like It, and even The Merchant of Venice. The play we're going to read today carries on this tradition.

Read about cross-dressing and theatre here (see the handout).

The Mystery of Irma Vep by Charles Ludlam

One of the reasons people attend theater, as opposed to staying home watching TV or going to a movie is that through theatrical convention, we are often treated to a live-event that is intimate and "magical" in that what we witness on stage is a heightened exaggeration of life. 

Theater tends to be REPRESENTATIONAL and symbolic, rather than presentational. That is, the characters, plots, settings, props, etc. of a play REPRESENT reality, they are not reality. The viewer is likely to accept certain "unreal" actions, dialogue, characters, etc. while watching a stage play that he/she would not accept in film or in a novel.

Our case study will be the play The Mystery of Irma Vep by Charles Ludlam. Ludlam created the Ridiculous Theater Company in NY in 1967. Charles Ludlam died of complications from AIDS in the 1980's.

Ludlam is best known for the theatrical movement: The Theatre of the Ridiculous.

""The Theatre of the Ridiculous" made a break with the dominant trends in theatre of naturalistic acting and realistic settings. It employed a very broad acting style, often with surrealistic stage settings and props, frequently making a conscious effort at being shocking or disturbing. "Ridiculous" theatre brought some elements of queer performance to avant-garde theater. Cross-gender casting was common, with players often recruited from non-professional sources, such as drag queens or other "street stars." [We see this trend continue with the plays of Charles Busch].

Plots in these "ridiculous" plays are often parodies or re-workings of pop-culture fiction, including humor and satire to comment on social issues. Improvisation plays a significant role in the plays, with the script acting as a blueprint for the action.

HOMEWORK: Please choose 1 play by Charles Busch from the collection. Read this play by Wednesday, Oct. 31. Complete a play analysis for the play you choose to read. Consider Busch's style of comedy, his influences from pantomime and commedia dell'arte traditions, characterization through dialogue, and cross-dressing as you read.

You may choose any of the following: Psycho Beach Party, The Lady in Question, Red Scare on Sunset, or the Tale of the Allergist's Wife. 

Charles Busch; Vampire Lesbians of Sodom (Conclusion); Types of comedy; Cross-Dressing/Pantomime

Charles Busch & The Vampire Lesbians of Sodom

Please take a look at Charles Busch's blog. He has placed a variety of play video clips here. Take a look at a few of these. His official website is located here.

Please watch a few video clips, read an interview or two with the author, and learn a little about his background.

Types of Theatrical Comedy:
There are various types of comedy found in theatre today.

Sentimental Comedy examines the tribulations and trials of common people worrying about common things, but it all works out in the end.

Romantic comedies are plays that revolve around relationships. Usually following the love archetype: boy (or girl) gets girl (or boy), boy (or girl) loses girl (or boy), boy (or girl) gets girl (or boy) in the end.

Farce includes fast-paced action, improbable situations, hyperbolic characters, and lots of entrances and exits to cause confusion and conflict.

Satirical plays (taken from the ancient Greek Satyr play form) poke fun at something in society or about human nature that needs to be examined or changed.

Black comedies poke fun at serious topics. These are often considered in 'bad taste' by sensitive, less cynical audience members. Black or 'dark' comedies usually don't end happily.

Absurdist comedies point out the futility of life, using nonsense and trivia to examine that the meaning of life is...well...meaningless. These plays are often metaphorical or symbolic.

Of course many plays are a combination of these diverse types. Comedy has a long tradition in theater. The spring theater festivals from Greece began the tradition. Later in the Middle Ages, the comedy dell'arte form appeared. Read about the pantomime and commedia dell'arte tradition here today (or see your handout). Complete the graphic organizer for your notes on these articles and turn in when completed.

Cross dressing has been a common occurrence on the stage (the Greek, Roman, and Elizabethan theaters only employed male actors!) Many of Shakespeare's funniest comedies use the trope of cross-dressing, for example: Twelfth Night, As You Like It, and even The Merchant of Venice. The play we're going to read today carries on this tradition.

Read about cross-dressing and theatre here.

Complete the play draft you have been working on. Revise. Flesh out backgrounds of characters' lives and their beliefs (monologues are great for this sort of thing), consider the advice on the "art of grabbing" article, the "main event" article, your dramatic triangle and roots of action, and review the notes on dialogue (see post below). Apply them all to your draft. Play drafts will be due MONDAY.

HOMEWORK: Please choose 1 play by Charles Busch from the collection. Read this play by Wednesday, Oct. 31. Complete a play analysis for the play you choose to read. Consider Busch's style of comedy, his influences from pantomime and commedia dell'arte traditions, characterization through dialogue, and cross-dressing as you read.

You may choose any of the following: Psycho Beach Party, The Lady in Question, Red Scare on Sunset, or the Tale of the Allergist's Wife. 

10-minute Play Exercise #2; The One-Act; Vampire Lesbians of Sodom: Day 1

Please turn in your test/open book analysis of The Dutchman by Amiri Baraka. 

Period 1: (until 8:00)

Continue writing the play script you were working on from our writing exercise last class. Add to your story by doing some of the following:

• Add tension or conflict to your scene. Person v. person; person v. self; person v. nature; person v. society; person v. god/fate, etc. Rachet up the tension/conflict by having characters NEED something from the other characters. 
• Trap your characters in a place by giving them a time limit or TIME LOCK. Ex. We only have 10 minutes to save the world--or I must get this done and written now before the deadline in 10 minutes. I have to ask Jenny to the prom today or Jason will take her before I have the courage to do so...
• Give your characters some reason to care. What's at stake for each character you bring on stage? Each character in your play/scene should have some reason to get involved in the action of the play/scene.
• Develop your theme. Love. Life. Death. Nature. What do you want to say about these things? Ex. Love defines who we are. Life is a bowl of olive pits. Death is nothing to fear. Nature doesn't like being ignored. Whatever your message is--find ways for your characters to examine this theme. 
• The most common theme in plays is the fact that as humans, we don't communicate well with each other. Sometimes we don't even know what WE want as individuals. Consider the dramatic potential of a person who cannot communicate what it is they NEED. Start there. 
• Add beats to your scenes that help complicate your plot.
• Add beats to your scenes that provide helpful characterization. 
• Add beats to your scenes that help define and illustrate the sort of people your characters are so that your audience learns more about them.
• Add a monologue that helps define or explain the actions of a character. 
• Like the Dutchman, add a legend or well-known story for characters to discuss. Famous movies, tv shows, literary characters, plays, books, historical events, well-known current events, cultural events or traditions or holidays or politics or religious beliefs...have your characters talk about it (Taco Tuesday...); what we talk about tells the world about who we are....
• Use your setting or a prop like in The Dumb Waiter. Characters can talk about (taco tuesday) where they are, what is in their space or on "stage" with them. If your dialogue is boring, get those characters ACTING....
• Remember:
• The Dramatic Triangle
• The Main Event
• The Major Decision
• The Roots of Action
• Dialogue drives a scene's plot/character

Aim to complete your play scene draft by Thursday.

At 8:00, we'll pick up the collection of plays by Charles Busch: The Tale of the Allergist's Wife & Other Plays from the library. 

Just in time for Halloween: our last contemporary one-act. A one-act play might be a 10-minute play, but it is generally shorter than a full-length play (which usually lasts over an hour). It deals with one main action or dramatic question (main event).  

Let's just delve right into this one-act play, The Vampire Lesbians of Sodom. As we read, we'll stop and discuss how the playwright Charles Busch grabs our attention, writes fine (and funny) dialogue, creates a plot out of character's actions, develops a theme, introduces us to an interesting setting, and communicates a message that is pertinent to any contemporary audience. 

Bring your books back with you next class!

HOMEWORK: Complete your play draft.

Advice About Dialogue; The Dutchman

Please submit your analysis for The Dumb Waiter this morning in Google classroom (or hand in your physical copy to the inbox). 

Writing Exercise: Put 2 characters in a specific setting. Then follow directions as I give them.

DIALOGUE TIPS

The Art & Craft of Dialogue Writing (short video)
How to NOT write Bad dialogue (short video)
How Character and Story Are Hidden in Dialogue (short video)

Dialogue isn't just talking. Dialogue HAPPENS. It happens when your characters' need to speak. It is also how they listen (or not listen), and the connotation, nuance, color and subtext of what they say, how they say it, and why they say it. Good dialogue is the result of well-defined characters in a well-structured plot. They may be compelled to speak (or not), but they should have a REASON for speaking.

Here are some tips to consider:

1. We usually talk because we want to communicate some need. If we want nothing, we say nothing, usually. We also speak when we want to: threaten, teach, explain, cajole, joke, murmur, pontificate, defend ourselves, apologize, seduce evade, pout, challenge, yell, scold, cry, etc.

2. Dialogue is action. It is an action taken to satisfy a want or desire. What a character wants or desires moves them to speak and act. This is part of characterization--and the best way to build your character.

3. When we don't get what we want (often immediately), humans tend to become shy, aggressive, or hide our agendas in our words. This is often our subtext (the meaning hidden in a line of dialogue; or saying one thing, but meaning another) and is very important to actors. It is often this subtext that a good actor will uncover in a performance.

4. Actors have to hear each other. But characters often do not listen the same way we do. Characters interpret what is being said, ask questions, ignore speech, get confused, miss a meaning and even read special meaning into something that has no meaning. Listening, therefore, will often help build the conflict and drama in your scene. A response reveals something important about the listener. How a character hears, then, is an important point to consider.

Please watch and take notes on key ideas from the following writing advice about dialogue and removing the overuse of filler words--or punctuating interjections correctly.

Help With Interjection Punctuation
How to eliminate filler words

In the COMMENT section below, write 5 lines of dialogue starting each line with a filler word or interjection. The dialogue should concern the advice you learned from dialogue writing and the videos above. But punctuate each line correctly. Then, revise your 10-minute play drafts by correcting your dialogue punctuation mistakes.

Period 2:

Read Amiri Baraka's play Dutchman. Answer the 6 discussion questions using textual evidence to support your answers. You will likely need more room than what is provided to adequately answer the questions. Write your answers SEPARATELY from the question handout sheet. Answers will count as a quiz grade for this play.

Please feel free to view "Dutchman" by Amiri Baraka (55 min). Please turn in your answers to the previous homework for this play by end of the lab period.

You will likely need more room than what is provided to adequately answer the questions. Write your answers SEPARATELY from the question handout sheet. Answers will count as a quiz grade for this play.

Amiri Baraka was also a poet! Read a few of Amiri Baraka's poems here. Maybe one will inspire a scene.

HOMEWORK: Complete the one-act play The Dutchman. Complete the handout quiz by next class (Tuesday). 

Spic-o-Rama Quiz & Film

This morning, please take the quiz on your homework reading & the play Spic-o-Rama by John Leguizamo.

After 20 minutes, we'll take a look at the actual performance of the play.

EQ: Why write a one-actor show? What do mono-dramas (1 person plays) or monologue plays offer an audience? How are they similar or different from other plays, other genres of writing (slam poetry, fiction, novels, audio-books, films, etc.)?

In regard to Spic-o-Rama:

1. How does the play showcase John Leguizamo's talent as an actor and writer? 
2. Why might Leguizamo have chosen the characters he did to portray in the play? Are some characters more vivid and interesting than others? What might be missing or what would you have liked to see more of or less of? How does the language of each monologue help characterize the speaker? 
3. How does Leguizamo structurally put the play together to create an effective theatrical experience? Examine how the play is thematically connected or how it "moves" from story line to story line. How effective is this in your opinion? What strategies does Leguizamo use to keep a coherent whole for his play?
4. Discuss the importance of minority voices in theater. In your opinion do we need more minority voices--or is Leguizamo's portrayal of "spics" degrading or stereotypical?

With any time remaining, please use your time in class to begin your homework.

HOMEWORK: Complete "The Dumbwaiter" and submit your analysis of the play for Friday's class.

10-minute Play Project Due; 10-Minute Play Readings; Spic-o-Rama

Please use period 1 to work on your 10-minute play projects. See the handout and rubric on our Google classroom regarding play scripts. Submit your completed 10-minute play draft by the end of period 1.

Period 2:

Let's continue reading the 10-minute plays in our last handout. With time remaining, let's begin looking at our next play--a mono-drama from John Leguizamo: Spic-o-Rama.

HOMEWORK: Complete Spic-o-Rama.