Iris Hsin-chun Tuan UCLA Ph.D.

Associate ProfessorNCTU

CH12Playwriting and Dramaturgy

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• The working methods of playwrights also vary very widely.• Bertolt Brecht began with an outline and then elaborated on it.

William Gibson sits on a reading of his play “Golda,” an autobiography of former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir. The playwright was known for the demanding roles

he wrote for women.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• The mechanics of playwriting also

vary widely from one writer to another.

• Some writers spend years refining a script.

• ex. August Wilson’s first draft of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

• It didn’t include Leeve and the other band members,

• although in his final version of the play these characters are essential to its conflict.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright

• Because plays are intend for the stage, most writers need to see their work performed before they can be sure they have accomplished what they intended.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright

• The types of assistance the playwright needs and can get in developing a script vary widely.

• After assessing the script as presented and the audience’s responses, the playwright usually makes further revision.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• Some playwrights are fortunate enough to be members of a

playwright’s workshop where scripts can be worked on over a period of time in a process that includes multiple opportunities for rehearsed readings or perfomances.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• Ultimately, full production is the playwright’s goal.• Ex.The Actors Theatre of Louisville

• In New York, several organizations, including the LaMama Experimental Theatre Club and the Manhattan Theatre Club.

• Among the scripts that have gone through this process are Wilson’s Wasserstein’s The Heidi Chronicles,

• August Wilson’s The Piano lesson.• Tony Kushner’s Angles in America,• Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive.

The Piano lesson• August Wilson's The Piano Lesson returns to Yale Rep• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W19wv92K51c

Angles in America• Harper and Joe - Angels in America• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG9pq4utLTM

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• Unfortunately, the number

of writers who obtain assistance in developing their scripts is relatively small.

• Thus, despite playwrights’ efforts, some plays are never produced.

The Heidi Chronicles

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• The difficulties of finding a

producer and making contractual arrangement are so complex that most writers prefer to work through an agent.

• A producer who is interested in a script may purchase an option on it,

• If the producer decides to stage the play, a contract is drawn up. Tony Kushner’s Angles in America

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• During rehearsals, many

changes may be made in a script.

• Sometimes directors make demands that writers think unjustified.

• Ex. Tennessee Williams’s play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

A version of this poster originally appeared as a part of our series of Summer Under the Stars recommendations in August 2010. It’s being reprinted here as part of the LAMB’s “Acting School 101” tribute to Elizabeth Taylor.

The PlaywrightThe Playwright• Playwrights often revise

scripts right up to opening night.

• A playwright may continue to rework a script over many years and through several productions.

1: the frustrated lady (Liz Taylor here in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof). Poor Maggie the Cat is a beautiful Southern lady trying (unsuccessfully) to grab her alcoholic husband's attention.

The DramaturgThe Dramaturg• Many theatres now have a dramaturg on their staff.

• The dramaturg is not a recent innovation.

Dramaturg Career Details. Career Overview

The Dramaturg and Literary The Dramaturg and Literary ManagementManagement

• In the United States, the scope of dramaturgy varies widely from one company to another:

1)Literary management － finding, developing, or shaping scripts

2)Production dramaturgy － working with directors on specific productions of plays (new or old).

Portland Center Stage Announces Layoffs, Eliminates Literary Department

The Dramaturg and Literary The Dramaturg and Literary ManagementManagement

Literary management, involved in

• New play development• helping to select a company’s season of plays • Preparation of production scripts.• New play development is a delicate process.• Dramaturgs sometimes describe to the writer what they find in

the script .

The Dramaturg and Literary The Dramaturg and Literary ManagementManagement

• Although some type of new play development has probably existed since the beginning of theatre,

• most playwrights prefer to work with one or a series of non-for-profit theatres.

• Not all playwrights are enthusiastic about“play development”

base from others.

The Dramaturg and Literary The Dramaturg and Literary ManagementManagement

Production Dramaturgy, involved in: • Concerned with specific production.• Does not make decisions but help the director make them or

supply crucial information, and interpret the script.• Usually attend rehearsals.• Have some responsibility for educating the audience.

Amy Freeman: What was your process for designing for Joe Turner? Did you do research on your own and then did you talk to Heather Helinsky and Nelson Barre, the dramaturgs, and Daniel , the director?