10-Minute Play Script Draft #2

Today, after we take a little "field trip" with your play script drafts, we will return to the lab to work on draft #2.

In draft #2 (please make sure you mark your draft as draft #2) please try the following:

1. Plays are about characters and ideas. Characters themselves often represent an idea. Stanley for example represents brutish, masculinity. Blanche DuBois, then, represents fading (and fragile) femininity. Thus, when the two characters meet, they create conflict for each other.

Make sure your idea is clear (what is it that you want to say about the human condition). Examine characters for their effectiveness in presenting your point. Like a good debate, the argument should not be one-sided.

Advice about characters: Always ask yourself if you would like to spend hours in rehearsal playing this part. If the answer is no, give that character more interesting or challenging characterization.

Add background and details that help characterize your characters. Add and develop ideas.

2. Effective dialogue moves the plot forward, while also providing important characterization.

Think of your dialogue as being comprised of what are called BEATS. These are short exchanges of dialogue between characters similar to paragraphs in a story. As each paragraph moves the story forward, so should your beats move the action of the play. Beats can also be used as transitions between subjects or topics, and they can create suspense. Think of them as building blocks. The more you build, the higher your castle.

Examine your draft and evaluate your beats. Take them one at a time. Draw a line after each one. Each beat should increase the tension and tempo of your play leading ultimately to your climax. (i.e., your most dramatic beats should swell like a wave. In our case, by the end of the play script, your point of highest tension should be more tense than the beginning or middle.)

3. Plays are performed for an audience. Do you think your audience is getting what they paid for? Always think about keeping your audience happy when writing a play. Dramatic plays need to be intense--much more intense than film. The name of the game is conflict.

Use the time given to you in the lab to work on your second draft.

HOMEWORK: Please complete A Streetcar Named Desire. You will be writing a play review for this play during Friday's class.