(Note: This is another way of saying: “The play is about people who …”)

What is the overall action of the play? What is the central conflict, what do the characters want, what do they do to get it, and at what cost? When expressed, the dramatic action (e.g., to be happy, to exact revenge, to find freedom) needs to encompass all the characters’ pursuits in order to be useful. Johan Wolfgang von Goethe gave critics this rubric for critiquing a play from the viewer’s “outside” perspective: What is the playwright trying to do? How well has he or she done it? And is it worth doing? But to work collaboratively on a play, it’s useful also to understand the inside mechanisms of a play, the engine and values that drive and sustain it: How is it built? What is it made of? How does it function? And what might it mean, and to whom? By combining the inside and outside perspectives, you can bring your own judgments to bear, based on a fuller understanding of what the play is for your time and place. How many of these methods are you already employing, and how many can you add to your collection of analytical tools? 1. Once you get the right tools, your insights have a stronger foundation and stand out more clearly in the gallery of public opinion. By the way, a side benefit to reduced embarrassment in class has been an improvement in my work as a director and dramaturg on professional productions, and I suspect the same would be true for actors and designers. Categories can represent words, ideas, tasks, or other items related to a central key word or idea.So, partly in self-defense, I’ve come up with 30 different ways to look at and think about a play, so that a normal person - you, me, and the other 99 percent of the world - can participate in an enriching conversation about dramatic literature and theatre productions without feeling like an idiot.

A mind map is often created around a single word or text which is placed in the centre to which associated ideas, words and concepts are added. You could use a mind map which is a diagram that helps you capture ideas. These are notes to get you thinking creatively. You don’t need to write in paragraphs or much detail. Remember there’s no right or wrong here, so discuss and record as much as you can.

All of these can be explored in depth or from alternative angles to create original and exciting drama.īegin by reading the play and writing down all of your responses to it as a group. There’s a plot, established characters, relationships and themes running throughout the play. There are many different starting points for creating original work like photographs, props, music or just about anything that takes your fancy.Ī script is an excellent starting point for the development of new ideas as the groundwork or story is already there for you to build on.

Play scripts ideas