english

 
                            For this assignment you will write a three  page play with at least three characters using the “tasks of the  playwright” and dialogue. These plays will help you develop an idea of  how scenes unfold as written literature, ready to come alive on stage.  Use the play we’ve read in class as a guide for formatting.  Your play  should have an obvious beginning, middle, and an end. You might try  eavesdropping on a conversation, recalling an important moment or  discussion in your life, or conjecturing about an important moment in  history. Be creative, imaginative, and perhaps apply a sense of humor.  Of course, I’m not looking for everyone to craft the next great piece of  dramatic literature. If that happens, GREAT! The main goal of this  assignment is for everyone to experience, enjoy, and empathize with what  a professional playwright goes through. It takes immeasurable amounts  of time, energy, creativity, patience, a deep sense of human behavior  (warts and all) and craftsmanship to create interesting material for the  stage and/or screen. It certainly isn’t as easy as one might think! The  second goal is for all of us to appreciate that fact. 
 
1. THE OUTLINE 
DUE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14TH, BY 11:00pm
You will first submit a working title, genre, description of each  character, the location or setting, and a brief summary of your  scenario. Once this is approved by the instructor you may begin your  three page play.
Working Title: A working title, sometimes called a production title, is  the temporary title of a product or project used during its development.  Titles themselves capture the essence, the theme, the message, or the  moral of a play. Titles may also simply identify the main character  whose story the play belongs to or even simply state the location. Above  all, your title should capture the interest of the audience and  intrigue them. It should inform them about what it is they’re about to  experience! 
Genre: What category of drama are you interested in? Which one would you  like to play within or explore? Which one would best describe your  scenario?
Character description: Look at character descriptions in the text. How  are they written? Describe the people you want to write about not only  in terms of qualities like age, race, and gender but in terms such as  social status, desires, emotional well being, or their actions.
By considering these things you will be more able to decide how they would talk and act in your scene.
 
Setting: Where is your short play set? Look at your text for examples of  descriptions of setting. Describe it in full detail so that your  audience can get a sense of what may happen there. Describe the space in  terms of emotion and atmosphere as well as more literal aspects like  dimensions, geography, or furniture.
 
Scenario: How will you choose a topic on which to write? What are you  passionate about? What do you like? What do you hate? What intrigues you  about being human? What baffles you about the human experience? Good  art comes from people acting on their convictions. Is there a memorable  moment from your life that you’d like to script, heighten, rewrite  entirely, or share with audiences? Id there a moment in history you’d  like to rewrite for comedic effect or heighten/dramatize and celebrate.  Choose an incident that involves some form of a strong immediate  conflict and discuss what will happen in your short play. What type of  action will be taken by the characters to confront their conflict.   Describe what you think the out come would be. How will it resolve? Will  they conquer or succumb to their struggles? You can change your mind as  your write, but having an outline will keep you get started.