Script Analysis Challenge Presentations Prof Carlson/page 2
University of Georgia Professor Marla Carlson
Script Analysis (DRAM 3290)
Assignment Guidelines: Group Presentation of a Challenging Play
The group project is worth 20% of your participation grade, which is in turn 20% of your grade for the course.*
Here’s how our discussion of these four plays will work for the MWF class:
Day one: open discussion of the play to identify problems of interpretation and suggest appropriate tools for analysis. During the last ten minutes of this class meeting, the assigned group will meet with me to discuss their presentation.
Day two: assigned group presents its interpretation of the play and discusses the process used to arrive at this interpretation.
Day three: wrap-up discussion including possible alternative interpretations.
Here’s how our discussion of these four plays will work for the TR class:
Day one: open discussion of the play to identify problems of interpretation and suggest appropriate tools for analysis. During the last ten minutes of this class meeting, the assigned group will meet with me to discuss their presentation.
Day two: assigned group presents its interpretation of the play and discusses the process used to arrive at this interpretation; wrap-up discussion including possible alternative interpretations.
Your presentation can include any or all of the following options:
1. group presentation of a 5- to 10-minute scene;
2. director’s approach for production;
3. design for production
This project will give you experience in taking a play from the page to the stage. Effort and engagement are more important than polished technical skill. Creativity and a sense of humor are greatly encouraged.
Scene performances
Perform a 5- to 10-minute scene from your play, fully enacted.
The presentation has two parts:
· Introduce the scene. Explain how it fits into the play’s action, why you chose it, how it challenged you, and what tools of analysis you found useful. This introduction should take a maximum of 2 minutes.
· Perform the scene.
You are not required to memorize the scene but are required to rehearse and physicalize the scene; that is, you must make decisions about spatial presentation and then use the space.
My argument in favor of performing a scene even if you’re not an actor and don’t want to be one: performance is itself a tool of analysis. You learn differently by putting your whole psychophysical being into the play and also putting its words and actions into yourself—and you learn different things.
Director’s approach
As an individual, present a director’s approach for a production of your play.
The presentation has four parts, with a maximum of 2 minutes for each:
· Explain why you would stage this play at this time for a particular target audience.
· Identify the primary dramatic action of the play.
· Explain the play’s central theme that organizes your production. Present a visual metaphor for the theme and explain how this relates to the dramatic action, using at least 3 visual images.
· Finally, describe some specific production ideas, such as historical time period and geographical setting; type of performance space; specific design ideas; acting style; audience experience.
This presentation requires visual aids, such as design sketches or images that you would share with your design team to stimulate their creative work, which need to be in a format that the class can view easily. In other words, sketches should be large enough to see from a distance, provided in handout form (a few copies only to pass around), or stored electronically and shown using the data projector.
Design
As an individual, present a scenic or costume design for a production of your play.
The presentation has three parts, for a maximum of 7 minutes total:
· Explain the play’s central theme that organizes your production. In an ordinary working situation, this would be part of the director’s approach—so here you’re functioning as your own director.
· Show drawings or a model of your design.
· Explain why you made various design choices: What does the script require (entrances, objects explicitly used by the characters, symbolic items, and so forth)? Did you choose to add or delete anything that the playwright called for? How does your design serve the central theme of the play?
The visual portion of this presentation needs to be in a format that the class can view easily. In other words, sketches should be large enough to see from a distance, provided in handout form (a few copies only to pass around), or stored electronically and shown using the data projector.
*Here’s how the participation grade breaks down:
· 20% for work with a challenge group
· 20% for participation in discussion of the other three challenging plays, combined
· 10% for each of the other plays discussed this semester (six)
· Participation includes class discussion, assigned group work in class or posted on the wiki in preparation for class discussion.