Playwriting : a writers' and artists' companion / Fraser Grace and Clare Bayley.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Grace, Fraser, author.

Bayley, Clare, author.

Series:

Writers' and Artists' Companions

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Playwriting.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (353 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

London, [England] : Bloomsbury Academic, 2016.

Summary:

Full of inspiration and practical advice, Playwriting: A Writers' & Artists' Companion is a comprehensive companion to writing for the stage. PART 1 includes reflections on the art and the craft of playwriting, guidance on writing for a full range of genres and spaces and a brief history of playwriting itself. PART 2 contains inspiring advice and reflections from leading playwrights:April De Angelis, Bryony Lavery, David Greig, Christina Reid, Dennis Kelly, Frank McGuinness, Lynn Nottage, Howard Brenton, Roy Williams, Tanika Gupta, Timberlake Wertenbaker, Polly Stenham, Tom Stoppard, Jack Thorne, Steve Waters, E.V. Crowe, David Henry Hwang, Lin Coghlan, Zinnie Harris and Anne Washburn. PART 3 offers practical exercises and advice on planning and conducting research, working out plots and characters, mastering authentic but accessible dialogue, navigating the industry and the rehearsal and production process.

Contents:

Cover

Contents

Preface by Carole Angier and Sally Cline

Foreword by Rufus Norris

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Part 1 Reflections

Reflections Fraser Grace

Why a play for the stage?

Reflections Clare Bayley

Choose your theatre as you would your religion

Learning the craft

On second chances

Posterity and ephemerality

The voice of experience

Reflections on the history of playwriting 1: The Ancients and after Fraser Grace

A brief history of playwriting

Playwriting in the ancient and classical worlds

Ancient Greece

Enter the critic

Aristotle abused

Lives of the Greeks

Roman theatre

Roman Britain

Medieval theatre

Behind the masque

Diverse duckers and dodgers

The distracted state

The survivors' club

Restoration theatre

Eighteenth century

The age of Garrick

Enter (and exit) Sheridan

Reflections on the history of playwriting 2: Modern and contemporary Clare Bayley

The nineteenth century

The early twentieth century

The fifties

The Royal Court

The sixties

The seventies and eighties

Gay theatre

Ireland

Black and Asian theatre

Women's theatre

Avant-garde, experimental, alternative, performance and live art

The 1990s

Verbatim

Faction

Postdramatic theatre

Site-specific, immersive and durational

Contemporary

Reflections on source Clare Bayley

The original play

Where do you get your ideas from?

Adaptations

Translations and versions

Verbatim, documentary and faction

Devising

Reflections on writing by scale Fraser Grace

The solo play

The epic play

The small-scale play

Reflections on space Clare Bayley

Cast size

Scene structure

Entrances and exits

One setting or many

Proscenium arch theatre

Thrust staging

Flexible spaces: The black box, the studio theatre.

Configuration

In-the-round

Site-specific

Promenade theatre

Immersive theatre

Outdoor theatre

Reflections on genre Fraser Grace

Genre as expectation

So what are the most current genres in today's theatre?

Family drama

Single-issue drama

Political drama

History play

Social comedy-drama

The 'post-dramatic' text

Part 2 Tips and tales - guest contributors

April de Angelis

Howard Brenton

Lin Coghlan

E. V. Crowe

Dennis Kelly

David Greig

Tanika Gupta

Zinnie Harris

David Henry Hwang

Bryony Lavery

Frank McGuinness

Lynn Nottage

Christina Reid

Polly Stenham

Tom Stoppard

Jack Thorne

Anne Washburn

Steve Waters

Timberlake Wertenbaker

Roy Williams

Part 3 Write on: Writing a play Fraser Grace and Clare Bayley

Research and planning Fraser Grace

Character

Dialogue

Place and situation

Action and plot

Units of energy and convenience 1: Acts

Units of energy and convenience 2: Scenes

Image and symbol

Onstage and offstage worlds

Drafting and redrafting

Stage directions

Cutting

Formatting and layout

Write on 2: The industry

Finding a suitable theatre

Pitching

Literary manager or dramaturg?

Agents

Getting your play published

Professional bodies

Theatre writers' groups

Writing courses and degrees

Write on 3: Rehearsal and production

Casting

Actors

Directors

Designers

Stage management team

Rights in rehearsal

Rehearsal room etiquette

Marketing, press and publicity

Press Night and reviews

Reviews and reviewers note from a former critic

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-4742-5534-5

1-4725-2438-1

OCLC:

1024284341