script analysis

Introduction to Acting – Spring 2019 Script Analysis Instructions

Complete a thorough, Stanislavski-based analysis of your Finalpalooza scene with the following contents: Play Title

Playwright Name Character Name (please complete this assignment from your own character’s perspective) Scene Number, Act Number (if this information is not available, page numbers are fine) Given Circumstances – please remember to be as thorough as possible; hit all elements of CROWW! Beat Breadown:

1) Line of dialogue where a new beat begins

2) Your character’s objective – what are you trying to achieve? Be specific.

3) Your obstacles (internal and external) in the beat

4) Your action in the beat – make sure to follow all the rules of what makes a strong action! No “to pursue the American dream!”

5) Your tactic for the beat (“in a ____________ way” or use an adjective)

6) The cost (how high the stakes are, on a scale of 1-10) for each beat. How important is it that your character achieves their objective in this moment? If it’s a life-or-death thing, the cost will be a 10. If it has absolutely no bearing on your life, it’s a 1. Most of these scenes fall in the middle, but remember that high stakes are always more interesting to watch because the character really has to fight for something!

See the following page for an example of what I’ll be looking for!

Introduction to Acting – Spring 2019 Final Scene Script Analysis Example

Play: Barefoot in the Park by Neil Simon

Character: Paul

Scene: Act 2, Scene 2

Given Circumstances: It’s the early 1960s. Paul and Corie are newly married (about a week and a half) and have just gotten back from a dinner with their neighbor Velasco and Corie’s mother, Ethel. Paul is a lawyer and he is working on his first couple cases so he does not want many distractions and wants to be able to focus on his work. Corie is a free-thinking fixer who operates with wild abandon, much to Paul’s chagrin. Corie invites Velasco to dinner with them to introduce to Ethel, who is single. They go all the way to Staten Island to eat at a restaurant Velasco says is good but the others do not really enjoy and have many drinks at dinner. When they get back, Ethel says she is going to go home but Velasco insists he take her home, which Paul and Ethel are not too sure about but Corie urges Ethel to leave with Velasco. Velasco and Ethel depart and Paul and Corie are left in their small Manhattan apartment (located at the top of several steep flights of stairs) late at night and that is where the scene begins. They have both been drinking.

Lines/Page	Objective	Obstacle	Action	Tactic	Cost (1-10)
Line 1: “I just can’t …”	To understand Corie’s motives	Corie’s unknown motives, Corie’s anger, my own frustration	To get her to explain herself	In a judgmental way	5
Line 5: “Me? Me?”	To understand Corie’s view of me	Corie’s complete honesty, my drunkenness, my exhaustion	To get her to explain herself	In a defensive way	6
Line 17: “Right. I was stoned.”	To prove I am not proper and dignified	Corie’s previous beliefs of me, insecurity about my ‘stuffiness’	To get her to take my view	In a cocky way	6
Line 22: “All the time...”	To make her view seem foolish	Corie’s previous beliefs of me	To belittle Corie’s beliefs	In a sarcastic way	5
Line 29: “I’m not going to listen…”	To escape the argument by going to bed	Corie wants to have the fight, she is standing in my way	To deflect Corie	In a nonchalant way	6
Line 34: “That gets me absolutely…”	To end the conversation	Corie wants to have the fight	To correct Corie	In a defensive way	6
Line 36: “Not in the middle…”	To suppress the situation	Corie’s overreaction	To clear up the argument	In a concerned way	7
Line 43: “It’s 2:15…”	To end the conversation	Corie wants to have the fight	To deflect Corie	In an annoyed way	6
Line 44: “You won’t dicuss it…”	To finally combat back at Corie	Corie’s stubbornness	To make her regret what she’s been saying	In a sincere way	8
Line 49: “Oh, listen”	To resolve the argument	The things that were said in the argument, my own feelings of anger	To comfort her	In an apologetic way	8
Line 50: “Don’t touch me…”	To give up on the argument	Corie’s ‘hysterical’ behavior	To indulge her	In an annoyed way	6
Line 56: “Don’t you tell me when…”	To clear up what she said	Corie’s stubborn attitude	To make her aware of how serious what she is saying is	In a concerned way	7
Line 60: “Of course I’m serious…”	To not get divorced with Corie	Corie leaving for bed, time – I should really be in bed!	To get her to change her mind	In a scrambling way	9