"Ruined" play questions

PART

TWO:

Parts of

the Plot

DRAMATIC STRUCTURE

& ARISTOTLE

D R

A M

A T

IC

C O

N V

E N

T IO

N S

 A dramatic convention is a set of rules

created by the playwright which both

the audience and actors are familiar

with and which act as a useful way of

quickly signifying the nature of the

action or of a character.

(en.wikipedia.org)

 Each play creates

its own set.

II. PLOT

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PLOT Synonymous with “Structure”

photos of various

productions of

Topdog/Underdog

by Suzan-Lori

Parks'

PLOT IS

CHARACTER IN ACTION

Two Categories  SIMPLE: Single story line and single set of

characters

 COMPLEX: Has subplots with entirely new set of characters

Subplot  Secondary lines of action where different conflicts

are developed  May be entwined with the main line of action

 May develop independently

5

DRAM ATI C STRUCTURE DIAGRAMS

6

LINEAR

NONLINEAR

EPISODIC

LINEAR

 Story progresses forward

 Sequential in time.

NON-LINEAR

THREE OTHER

CATEGORIES OF PLOTS

 Tells a story through a

series of scenes that

show different views of

the central problem of the

play.

 Ordered by the exploration

of an idea.

 Flashback

 Flash forward

EPISODIC

 Dramatic structure in which there are many scenes, taking place over a considerable period of time in a number of locations. Many also employ such devices as subplots.

NON-LINEAR EXAM PLES

III. PLOT ELEMENTS

A . C

O N

F L

IC T

10

Make-up

 Strongly Opposed

Forces  Balance of Forces

 (well-matched opponents,

exciting game)

 Incentive and

Motivation

 (the stakes are high)

 What do the characters

have to gain and what do

they have to lose?

EXAMPLES

 Two or more characters must want the same thing

 Money

 Power

 Kingdom

 Love

 Or want different things to happen  Escape or Justice

 Revolution against or consolidation of power

CONFLICT EXPLO RED

 Dialogue: More than one character speaks, so more than one idea is presented

 Monologue: Extended speech by one character delivered to another character, characters or the audience

 Soliloquy: Extended speech in which the character contemplates or works out what has happened and how to proceed.

 Aside: A portion of the dialogue given to the audience out of hearing range of the other characters.

THEATRICAL LANGUAGE REVI EW

B . L

A N

G U

A G

E

13

LANGUAGE

the language used by the characters.  How is the dialogue constructed?

 Is the language more challenging and intellectual or is it directed toward the masses or “laymen.”  Think about the dialogue in a TV drama like CSI versus Desperate

Housewives. One the dialogue is very intellectual and technical

where as Desperate Housewives is very common place .

 Do the characters have accent/dialect?

C . In

itia l In

c id

e n

t

15

INITIAL (INCITING)INCIDENT EXPLORED

The first event or action that sets

the plot or story into motion.

Destroys the uneasy balance and

sets off the major conflict of forces

photos from various productions of Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller

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C . P

o in

t o f A

tta c k

 The place in the story where the playwrights begins the story

 Starts to dramatize the dramatic action

 Plays are highly selective in terms of the events that are included in performance ◦ Some choose an early point of

attack in the story

◦ CONTRAST: Late point of attack means most of the events have already happened and we only see the last few or only one episode

POINT OF ATTACK EXPLO RED

photos from various productions of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

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C . R

is in

g A

c tio

n .

 The segment of the plot

between the point of

attack and the crisis in

which events complicate

the plot and heighten

suspense

 Small units of action

dramatized to build the

emotional intensity of

the action.

RISING ACTION EXPLO RED

photos from various productions of John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt: A Parable

21

C . C

lim a

x

 Emotional highpoint of

the action

 The moment in the

unfolding of the plot

when a change happens

that leads inevitably to a

resolution of the

dramatic question ◦ The turning point

◦ The point of no return

 Outcome is finally

decided

CLIMAX EXPLO RED

photos from various productions

of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America

23

C . D

é n

o u

e m

e n

t

DÉNOUEMENT/

FALLING ACTION E XP LO R E D

 The portion of the plot that comes after the climax where the world comes to some sort of resolution

 Events from the climax to the end of the play

 the resolution ◦ loose ends are tied up for the audience

◦ balance is restored ◦ something is different from before

photos from various productions of Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive