Play Revision & Deathtrap

Group A: Please complete your workshop today. Then use the time in the lab to revise.
Group B: Please use the time in the lab to revise your plays. 

In either case, when you revise, please consider the following:

• All plays should have a beginning, middle, and end. They can begin or end just like a poem or story (i.e., ending with a circular, surprise, summary, or open-ending, etc.)
• All plays are written for the stage (not to just be read); they are meant to be performed live by live actors. To get good at this reading and watching plays is essential.
• All plays are written in present tense (not past); all plays use a specific and distinct format
• All plays are more powerful if they are tightly written. To be "tightly written" you should avoid using broad-sweeping plots, with many cinematic scene changes.
• Give your characters a time limit. This heightens the dramatic potential of the scene.
• A protagonist (major character) should change in some way by the end of the play.
• Give your character a reason to talk to other characters. A character without a purpose should never enter the stage. If a character achieves his/her goal, that character can leave (unless there's a reason why they stay).
• Don't interrupt the flow of your story by making the story too long or too short by moving the action of the plot to different scenes. Keep a unity of time, place, and action. A 10-minute play, for example, should cover about 10 minutes worth of time. 
• Start your play close to your climax. 
• DO NOT BE AFRAID TO CUT SCENES or REARRANGE SCENES TO MAKE THE PLAY BETTER. This is a normal occurrence when revising. (Remember to check your grammar and format!)

What are the UNITIES?

Our short plays should adhere to what are called the unities:
1. The unity of time (plays should not span many years)
2. The unity of place (plays should concentrate action in one or few settings)
3. The unity of action (plays should limit their plots so they are not confusing)

All plays require conflict

• Conflict should be balanced (in other words the struggle between protagonist and antagonist should be a fair fight); it is often better to have an antagonist who is slightly more powerful.
• Characters often are antagonists to each other in plays.

Meaning (theme) in a play is tied to the action and conflict being presented on stage

• All plays should be entertaining (and written to be performed)
• All plays should communicate an idea (or belief about the human condition)
• All plays are REPRESENTATIVE of real life. They are NOT real life.
• Plays are NOT movies. The best way to learn how to write scripts is to read them and see play productions whenever possible. 

HOMEWORK: Please read the play: Deathtrap! before next class and complete the handout (due Thursday). As you read, please note the advice I've given you above and apply it to the play script you are reading. The play is a mystery/thriller/comedy, so you should enjoy it. Here's a few clips: A preview for the play and a clip from the film (based on the play) Deathtrap (with Michael Cain and Christopher Reeve, 1982)

Information about Deathtrap: Deathtrap is a play by Ira Levin. Written in 1978, it holds the record for the longest running comedy-thriller on Broadway and was also nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play.