PlaywritingTheatre I

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

The Greeks developed the written body of work, including the epic, a long narrative poem that told stories of heroes and their travels.

They then developed ways of dramatizing these.

Aristotle came up with six basic elements of drama, which he defined in a text called The Poetics.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

Thought – The central idea the playwright is exploring, which embodies a truth about life.

Today, this is usually referred to as theme.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama Plot – The story of the play, or the

progression of the main character called the protagonist, which includes his or her conflict with an opposing force.

The manner in which the protagonist deals with this force is what illuminates the play’s theme.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

Action – the central action is the pivotal dramatic movement when the issues and progression of the play become clear through a decision made and carries out by the protagonist.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

Diction – includes the style, dialect, rhythm and the actual words of the characters.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

Sound – everything the audience hears in the play – from the words to the music to the sound effects – is included in the sound.

Aristotle’s Elements of Drama

Spectacle – everything the audience sees, including scenery, costuming, dance, pantomime and swordplay – is included in the spectacle.

Writing a Play

Writing a play requires planning the entire course of action – what happens and why

A play involves a central character who becomes involved in a conflict.

Writing a Play

Playwrights must always: Discover a plot (characters in conflict) Choose a central course of action that

illuminates the theme Select diction appropriate to the desired

time period and style Use sound, scenery and spectacle to

bring the play to vibrant life.

Preparation – Find a Subject

Think of a starting point – a challenging question, an interesting character or a problem to solve.

Take 5 to 10 minutes to free write about everything you can think of that might be included in the play. For example: if your idea has to do with

a robbery, where did it take place? Ask questions about perpetrators, victims

Preparation – Create a Character

Using the information you’ve created about the subject, think of a character to represent it. Example: You might choose the robber,

victim, a bystander, so on.

Preparation – Develop a conflict

Work on the “W’s.” Who is in the scene? Where are they? What are they doing?

The What becomes the conflict, which creates a problem to be solved.

Play Format

Play Format

Character’s names are CAPITALIZED.Character’s actions are Italicized.Light cues/sound cues/specific

blocking instructions are italicized and usually aren’t written in by the playwright. They are put in later and usually reference the first professional production of the play.

Plot Structure

Plot Structure: Exposition

Exposition is the setup of the play. It is important that a playwright has

a clear idea what their characters’ lives were all about before the events of the play.

In the example scene, the exposition tells us that Molly is Ray’s mother, the play takes place at her house and it strongly suggests that Ray committed some sort of crime.

Plot Structure: Inciting Incident

The inciting incident is the event that sets the action on its course.

In our example, the inciting incident would be Molly’s refusal to give Ray her car keys.

The conflict must have enough dramatic impetus to carry the scene forward because the rest of the play will spin out from it.

Plot Structure: Rising Action

The playwright must carefully build the dramatic tension as characters encounter obstacles to their goals.

It is important for the playwright to keep the drama tight and to give the characters ways to help the audience understand how they rationalize their feelings and actions.

Plot Structure: Crisis

The crisis happens at the moment when it seems that things will either get better or much worse.

The crisis must not have too much intensity or it may make the climax seem anticlimactic.

Plot Structure: Climax

The high point of the play.The playwright creates a situation in

which the protagonist makes an irrevocable decision.

The audience must be convinced that this highly emotional event will either result in victory or in some other way bring an end to the conflict. The climax is also called the turning point.

Plot Structure: Falling Action

The events after the climax must seem logical and true to the play.

This is where the playwright wraps up any loose ends and moves toward the outcome of the play.

Plot Structure: Resolution

The end of the story in which the conflicts are resolved.

It takes a light touch in terms of writing.

The audience must see clearly the result of the choice or actions of the protagonist.