INFORMATION FOR STUDENT
DIRECTORS
I have put a lot of information from
lots of sources that I think will help you become a better director -- read what
other directors have to say about it!
Your first objective is to pick a play that you and your partner both like and is not to long about 30 minutes -- keep in mind the cast size of the play.
CLICK BELOW FOR SOURCES FOR PLAYS -- ALSO SEE MR. DOGGETT -- HE HAS LOTS OF SCRIPT IN HIS OFFICE.
freedrama.com
Plays you can download for free
http://www.dramatists.com/
http://www.dramaticpublishing.com/
http://samuelfrench.com/store/
THE DIRECTOR AS STORYTELLER
In the most basic terms, the director is a production's primary storyteller. A play has only one plot (including subplots), but it contains many potential stories. The interpretation of the primary characters largely determines the story, so in effect, every production of the same play will inevitably tell a different tale. One of the most important functions a director fulfills is determining, with the actors and designers, which story to tell and how to tell it coherently.
As plots have become less linear, the job of telling a story has grown more complicated. While postmodernism and other aesthetics have increased our awareness of the disjunctions inherent in most stories, it has also incited some to reject identification between characters and audience--and even storytelling itself--as passe. At the same time, many artists, in theater, film and novels, have demonstrated that coherent stories can accommodate contradictions and reflect a fragmented world.
One instinct in particular is indispensable to storytelling: the ability to discover what delights an audience. Throughout his writings, Peter Brook, one of the extraordinary minds of the modern theater, recounts how each time his ensemble of actors visited a remote corner of the world, whether a village, a hospital, or an open field, they were obliged to relearn how to hold an audience's attention. No matter how ambitious or experimental his work, Brook has never drifted far from the simple questions of what makes an audience respond. If this ability seems basic to doing theater, it is all too often absent in practice. Some time ago I attended a performance by a local ensemble that advertised stylized, cutting-edge theater based on new acting theories but actually produced a cartoon that completely concealed the performers as human beings. The play was meant to be a comedy, yet when I scanned the room, only the stage managers, seated behind me, were laughing. The production was raucous but completely failed to entertain because the actors and director were far too absorbed in celebrating their process to gauge the
THE DIRECTOR AS ANIMATOR
Nearly everything a director does is in the service of animating the story. To that end, most successful directors employ twin points of view simultaneously. One consists of living inside the play, discovering its energy by probing and empathizing with the characters' deepest desires and flaws. Using an actor's basic tools--action, obstacle, and given circumstances--the director animates the acting in a method, and with a vocabulary, that is organic to most actors.
By analogy, if we were to examine an automobile closely, we'd want to look at it from both inside and outside. We would study its engine to learn how it runs, and then we would scrutinize its design to determine its structure. This dual perspective would disclose far more than merely describing its color or accessories, which, in analyzing a play, would correspond to the superficiality of hunting for themes rather than probing more deeply for the inner workings of a play--its motor.
Like many actors, most directors work from inside out and from the outside in. They concentrate not only on the life of the characters but also on the play's structural or external elements, including its central conflict, function, event, architecture, and suspense. As this book strives to demonstrate, in a dynamic directorial mindset these two angles of vision work in tandem, with each balancing the other
Some Tips
(more to come)
Here are some tips to directing a successful play...
Choose the play carefully: make sure it is a play that you really find interesting; it has to become your best friend for the whole rehearsal period and you are going to hear those words many times before the play is finished.
As part of your planning, set a date for the reading of the play. Make sure that you leave enough time to advertise or let everyone know when you plan to read.
It is good at this stage to have a date for performance and also a firm idea of the shape of the rehearsal schedule.
Before the reading of the play go back over the text
again and make sure you have a good idea of how you see the characters.
The night of the reading
Have copies of a contact sheet handy:
| Name Address Telephone number Home Mobile E-mail address |
Have a copy of the rehearsal schedule and tell the potential members of the cast which nights you intend to rehearse and the date for the performance.
Remember you do not have to cast the play right
there and then... If you get to the end of the reading and you feel that you
have enough of the right people for the characters then fine, go ahead and cast
it and let the actors know then and there.
It could be that you might be happy with 50 % of the people are right for the
parts and you have doubts about certain others then you should not announce
anything to anyone.
It is good to explain to the people what you are doing and that you will probably be trying to have one or perhaps two more attempts to read again. You just cannot announce anything at present.
It is very important set a realistic time for letting everyone know the final outcome and try and stick to that.
Important pointer - it is good to know when to compromise and work with what you have and not hold up the rehearsal process.
Once you have cast the play after you have heard everyone interested, let everyone know of your decision.
First rehearsal should be a read through with the whole cast and chat about any problems relating to the schedule for rehearsing. Read through a few times and you can also discuss characterization with the cast. You are now underway and have to turn your attention to other issues to do with the play itself.
The following roles need to be filled:
| Stage Manager Sound Operator (if needed) Lighting & Lighting Design Wardrobe Props Prompt Set design (if necessary) |
These are important appointments and getting the right people can substantially help with the presentation of your play.
Once these positions have been filled agree when the individual should come along Wardrobe and props people are going to have more contact with the group at the start of the rehearsal process and once all the costumes and props have been agreed then the contact time can be less until nearer the performance time.
Discussions with the Stage Manager work out when the set will be sorted out and pre painting complete before the getting in.
It is important to talk to the cast about rules and regulations for the rehearsal process
For instance
Have a list of all the contact numbers for the cast & crew if possible, this helps with communication and also does help with the social aspect of the play the other dynamic which is important to the play.
Now the blocking process can start.
This may change in the rehearsal process but it is good to get a strong indicator of how you see the action or movement on stage.
Depending on how long the play is it might be possible to block the whole thing in one night or maybe it might need two but dont count on it.
At this stage and while in the Second rehearsal I like to give the cast an idea of when they should be aiming to have there lines learnt (off book). Probably depending on how long the play is. Set a date and let your actors know and stick to it.
Impress upon your actors the importance of everyone realising that it is non-negotiable.
Now you are up and running the schedule you have planned in advance should be stuck to as close as possible, until the actors are 'off book.'
The director should watch and observe the actors during the rehearsal process and give notes, (there is an accepted way of giving notes), in early days of rehearsal the Director would normally sot the action, give notes when they see something at that moment in time, as you get closer to the opening you will write your notes down and give them at the end of the rehearsal or just before the next rehearsal.
Make sure all your people are working to the given deadlines and that costumes are coming along (this is a personal preference I like to get cast into costume in rehearsal space as soon as possible, I find it helps build the character). It is also very good to get props as soon as possible even if it is not the prop which is going to appear in the final play but working out business with props can be rewarding and add to the play.
Keep to schedule and if really necessary pull additional rehearsal time.
It's about working with people. Take your ordinary community theater production. You generally have a mix of experienced and inexperienced actors, a tech crew in the same boat, and only a few weeks to put together a quality show.
It's about trustTheater is about trust. When an actor steps on the stage for a performance, he is laying his ego on the line. He is exposed to the audience. If he screws up, they will know and he will be embarrassed. He has to trust the other actors, the crew and the director. Especially the director.
He has to believe that the director isn't going to make him or let him look bad. After all, the director is looking at the show from the audience's perspective. You, as the director, have to earn that trust.
Yes, no, ask me
tomorrow night -I've worked with a lot of directors and gotten a lot of different answers - most of them unusable. As an actor, I hate that… as a director, I won't do it. There are two basic kinds of questions in theater - one is interpretive, the other simple (by simple, I mean a yes/no answer is needed). A director who can't answer or discuss interpretive questions should turn the show over to the A.D. and go home. It's the simple questions that get directors in trouble.
I can't count the number of times I've asked a simple question and gotten a long-winded, philosophical reply, which translated, means "beats me." Or worse, the famous, "I'll have to think about it." That one is usually followed by no reply at all. Give me an answer I can use and I want it right now!
Okay, how about "yes," "no" or "ask me tomorrow night." As an actor, I want to know that my director isn't going to leave me in the lurch… in other words, I want an answer now. However, as a director, I know a director doesn't always have an answer right away. So I came up with three basic answers for all occasions (yes, it's a Hallmark moment).
"Yes" covers everything from "let's try it and see what it looks like" to "great idea, go with it!" This is probably the most popular choice of the three.
This one's self-explanatory and the easiest of the three.
Now we come to the tough one. Directors are the focus of the entire rehearsal and sometimes, especially during tech week, suffer from information overload. This one's the cop-out, designed to handle just such a situation. This is the equivalent of "I need to think about it," but puts the onus on the actor. Before everyone starts squawking, let me explain.
It's tech week (affectionately known as Hell Week around these parts); the lighting director has problems, the stage crew isn't clicking, the set needs to be finished, the décor people are fussing and the costumer has a bad cold. One of your walk-ons, you know the one (all experience ten years ago in high school, which was the creative high point of his/her life, and therefore he/she has been analyzing his/her five lines as if they were to be uttered by Hamlet), has a question about blocking. "Not now" won't do. You have to take the time to answer the question. But, the blocking in question could throw off the entire scene, yet he/she might have a point (see Collaborative Directing). You don't have the time or patience to deal with this now. "I'll have to think about it," you say. You are busy, things are hectic and you don't write it down. Will you remember? Probably not. Tack on "Ask me tomorrow night."
This gives you time to think, and puts the remembering problem on the actor. Yes, it's a cop-out, but you've got ninety irons in he fire, scattering your efforts across half the theater. Your questioner has five lines to remember, as well as working on not bumping into the furniture. And it was his/her question. Realistically, it buys you time, sets up a reminder and temporarily satisfies the actor. And it works. Most of the time, it'll be the first thing that actor asks at the next rehearsal - before you've been bombarded for a couple of hours.
Try it.
Collaborative DirectingIf you know everything about acting, directing, lighting, stage management, and the author's play, please leave the room now. There is a cult waiting to make you a god.
Are they gone? Good. The egos were becoming stifling. Okay, for the rest of us mortals, directing should involve input from everyone, cast and crew. I know, it sounds like a madhouse, but trust me.
Everyone working on a show has ideas. Some are good, others might inspire a better idea from you or someone else, and a few are just bad. Even those have a place. Bad ideas are teaching fodder. Directors have to be teachers, too. Help people learn from their mistakes, and their bad ideas. I even encourage people to argue with me. They learn, I learn, and the show is that much stronger because of it. And the next time they audition for you, they will be better and you will have a stronger cast.
If this sounds like direction by committee, it's close. It's not a democracy, though, it's benevolent dictatorship. Remember that "benevolent" part, it's important. As long as people feel comfortable bringing you their ideas, it'll work. Tell them up front that you want to hear from them, encourage them to talk with you, and remember to credit the person who came up with the idea when you use it. But - and there's always a "but" - the director has final say, no matter what.
Collaborative directing means you're going to get input from all over, including from your tech crew. This is a good thing. Some of them have probably seen more shows and worked with more directors than you have. And some of their advice will actually be about the technical aspects of the show. Of course, what the tech crew wants to do and what you want for your show may be very different.
You need to know how to express what you want in terms that your tech crew will understand. If you're directing, especially in community theater, without any technical experience, get some. Now! And do it in the theater where you direct. (See The Director's Bootcamp for more)
If you understand the limitations and possibilities of your theater and its equipment, you will be a much better director. Yes, I know that's the technical/lighting director's or stage manager's job, but you'd better know what you want, how you want it, and be prepared to offer suggestions to help those people deliver what you want. Which brings us to why…
"That's not
right… change it" isn't enoughAs a director, it's not enough to know what isn't right, whether it comes from your actors or your tech crew. You have to explain why it isn't right, and explain what you want. They don't read minds. It's your vision, don't make them guess… explain it to them. Basic, right? Hah!
We've all had them - the actor that just doesn't "get it." What do you do? Well, if you keep beating your head against the wall, several things happen; you get a headache, brick prints on your forehead, and the actor gets frustrated and difficult to work with. There's got to be a better way.
As a director, you have to understand that no two people are alike and you can't tackle everyone the same way. Anecdotal evidence: I had an actress who couldn't or wouldn't get angry on stage as her character demanded. I tried telling her she had to get mad. She said, "I am." It wasn't working. So I pulled her off stage and started yelling at her (see Directing As Performance). I was totally out of line, and it pissed her off. She started yelling back. I stopped, smiled, and said, "That's what I want you to do on stage in this scene." And off she went. She was wonderful.
Unfortunately, I tried using the same technique on a different actress in a different show who was having the same problem. She dissolved in tears, and I had some serious 'splainin' to do. I also had to come up with another way to get my point across.
If at first you don't succeed, try another way. Don't hammer an actor with the same stuff over and over again, come at them from different directions. Change your approach, try something different, find out how to reach your actor. It's far easier for you, as one person, to alter your approach than it is for a cast and crew of however many to alter theirs to suit you.
Politicians have given the word compromise a bad name lately. But, sometimes, a director has to compromise. The promising actor that gave you that special something in audition just isn't measuring up. You took a flyer and missed. Now, you have figure out what to do with this part. You can beat the actor up endlessly and hope for the best, but often this just demoralizes the actor and the rest of the cast. Bringing the characterization in line with the actor's capabilities is a good compromise. After all, if there was something there in auditions, the actor can't be THAT far off. Modify your vision of the character to play to the actor's strengths and minimize the demands on the actor's weaknesses and you'll have a compromise that everyone can live with… especially the audience.
Directing as
performanceIn some ways, directing is just another acting job… it just has a more critical audience - actors.
The first thing you have to do is get and hold a cast's attention. Sometimes this is difficult, because actors are gregarious by nature and would much rather talk than listen. Counter this by putting on a little show of your own.
Don't direct from a seat in the house. Get off your butt and get down where they can see you. Movement holds attention much more than speech, no matter how good you are. Stand in front of the stage and talk to your cast. Get passionate about your notes, use your body to explain, not just your voice. Don't act out what you want them to do, act out the way you feel about what you what them to do. If they see you being passionate about the show, they will start to feel that way.
Don't ever let a cast know that you're angry. It scares them, and diminishes their trust in you. Take a walk, let them go early, get away from them. Let the anger run its course. THEN yell at them. All right, who said, "Excuse me?" in such a sarcastic tone? It does make sense. It's about control.
Directors who lose their temper are not in control - of themselves or their show. They say things that are counterproductive and create an atmosphere of rancor and distrust. However, sometimes you have to "lose it" to get their attention. Note the quotation marks.
If you feel you need to get their attention through a display of temper, be an actor. You know, fake it. You get to shake them up, yet you are still in control. You can measure what you say, temper it with the positives that keep a cast from turning on you, and retain the trusting relationship necessary to putting on a good show.
"But last night,
you said…"I was wrong.
Three simple words that can be the hardest to say. Practice them. You'll need 'em. Sometimes a director tries something that looked and sounded better in their head than it does on stage. Don't let your ego get in the way… admit that it doesn't work, fix it and move on. Your cast will understand that you are not going to let them look bad, no matter what.
Protect the bookholder"Line, dammit!" "Give it to me!" Ah, the sounds of frustration. First night off book, and nobody's happy. But, it isn't the bookholder's fault. Don't let your cast take their frustrations out on the bookholder. On the first night out of book, introduce the bookholder and explain to the cast that the only word they need is "line." Nothing more. Your bookholder will appreciate it, and your cast will reap the benefits of a happy bookholder.
My stage manager, right
or wrongIntroduce your stage manager to the cast with "This is the stage manager. When he/she tells you to do something, you do it. If you think he/she is wrong, do it anyway, then see me after the show. I will deal with it after the performance. Until then, the stage manager is always right."
Arguments backstage are bad. Period. This is where the collaborative director model breaks down. Once a show goes into performance, the discussions are over. It is a true dictatorship and the stage manager is the director's second-in-command. Discussions will take place after the fact, no matter what.
The stage manager is the only person who has a pretty good overall feel for the show. He or she knows where the actors are, what scene it is, what's upcoming, and what's going on in the light booth. Even if the stage manager makes a mistake, no one has the time or the overall view of the show to argue with them at the time. Save it for later. That goes for the director, too. If you can't trust the stage manager, don't work with them.
Opening night, my job's
over, right?The crowd arrives, the lights go down and you've turned things over to the stage manager. It's time to sit back and relax.
Don't even think it. In some ways, your job just got tougher. Now you go from being a taskmaster to a cheerleader. You've worked for weeks to get your cast ready for opening night, you can't just abandon them.
There are several things you can do as a director to keep your show running like a swiss watch during performance.
Get to the theater early and spend time with your actors and crew. Gauge their mood. Opening night they're going to be wired on adrenaline. That's easy to deal with. Second night, depending on how opening went, they may be mellow and cocky. That could be trouble. You know as well as I do that the second performance is much harder to get "up" for than the first. If your show starts out flat, without the energy and the pacing you had opening night, it's very difficult to bring things up. You can start adjusting their energy levels here with a joke or two, get them talking among themselves, etc.
About ten minutes before curtain, I like to gather my actors in a circle in the green room and give a little pep talk. I adjust what I say based on the prevailing mood of the night. If the actors seem over-confident, I tell them about second night let down. If it's the weekend after the reviews have come out, I tell them that the audience is now expecting a good show (provided the reviews have been good, otherwise I tell them the reviews don't matter, the audience still came to see a good show and they deserve our best efforts.) I always try to make the pre-show pep-talk match what they need to do on the stage in order to get them ready to face the audience. It can be a little tough to make this talk fresh, especially when you're working with people you've worked with for years... they've heard all your best schtick.
So where are you watching the show from? I know, you've just sat through weeks of rehearsals and, after all, there's nothing you can do now, is there? It's up the cast and the crew now, right?
Wrong.
By watching the show, you know where the pacing's dragging a bit, which actor's having a down night, or who's rising to the occasion. Armed with this information, you can walk down into the green room and fix things... gently, positively. This is no time to be negative. Be positive, get your show back on track. One word of caution: don't try to do this backstage. Bad place, bad timing. Do it in the green room or the dressing room, where you've a little more time, a little privacy, and you are not in the stage crew's way. I make sure my stage manager knows that he (or, more often, she) can throw anyone out of the backstage area, including the director.
Okay, intermission... whatever.
Your cast expects a report on the show. After all, they've relied on you to tell them how they're doing from the first rehearsal. Don't let them down now. Get them ready for the second act. And let them know how the audience is taking the show. Especially if it's a drama. It's fairly easy to gauge an audiences reactioin to a comedy from the stage; if you're holding for laughs, they like it. But, in a drama, it isn't as easy. If you have time, hang out in the lobby for a couple of minutes and see what you can overhear. If you've been working in a particular theater for awhile, the audience will know you, and many will stop to let you know how it's going.
Nope.
These people just laid their egos on the stage. Go back and tell them they did a good job! And remember to thank the crew.
This is also the time when you may have to deal with the actor that didn't have a good night and is upset. Remind them that this is live theater and things happen. It isn't the end of the world, and the next performance will be better. Besides, they ain't the only one it's happened to. Personally, I try not to tell "old theater tales" because they take forever, but sometimes I can't help myself. If you're going to, keep it short. There's celebrating to do!
But all of this just
seems like common sense…Sure. It is. But it's amazing how many directors forget all of this in the heat of the creative moment. It's easy to get caught up in the motivations of your main character while forgetting the needs of the actor or actress playing the part. Blue-collar directing is about keeping the cast and crew on your side.
TIP: REFINING THE ACTION
Determining the character's actions in a scene and communicating them effectively are two of the most critical practices--more intuitive and visceral than intellectual--for a director to learn. If you find it difficult to define the action of a scene, first ask what the character is literally doing. Then consider the objectice behind that behavior. For instance, if character x is literally questioning character y, is he badgering her, testing her, or searching for an answer? An aid in identifying action is to read all of a single character's lines in that scene or smaller unit consecutively. This gives you a better chance to sense how the lines connect to form an action and how the character's several actions become the tactics for achieving an objective.
TIP: PLAYING OPPOSITES
Discussing an obstacle with an actor may not always produce the desired result. Actions are playable, but obstacles are not; they can only modify the action. A more direct way of accessing an obstacle is to turn it into an action. An actor who must reveal a lack of self-respect as his character's obstacle could play as an action to punish or sabotage himself. That kind of experiment tends to inform future repetitions of the scene when he returns to playing the original action.
Turning an obstacle into an action is one example of "playing opposites"-- a very good way of bringing out different sides to any behavior. Playing the opposite of what appears to be the obvious action-- even if it seems inappropriate-- can introduce new colors and even new actions.
TIP: ONE THING AT A TIME
An effective way to rehearse, especially early in the process, is to concentrate on one element-- for instance, one of the immediate given circumstances-- at a time. Otherwise the playing may not reveal which circumstance is most important. And remember,your actors are trying to absorb a great many things in a still incomplete context. Later, when they have a more advanced sense of each scene, you can layer in the more subtle circumstances, actions, and aspects of the relationships..
Encourage the playing of one clear action rather than a series of contradictory desires. A direction such as "Excite her, but keep your distance, and also find out if she's available" is far too complicated and qualified to play.