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Playwriting

Module description

A course in writing for performance, involving both practical experiment and analysis of work by others. The module is designed to expand the writer’s range of approaches and knowledge of contemporary playwriting. Analysis is made from the point of view of a practitioner, to understand writing techniques and innovations, and their effects on the page as well as in performance.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The module is designed for those who are interested in developing and expanding their writing skills for live performance, through weekly shifts in focus to explore: the 'rules' of playwriting; experimental approaches to defining the play; text in relation to a range of other stage elements. Relevant reference will be made to writers, performers, dramaturgs and directors. You will undertake a range of formative written assessments, leading to the submission of a longer performance text and a portfolio of critical and creative writing. The portfolio will be made up of your three strongest weekly exercises, developed following feedback, and reflective writing about your work in context. This reflective writing will be informed by your presentation research.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Recognise a range of approaches to writing for performance, their contexts and underlying principles
• 2. Demonstrate an understanding of a range of dramaturgical issues regarding the writing and shaping of a play or performance text
• 3. Develop your own writing style and ability to write in different registers and for different contexts.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Demonstrate theability to utilise research tools effectively and to translate theory into practice
• 5. Relate to others in theatrical processes and performances; to work effectively with others and to initiate and sustain creative, analytic and interpretative work within strict time limits and to solve a number of specific technical problems and apply that understanding to performance work
• 6. Demonstrate the ability to engage critically and analytically from a range of theoretic perspectives, to explore theoretical concerns through practice and vice versa, and to synthesise findings in practical and written tasks. The ability to interpret research into practice and vice versa

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Develop existing group cooperation skills, including the ability to give and receive constructive critical feedback, and to improve communication skills and advanced analytic abilities in discussions
• 8. Develop existing personal research skills using personal initiative; to set personal objectives that are linked to a sense of challenge and extending boundaries and to identify and evaluate personal learning strategies that are self-critical as much as self-reflective
• 9. Demonstrate the ability to think laterally and demonstrate originality in problem solving, to express and communicate creative ideas and images, and the ability to initiate and sustain creative work

Syllabus plan

Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that the module will cover some or all of the following topics:

• Introduction to a spectrum of approaches
• Focus on themes such as
  • Structure
  • Place/Site
  • Movement
  • Character
  • Autobiography
• Presentations on contemporary playwriting
• Responding to a brief
• Share and refine draft scripts

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• DesRocher, R. (2008). "Where Do New Plays Come From?" The Drama Review 52(4): 7-12.
• Edgar, D. (2009). How Plays Work. London, Nick Hern Books.
• Etchells, T. (1999). Certain Fragments. London and New York, Routledge.
• Freeman, J. (2007). New Performance/New Writing. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan.
• Freytag, G. (1900). Technique of the Drama: An Exposition of Dramatic Composition and Art. Chicago, Scott, Foresman and Company.
• Fuchs, E. (2004). "EF's Visit to a Small Planet: Some Questions to Ask a Play." Theater 34(2): 5-9.
• Kaye, N. (1994). Postmodernism and Performance. Basingstoke and New York, Macmillan and St Martin's Press.
• Lehmann, H.-T. (1997). "From Logos to Landscape: Text in Contemporary Dramaturgy." Performance Research 2(1): 55-60.
• Meyrick, J. (2006). "Cut and Paste: The Nature of Dramaturgical Development in the Theatre." Theatre Research International 31(3): 270-282.
• Pavis, P. (2008). "On Faithfulness: The Difficulties Experienced by the Text/Performance Couple." Theatre Research International 33(2): 117-126.
• Turner, C., Ed. (2010). Studies in Theatre and Performance. Vol 30, No 1.

Key words search

playwriting, performance writing, creative writing dramaturgy, plays