Mercy! Mercy! That Dang Nabed PERCY!

Still More on the One Act Play Course

Still more on the One Act Play Course.

I have a number of handouts that go with the One Act Play Course. These include examples and Rules of Thumb. I know the students read these but like reading from a text book words are often abstractions until you have actually tried the process. Thus when I see the first drafts coming in there are always some missing ingredinets that were not added. So I have this checklist I provide about midway through lesson 3. Since I firmly believe that writing a drama is similar in many ways to writing any form of literature I will share them with my interested readers to see if they resonate.

Checklist for the First Draft.

Most everything on this checklist are issues that were brought out in the handouts. You probably read them but they were abstract and theoretical and maybe a bit fuzzy until you actually sat down and wrote your first draft. Now you have that in black and white and at this point you should have a real understanding of what these ingredients are.

1. Does the central character have a strong and compelling want need or desire.? By compelling is it earthshaking, leading them to a pivotal decision that will change their life. What is it…? One of the first questions the audience will have consciously or unconsciously is what is the central character’s problem and what do they intend to do about it. This issue should emerge in the first scene possibly in the first monologue…. The playwright simply cannot afford to wait until into the second scene to make a statement as to what this is.

2. Once the audience knows what it is that is driving the Central Character (CC) and realize what this life changing circumstance is, they want to begin to see the obstacles rearing up that keep the CC from realizing his or her goals or desire. The first hurdel (crisis) usually is the least intense but they grow until the big tsunami rolls in. That is the climax. Does your play have three (or more) crisis that build in intensity as the drama moves along.

3. Do these crisis bring an emotional load to the audience. Does seeing them take place cause them to yawn or lean forward in their seats?

4. In your character sketches there were many things mentioned that will not be directly expressed in the drama. The drama is the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the drama are undercurrents and the biggest of these is the theme, or message or whatever is really at the core of what the Central Character is about. Often we say and do things that are “politically correct” because the real problem, the undercurrent is too difficult to face. We have to find a politically correct reason to serve as the proxy for what the real problem is…. This is often referred to as the undercurrent, or hidden meaning… A good play has this taking place even if it is a comedy or light romance. What is the moral or theme or underlying message of the drama?

5. Humor often arises in the contrast of the undercurrents and the superficial story being presented. It also pops up with the expectations of the characters, often unrealistic, as they face the light of day or come into conflict with reality . Good humor is not something you can write directly…. You must see its potential in what is going on and coax it into the script as it happens along the way and rears its head as a target of opportunity. Is there humor in your drama?

6. Does every line move the play along… There is simply no room for words that don’t in some way push the drama forward. Have you ruthlessly gone in and removed words, phrases and/or blocks of dialogue that might sound cute, witty or well written but are not overtly or subtly moving the story forward? In a One Act there is no room for tangents and digressons that serve no purpose in advancing the play.

7. Is there an important event in the drama that you tell the audience about in a monologue or dialogue that they really need to see. Keep in mind that unlike a short story a stage play has a stage. The audience not only gets to hear (read) what is happening the get to see it. You will certainly do some telling but if the event being described is huge you need to show it . Don’t say in a telephone conversation…”I saw frank slap Grace,” when that slap was the life changing event in the Central Character,s life…but rather find a way to show it to the audience.

I will stop here for now… There is plenty more to consider but I don’t want to overwhelm anyone. These seven things are big questions I will be asking about your play. If you don’t have them included consider bringing them into the picture. These are not trivial omissions if they are not included