Reading drama is differentfrom reading fiction because it is so much sparer. The author tells thereader or actor very little about the characters, usually only in thestage directions which the viewers of a play don't see.

Characters

The first thing youwant to get straight about the play is the characters; plot in drama islargely defined by the interactions between CHARACTERS. So there are twothings you need to figure out:

• We call this finding the"through-line".
•  A good way to establisha through-line is to think about motivation:what makes each character tick? What do they want, what motivatestheir actions and words?
• Actors often think interms of finding the"SPINE" ofa character, the essential quality that holds them together.

• We call this finding the"cross-lines".
• This play is about a family,so we have to understand how each of the family members relates to eachother.  How does Ozzie relate to Harriet? How do they both relateto Ricky and to David?  How do David and Ricky relate to each other?Then we have to look at the other crosses.  How does Zung relate toDavid and to the other members of his family? What is each character?srelationship with every other character?
• What is each character'srelationship with every other character?
• What do we find out aboutthe history of each character in the play? What does their past tell usabout them now?
• Pick a character to specializein. Using that character's past history, construct your sense of that character'sspine or motivation. What makes him or her tick? What is their ruling passion.How do they relate to each of the other characters?

• The complicationis the beginning of the action, where all the conflicts gets set up, thewires get crossed, the people oppose each other, the lovers get lost fromone another etc. What gets complicated in this play?
• The reversalor "PERIPETIA" is a sudden turn inthe action of a play, the moment in a tragedy where the hero falls (likewhen Adam bites the apple or Macbeth murders the king). Are there any suddenturns in this play?
• Another kind of crisiscan be a crisis ofknowing, a sudden illumination, understanding,or recognition (like when Oedipus finally figures out thathe isthe murderer he has been searching for). What are the crucial moments ofrecognitionin the play? Who recognizes what? What does this tell us about theTHEMESof the play, the meanings it is exploring, the message it wants to getacross?
• The resolutionis the way the play gets resolved in the end. If it's a comedy, the playgenerally ends with a marriage, a party, a dance. Comedies end with thehero's integration into society. Tragedies are about the hero's isolationfrom society, so they typically end in death or exile. How does this playend? Is it a comedy or a tragedy?

Other ways of gettingat the THEME involve paying attention to what the playwright emphasizes.

• Whatideas and concerns are repeated, brought up again and again?
• Whatideas have the strongest, most vivid imagery and/or figurative languageassociated with them?
• Whatwould you identify as the most important line in the play?
• How doesthe title fit in?

Last update: 7/27/97