THP 260/ENG 210

Introduction to Playwriting

T/Th 10:40-11:55

Instructor: Gregory Farber

Office Hours: DGH 1, T/Th 11:55-12:30, and by appointment.

Required Texts: I Am My Own Wife by Doug Wright.

                                    Other required readings will be provided by the instructor.

Required Performances:

Because this is a class on playwriting, you will be required to see plays as well as read them.  You are required to go to the following performances:

            The Lost Ones: in the Lyceum, September 21-October 1

Haroun and the Sea of Stories: in the Galvin, October 13-22

            One Play in the Festival of New Work: in the Lyceum

and FAC133, November 9-19

A second play in the Festival of New Work or a Student Production Board show in the Prism Theatre, Cornerstone Building

** Please note: you are being told about these plays now.  If you have conflicts, please inform me immediately.  Work conflicts and sold out tickets are NOT excuses to miss theses shows.  Please make any necessary arrangements now. 

More information about Lost Ones, Haroun, and the Festival of New Work can be found at:    http://herbergercollege.asu.edu/mainstage

Class Philosophy:

I believe that there are two essential parts to the practice of playwriting: writing and analysis.  In order to improve your ability at the craft you need to keep writing.  In addition to writing you also need to be able to look objectively at others’ work, and for a playwright, that means looking at the work of your peers, reading plays, and attending performances.

Attendance and Participation:

Writers need to work with each other and give constructive feedback.  Since you will regularly be giving feedback on your classmates’ work, you need to be in class. Even if the focus is not on your play, participating in the workshops will be as valuable to your development as those times when your piece is the focus of the class.

**Missing more than four classes (missing 5 or more classes) will result in you losing ALL of your attendance points.  This is over 10% of your grade.

Grading Scale:

450 pts                                     Exercises, Reports, Reflections**

35 pts                                       First draft of 10-min play

75 pts                                       Outline of one-act/Revised outline

35 pts                                       1^st 10 pages of one act

35 pts                                       2^nd 10 pages of one act

110 pts                                     Midterm: Final draft of 10-minute play

110 pts                                     Final: Final draft of one act play

150 pts                                     Attendance and Participation

            Total Points = 1000

980 - 1000 pts = A+

950 - 979 pts = A       

900 - 949 pts = A-

870 - 899 pts = B+

830 - 869 pts = B

800 - 829 pts = B-

770 - 799 pts = C+

700 - 769 pts = C

600 - 699 pts = D

599 & below = E

**Exercises, Reports, and Reflections will be graded as follows:

Full credit for a complete, well-written assignment.  Two-thirds credit will be given for assignments that are not well-written or show lack of significant effort.  No credit will be given for assignments that are not turned in or do not meet the assigned criteria.  Please be aware that if you consistently receive two-thirds credit, your grade will be significantly impacted.

Description of Assignments:

Exercises: 

The assigned exercises are designed to help you practice and experiment with aspects of plays essential to the development of any playwright.  There will be six exercises: One on conflict, two on character, two on dialogue, and one on the submission process.

Reports:

These short reports will give you a chance to analyze the plays you’ve seen or read and apply the things we’ve discussed in class, focusing specifically on how what you’ve seen/read relates to your own writing.

Reflections:

Reflecting on one’s own work and the process one takes to get there is an essential part of one’s development in any field.  These reflection papers are designed to help you articulate areas where you have improved or need improvement.

Assignments:

All assignments must be typed, properly formatted, and free of spelling, grammar, and typographical errors.

I will not accept late assignments.  Exceptions will only be made if I am SPOKEN to BEFORE class.  You must call me or speak to me personally and make other arrangements.  Emailing me right before or during class is not acceptable.  Only this or an EMERGENCY is an acceptable way to turn in papers after their due date.  Also, I will NOT accept assignments via email.  Any assignments emailed to me will be counted as not received.

NOTE:  Missing class is NOT an excuse for not turning in work when it is due.

Schedule & Assignments:

Below is a schedule of the classes and assignments.  More detailed instructions will be given in class.

Week 1:

Tues. August 22: Discuss theatricality and conflict.  Assign: conflict exercise.

Thurs. August 24: Due: conflict exercise.

                                    Discuss: exercises; read some in class, character. 

Assign: character exercise, monologue reading.

Week 2:

Tues. August 29: Due: character exercise.  Discuss: exercises, monologues.

Assign: Monologue.

            Thurs. August 31: Due: monologue.  Discuss/read monologues.

                                    Assign: dialogue exercise.

Week 3:

            Tues. September 5: Due: dialogue exercise.

                                    Discuss: dialogue.

Assign: 10-min play reading.

            Thurs. September 7: Due: 10-min play report.

                                    Discuss: format of a 10-minute play.

                                    Assign: first draft of 10-min.

Week 4:

            Tues. September 12: Due: first draft of 10-min play.

Discuss 10-min plays, read in class.

            Thurs. September 14:

                                    Discuss: 10-min plays, continue reading in class.

Assign: reflection on 10-min play process.

--The Lost Ones: Sept. 21-Oct.1--

Week 5:

            Tues. September 19: Due: reflection on 10-min play process.

Discuss: continue reading 10-min plays

Assign: read one-act play: A Quality of Recognition                              

            Thurs. September 21: Due: report on one-act: A Quality of Recognition

                                    Discuss: continue reading 10-min plays, format of a one-act. 

Assign: revision of monologues

Week 6:

            Tues. September 26: Due: revision of monologues

Discuss: brainstorms.  Any unread 10-min plays. 

Assign: brainstorm of one-act.

Thurs. September 28: Due: brainstorm of one-acts.

Discuss: character arcs/development in a one-act, character exercise.

Assign: character/dialogue exercise (characters from one-acts dialogue in other scenarios)

Week 7:

            Tues. October 3: Due: Due: character/dialogue exercises. Report on Lost Ones

Discuss: Lost Ones, character/dialogue exercises, submission process and getting performed/published.

Assign: Submission exercise (find 3 places to submit your ten-min play)

            Thurs. October 5: Due: 3 submissions.

                                    Discuss: Revisions.

                                    Assign: revisions of 10-min play, reflection on 10-min. 

Week 8:

                        --Haroun and the Sea of Stories: October 13-22--

            Tues. October 10: Due: reflection on 10-min

                                    Discuss: revisions/reflections

                                    Assign: Character breakdown, dialogue sample for one-act.   

            Thurs. October 12: Due: Character breakdown, dialogue for one-act.

Discuss: characters/dialogue with class, approaches to writing a one-act.

Week 9:

            Tues. October 17: Midterm Due: Final draft of 10-min play.

                                    Discuss: Revisions of 10-mins

Assign: First 10-pages of one-act.

Thurs. October 19: Conferences.

Week 10:

            Tues. October 24: Conferences.

            Thurs. October 26: Due: Report on Haroun and the Sea of Stories.

Discuss: Haroun

Week 11:

            Tues. October 31: Due: First 10 pages of one-act, group A:

            Thurs. November 2: Due: First 10 pages of one-act, group B:

Week 12:

--Festival of New Work: November 9-19--

            Tues. November 7: Due: First 10 pages of one-act, group C:

                        Assign: Read I Am My Own Wife.

            Thurs. November 9: Due: First 10 pages of one-act, group D:

Week 13:

            Tues. November 14:

                                    Due: Report on I Am My Own Wife

                                    Discuss: I Am My Own Wife, any unread first 10 pages.

                                    Assign: Second 10 pages of one-act

Thurs. November 16: Second 10 pages of one-act, group A:

Week 14:

Tues. November 21: Due: Report on one play in the Festival of New Work,

Second 10-pages of one-act, group B:

Discuss: Festival of New Work.

            Thurs. November 23 Due: Second 10-pages of one-act, group C:

Week 15:

Tues. November 28: Due: Second 10 pages of one-act, group D:

                        Assign: Reflection on playwriting.

            Thurs. November 30: Due: Reflection paper on playwriting process.

Week 16:

            Tues. December 5: Final Due: Final draft of one-act.

Important dates:

The Lost Ones: Sept. 21 – Oct. 1

Haroun and the Sea of Stories: Oct. 13 – 22

Festival of New Work: Nov. 9 – 19

*Note:

Please be aware that though I will attempt to stick to the syllabus as carefully as possible, every class is fluid and dynamic.  Should the circumstances warrant it, I reserve the right to make changes to the syllabus as appropriate, with fair warning and notification to you.

**Please also note that there may be content in the required readings or performances that contain adult themes, content, and language.