Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers - Softcover

Thomas, James

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0240803361 ISBN 13: 9780240803364

Publisher: Focal Press, 1999

Synopsis

Based on the premise that plays are objects of study in and of themselves, Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers, teaches a traditional system of classifications that examines the written part of a play, excluding such considerations as performance, scenery, or costuming.



This book applies directly to the experience of theatrical production; students will immediately be able to relate the concepts and procedures they learn to their artistic work. The author's procedural method is detailed and precise. The parts of a play are learned progressively, which fosters an understanding of the concept of artistic unity. Examples are clear and comprehensive. Actors, directors, and designers will benefit from end-of-chapter questions and summaries meant to stimulate their creative process as they engage in production work.

An updated appendix includes introductions to additional critical theories in widest use today. Examples from contemporary theatre, including three plays written since 1990, bring this edition completely up-to-date.

About this title

Review

"This book is a must-read for anyone interested in directing drama...I cannot praise this book highly enough...When I studied for my MA in theatre and film I struggled to unpick scripts and dramatic texts - if I'd read this book I would have had a far easier journey of discovery and a practical tool-kit to enable me to understand scripts and bring them to life on screen. The language is dense and quite academic, but the reader is rewarded with invaluable information." - Focus magazine

About the Author

James Thomas, Professor of Theatre at Wayne State University and Head of its PhD Program in Directing and Theatre Scholarship, is a graduate of St. Ambrose College (BA), Villanova University (MA), and the University of Texas at Austin (PhD). Thomas has also taught theatre at Mount Holyoke College, Marquette University and Florida State University, where he was Associate Dean. His recent directing credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author and Cymbeline at Detroit's Hilberry Theatre, and Ah, Wilderness! and The Skin of our Teeth at the Bonstelle Theatre. He is also translator of texts about modern Russian acting and directing technique and Director of the Department's Study Abroad Program with the Moscow Art Theatre School. He is currently at work on a study of Shakespeare's plays for actors, directors and designers.
James Thomas, Professor of Theatre at Wayne State University and Head of its PhD Program in Directing and Theatre Scholarship, is a graduate of St. Ambrose College (BA), Villanova University (MA), and the University of Texas at Austin (PhD). Thomas has also taught theatre at Mount Holyoke College, Marquette University and Florida State University, where he was Associate Dean. His recent directing credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author and Cymbeline at Detroit's Hilberry Theatre, and Ah, Wilderness! and The Skin of our Teeth at the Bonstelle Theatre. He is also translator of texts about modern Russian acting and directing technique and Director of the Department's Study Abroad Program with the Moscow Art Theatre School. He is currently at work on a study of Shakespeare's plays for actors, directors and designers.

Edition details

• Publisher: Focal Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0240803361
• ISBN 13: 9780240803364
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 215