Re: RAT Toastmaster

One thing I should mention is that I only started writing (26 year creative writing block) again in '96. I've mainly been working as a director, etc. -- largely helping to develop new plays. So what I'm talking about is what I've seen happening over the years -- even in theatres where playwrights have a lot of control.

Unfortunately, the definition of "great work" has come to mean work that can stand lots of interpretation. Do you see the problem? If it is inconvenient to try to get at the author's intention (or if there aren't critics, scholars and the ubiquitous grad student in the wings to do it) then work disappears. It takes folks like Serban to show us that, yes, The Cherry Orchard is a comedy of manners.

I believe that stage directions and in-dialogue sub-contextual messages are crucial for lots of theater genre -- especially sensitive/techie forms like comedy. Lots of interesting material disappears -- not because it isn't topical or can't be updated -- but because it is "too specific". Think of it this way: the more universal characters or themes are, the more likely they are to be "classic", but the more specific they are the more relevance they often have for the people they are written to entertain/influence.

For many playwrights of my acquaintance, the notion that "we are on the same team" is a rare occurrence. Directors and producers are often very good at conning/scamming/bullying playwrights into making changes that work for the director/production, but which definitely don't work for the piece itself. Playwrights know that something is wrong, and feel vaguely uneasy (or angry), but feel that they have to put up with it. (There are totally unreasonable playwrights, of course. No denying that.)

I see the dramaturg is used in many ways.

Ideally, the dramaturg will help the director interpret the actual meaning of particular phrases or the actual intention of the author. This is what I see happening more often than not with classics/dead authors. For living authors I see the role used another way. Often the function is used as a device by producers to talk writers into making changes that they don't want to make. Recently I've seen a couple of cases where the dramaturg was as a go-between to get re-writes. (In one case this was a 23 yr old dramaturg working on rewrites for a play about people in their fifties -- written by a playwright in her 60's! )

Cheers,

Cat Hebert

Oh, dear. This sounds serious. I think maybe you need to get out more.
Perhaps a little outside of your usual "comfort zone". Just a suggestion.
No, really. I find that really good works beg to be realized, rather than
interpreted, so that they are performed in the manner in which they were
intended to be. What that means is that overindulgence in stage directions,
etc., is not necessary. Further, great works can withstand "interpretation"
by directors and actors. We are all on the same team, after all. By the
way, where do you see the role of the dramaturg in this evil quagmire? :)

Ann Taylor
rm 120 theatre