A large part of my background was studying the
essences and differences between screen and in-person dramatic experiences.
I want to focus on types of theatrical energy. I
think this list is conclusive... let me know if you think of a new one!
Types of potential theatrical
energy:
Physical: unsustainable action (blowing air
into a baloon, holding one’s breath); a break in repetition (ba-dum, ching!);
acrobatic (dance, contortion, abnormalities); violence; illogical; or the
breaking from these things.
Social: bigotry; base acts (nudity, body
functions); insubordinance (familial, spiritual, or political); or breaking
from these things.
Moral: cruelty; perversion; pornography;
and blasphemy; or breaking from these things.
Challenge #12: Cinema becomes Theater. Due
11/13/17 at 8am
Imagine a scenario where a screen showing a
dramatic narrative to ONE person... misbehaves... has mechanical failure... is
bait for a larger theatrical force... something
so we have this screen
and an inciting theatrical action that knocks us
physically/socially/or morally out of balance
and more people enter (forming an audience)
and the unexpected happens (forming a theatrical
experience)
and then a human- attempting a performative
action like a politician giving a speech or a musician playing a song- that
human does something unexpected to the collective audience... and a moment of
THEATER occurs.
Or if you don't like that...
Write a play where the audience sits
on stage.
********
I'm at the point in this
new script where the research is getting in the way of doing the writing, while
doing the writing is getting in the way of research (which of course you need a
certain amount of to do the writing with any sort of useful specifity) - sigh -
so, a concept that's not quite a scene yet but is at least trying to meld a bit
of the two -
*******
DUNCAN
"An
it harm none, do what ye will."
JEFFREY
What's
with the ye olde Englishe all of a sudden?
DUNCAN
OK
- And if it harms none, do what you will.
JEFFREY
I
understood you the first time, I just -
DUNCAN
If
you're ever wondering what you should do, as a Wiccan, hopefully you ask
yourself the question, "How can I cause the least harm?"
JEFFREY
And
- ?
DUNCAN
Did
you ask yourself any questions at all?
Did you consider the harm you might be doing?
JEFFREY
But
I didn't do anything.
DUNCAN
Not
directly, no. Actually what you did was
worse. You handed off a love potion when
you weren't entirely sure what it was going to do, to a person who knew even
less about what he was doing than you did.
JEFFREY
Are
you actually angry with me right now?
DUNCAN
Yes. Because I want to think you're better than
that. I want to think I'm attracted to
people who are better than that. But it
seems like every pretty surface just has a moron underneath it.
JEFFREY
I
am battling right now between being mad that you called me a moron, and
thrilled that you called me pretty.
DUNCAN
You
have irreparably damaged their friendship.
Your friend and his best friend.
There's no going back after this.
The trust has been violated in a way I'm not sure they can ever get
past. Not to mention his pregnant wife.
JEFFREY
Yeah,
that's bad. I get that.
DUNCAN
Did
you get it before you gave him the love potion in the first place?
JEFFREY
What?
DUNCAN
Did
you actually think - this either isn't going to work, or if it does, it's going
to end up driving a wedge between them and then maybe Micah will see me as the
only alternative he has left.
JEFFREY
Wow. You are way overthinking this.
DUNCAN
Which
means you're underthinking it.
JEFFREY
I
just wanted him to be happy.
DUNCAN
No,
you're careless. You didn't think it
through.
JEFFREY
It
sounds like if I thought it through and did it anyway, you'd have thought I was
an even worse person.
DUNCAN
Maybe,
but at least then I'd think you were a person who took the time to consider the
consequences of his actions before taking them.
JEFFREY
I
had several days when I was making the love potion to think about this. And then a few days before that when I was
considering whether to make it or not, and get the ingredients -
DUNCAN
And
the whole time - ?
JEFFREY
I
was wondering if I could work up the nerve to actually use it on Micah myself.
DUNCAN
But
you didn't.
JEFFREY
I
mean, if I did it without telling him, that'd be wrong, right? But I'd still know. Even if he said he loved me, I could never
really believe it because I'd altered his consciousness to suit myself.
DUNCAN
So,
instead of doing that, you just set him up to do the same thing to somebody
else.
JEFFREY
Man. I suck.
(to be continued)
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