Drama Intro

Drama Intro

by Ginger Seay

​DRAMA

• ​A drama, or a play, is told mainly through the words and actions of characters.

• The STORY might unfold on a stage or on a movie or television screen. ​

• Readers of plays imagine actors speaking the dialogue and envision the setting, lighting, and actions described in the stage directions.

• Drama allows readers to see the STORY unfold before their very eyes.

Multiple Select

A play has which of the following?

• characters

• plot

• setting

• theme

Multiple Choice

As you read drama, you should

• imagine actors on a stage performing

• day dream

• ignore the stage directions

• take a nap

​CHARACTERS

• ​The characters to be portrayed are listed at the beginning of a play.

• In tragedy, the main character is sometimes called the tragic hero.

• The tragic hero - and often other characters in a tragedy - is bound to take a terrible fall.

• ​Tragic plots are diven by the hero's tragic flaw, or part of the character's personality that leads to their downfall, ruin, or death.

Multiple Select

Characters in a play are

• listed at the beginning

• important to preview

• too many to track

• not as important as the theme

Multiple Choice

A play in which the main character suffers a downfall

• tragedy

• comedy

• modern

• post modern

Multiple Choice

The part of the main character's personality that leads to their downfall, ruin or death

• tragic flaw

• dialogue

• betrayal

• virtue

​CATEGORIES

• A tragedy is a play in which the main character suffers a downfall.

• A tragic hero is the main chracter in a tragedy.

• A comedy is aplay that deal with its subject in alight, familiar, or satirical manner.​

• Unlike tragedies, comedies move toward a happy ending.

Multiple Select

Instead of Fiction and NonFiction, plays are generally divided into these two categories:

• tragedy

• comedy

• modern

• post modern

​DIALOGUE

• ​Plays consist mostly of dialogue, or conversation, among the characters.

• Through dialogue, the characters reveal themselves and the plot of the play moves forward.

• In the script, the name of the characters comes before the dialogue they will speak. Dialone is sometimes referred to as lines.

Multiple Choice

Plays consist mostly of these, also called lines. Everything the audience knowns comes from this . . .

• dialogue

• stage directions

• acts

• scenes

​STAGE DIRECTIONS

• ​May describe the sets, props, sound effects, lighting, and actions of the characters.

• They may also tell actos how they should appear and some of the actions they should take on stage.​

• ​Often in italics, sometimes enclosed in parentheses or brackets.

Multiple Choice

Often in italics, these tell readers where they are, what the set looks like and how lines are said

• stage directions

• dialogue

• character list

• plot

​ORAGNIZATION

• ​Instead of chapters (like a book) plays are divided into Acts and Scenes.

• ​Plays usually usually have between one and five Acts, but there is no rule about how many acts a play should have.

• ​Acts are further divided into scenes.

• ​Scene changes usually indicte a change in location or the passage of time.

• ​One-act plays often are not divided into scenes.

Multiple Select

Plays are divided into:

• acts

• scenes

• parts

• chapters

Poll

I remember reading a play before . . .

• True

• False

Open Ended

I've heard of the play . . . before.