Book Description
Workshopping the New Ploy is an indispensible introduction to the ins and outs of the workshop method. Accessible and engaging, the book is written in a nonacademic style suitable for educators and active practitioners alike. After opening with an overview of the basics of playwriting-chiefly focused on narrative structure and script analysis-the text delves into every aspect or the new-play workshopping process. Dive in, and you'll discover-How to select a director and/or dramaturg to run the workshop, Which qualities and characteristics you should consider when assembling a team of actors/readers, Strategies for efficiently conceiving and executing a staged reading of your work, including a well-structured talkback, Techniques for effectively tolerating, evaluating, and incorporating constructive criticism, And finally, but of the utmost importance, the processes to properly and professionally submit your work to theatres, Additionally, essays penned by eminent theatre professionals-playwrights, teachers, dramaturgs, an artistic director, a spoken-word performer, and others-are woven throughout the text to provide you with an insider's view of each step of the workshopping process. Sapio conceives of theatre as a fundamentally transformative experience: "If you don't walk out of the theatre changed in some way," he argues, "someone hasn't done their job. And it's probably the playwright." Don't find yourself at fault-pick up Workshopping the New Ploy, and bring your script to the next level! Book jacket.
