by Will Dunne
• How would you describe the overall rhythm of the language in your script? Does the dialogue tend to unfold at a fast pace? Slow pace? Mixed pace? How does that suit your story?
• How characters talk can reveal a lot about who they are, where they live, how they live, their educational backgrounds, what kind of work they do, what they value, and more. What does the dialogue reveal about the world of your characters?
• Compare and contrast the way your two most important characters express themselves throughout the story. How is their manner of expression alike? How is it different?
• Sometimes what is not said is more important than what is said. Do characters tend to say precisely what they think and feel or leave important thoughts unspoken? How does this affect character interactions and story events?
• Identify the ten most important topics your characters discuss at any time during the story.
• Identify the twenty most important words in the dialogue of your play.
• What do these key topics and words reveal about your characters? Your story?
• How truthful and reliable does the dialogue tend to be among your characters? What does this suggest about the world of your story?
INDIGENOUS TERMS
• What nicknames do your characters use, if any, to address or refer to one another?
• If your characters use slang terms, what are they, and how are they defined?
• Do your characters use technical or workplace jargon to express themselves, even when they aren’t at work? If so, how are any such terms defined?
• If any common terms have unusual meanings among your characters, what are the terms and how are they defined?
• If your characters use any original terms, what are they and how are they defined?
• Some indigenous terms are more important than others. For those that matter most, how have you introduced each one so that the audience can understand or infer its meaning?
• Think about the balance between common and uncommon terminology in the dialogue of your play. How well does this balance support the story you want to tell? Do your characters use too many special terms? Not enough?
VISUAL IMAGERY
Just as a picture is worth a thousand words, visual imagery in drama can be a powerful way to reveal character and move the story forward. The images we see onstage are often more lasting than the words we hear—for example, a horribly deformed man in a hospital room building an elegant model of a church in Bernard Pomerance’s The Elephant Man; a sea of stolen toasters in a suburban ranch house, each popping up toast, in Sam Shepard’s True West; or a woman wrapped in a sheet in a bombed-out hotel room, feeding sausages and bread to a dying man whose head protrudes from a hole in the floor, in Sarah Kane’s Blasted.
Imagery on stage draws its ingredients from the physical life of the story, such as the setting and what’s in it, and the physicality of the characters, such as how they appear and what they are doing. To create the blueprint for such imagery, dramatic writers have two tools available:
Stage directions. These instructions from the playwright can generate visual imagery by describing key elements of the set, props, costumes, and lighting, as well as key actions of the characters. When the play goes into production, the director, designers, and actors will translate these directions into images that the audience sees and hears onstage as the story unfolds.
Dialogue. The words of the characters can also generate imagery but do so indirectly. Instead of instructing a set designer to make the set look a certain way or telling an actor to perform a certain action, for example, dialogue can command such images by making them a specific topic of discussion. For example, the line “Who locked this cabinet?” will not make sense unless the set includes a cabinet that cannot be opened. Robust dialogue often eliminates the need for stage directions and ensures that the writer’s intentions are carried out in production.
■ DOUBT: A PARABLE
The visual images of Doubt portray the world of a Catholic church and school where routine activities are gradually overshadowed by unusual and troublesome events. Key images include:
Flynn delivering a sermon
In scene 1, the image of Father Flynn dressed in liturgical vestments and delivering a sermon immediately defines the world we have entered and establishes him as a man of authority to whom people listen. In scene 6, we see a similar image of Flynn sermonizing, but it is after his integrity has been questioned by Aloysius. The second image of Flynn at the pulpit reminds us of his position within the Church hierarchy and suggests how difficult it will be for Aloysius to unseat a man of his status. Both images are specified in stage directions—for example, “A priest . . . gives a sermon.” The images are reinforced by Flynn’s language, which is formal in tone, includes religious parables, and ends with the Catholic sign of the cross.
Aloysius wrapping a rose bush in burlap
In scene 4, the image of Aloysius wrapping a rose bush in burlap is a portrait of one who protects. We first witnessed this protective nature in scene 2 as she instructed James about being more aware of problems among her students. The wrapping of the rose bush translates that earlier character information into a concrete image specified in stage directions—“Sister Aloysius . . . is wrapping a pruned rosebush in burlap”—and suggested by her opening line, which also establishes that it is afternoon and that she is outside: “Good afternoon, Sister James. Mr. McGinn pruned this bush . . . but he neglected to protect it from the frost.”
The image thus positions Aloysius not merely as one who protects, but as one who tackles trouble before it happens. When James questions whether there has been a frost, Aloysius explains, “When it comes, it’s too late.” This is the mindset with which she will launch her campaign against Flynn.
James shaking as she pours tea for Flynn
In scene 5, the growing tension of the meeting between Aloysius, Flynn, and James is manifest in the image of James trembling nervously as she pours a second cup of tea for Flynn. This moment is specified in a stage direction: “Sister James shakes as she pours tea.” It occurs immediately after Aloysius brings up the name “Donald Muller” for the first time and begins to suggest that the real reason for the meeting is not Christmas music but child abuse. James’s obvious anxiety is reinforced by Flynn’s line: “Easy there, Sister, you don’t spill.”
■ TOPDOG/UNDERDOG
The visual images of Topdog/Underdog depict the claustrophobic world of a single rooming-house room inhabited by two brothers who live in poverty. During the story, we see many portraits of these men, both alone and with each other. Key images include:
Booth/Lincoln throwing the cards
Central to the play is the image of a man standing in front of a makeshift table—a cardboard board atop two mismatched milk crates—and shuffling three cards while reciting a hypnotic patter. This is the defining image of a three-card monte dealer and a demonstration of how the shell game works.
The first man we see in this role is Booth, who in scene 1 performs his task with difficulty. In scene 4, we see Lincoln perform the same task but with remarkable precision and skill. The latter image occurs just before dawn, with Lincoln in his underwear. Unbeknownst to him, Booth has just woken up and is watching him intently from his bed across the room. Both of these images are described in the stage directions and reinforced in dialogue by the dealer’s patter, as in scene 1, when Booth begins, “Watch me close watch me close now: who-see-thuh-red-card-who-see-thuh-red-card?”
Booth pointing a gun at Lincoln in his Abraham Lincoln regalia
The opening scene introduces the memorable image of Lincoln, a black man in whiteface, dressed to look like Abraham Lincoln. He has just entered the room wearing an antique frock coat, top hat, and fake beard. Booth, who did not hear him enter, turns around, startled, while pulling a gun from his pants and pointing it at the unexpected presence behind him. This image is spelled out in the stage directions and suggests imp
ortant information about both characters—for example, that Booth is armed and dangerous and that Lincoln is an Abraham Lincoln impersonator. The image also foreshadows the end of the play, when these same two men confront each other in a similar pose that will result in their mutual destruction.
The brothers styling and profiling
In scene 2, when the brothers try on the dressy outfits that Booth has stolen, we see them enjoying each other’s company. Such images add complexity and warmth to the brothers’ otherwise competitive relationship and fuel our desire to see them succeed. A stage direction spells out the image: “The men finish dressing. They style and profile.” Their camaraderie is reinforced by dialogue. When Lincoln tells his brother that he looks sharp, Booth replies: “You look sharp too, man. You look like the real you.”
■ THE CLEAN HOUSE
The visual images of The Clean House reveal a world of mundane and magical elements. The setting of the all-white living room is often dominant and adds a surreal quality to the action it frames. Key images include:
Matilde and Ana eating apples/Lane lying alone
In act two, scene 6, Matilda and Ana eat apples on a lofty balcony overlooking the sea while Lane lies below in her sterile living room. The image is created by stage directions that describe Matilde and Ana in sunglasses and sunhats with lots of apples, and Lane alone with a hot-water bottle. The dialogue between Matilde and Ana suggests that they have many apples of different colors. The directions then describe a tasting ritual: “They start taking bites of each apple / and if they don’t think it’s a perfect apple / they throw it into the sea. / The sea is Lane’s living room. / Lane sees the apples fall into her living room. / She looks at them.” The image thus adds magic to story events by merging two worlds while showing the contrast between them. The image also embodies the recurring theme of perfection versus imperfection.
Virginia making a mess/Ana listening to an aria
In act two, scene 9, after a screaming fight with Lane, Virginia retaliates by messing up Lane’s living room. Most of this image is specified by stage directions: “Virginia dumps a plant on the ground and the dirt spills onto the floor. / She realizes with some surprise that she enjoys this. / Virginia makes an operatic mess in the living room.” The grand nature of this mess is suggested by earlier stage directions that describe the simultaneous action of Ana sitting above on her seaside balcony and listening to opera music. The image thus depicts a key turning point in the story: Virginia freeing herself from her cleaning compulsion and her sister’s oppressive reign.
Lane washing Ana’s body
After Ana’s death in act two, scene 13, Lane washes Ana’s body while Matilde and Virginia pray. This image is created by stage directions that suggest the power and mood of the ritual: “Lane enters with a bowl of water. / She washes Ana’s body. / Time slows down.” The image is important because it depicts the fulfillment of Lane’s dramatic journey from one who would not clean her own house to one who would clean the body of her husband’s soul mate. The emotional impact of this transformation is heightened by the fact that it is shown visually.
ANALYZING YOUR STORY
Visual imagery on stage adds power to the story and reduces the need for words of explanation.
VISUAL IMAGES
• Identify a few of the most interesting visual images that you have created at any time in the story through your stage directions and dialogue.
• Think about the rest of your script. Do you see opportunities to add new imagery that would increase the dramatic impact of a moment or reduce the need for dialogue?
FOR EACH IMAGE . . .
• As a focusing exercise, how would you title the image? (This is not a title that will appear in the script.)
• What story does the image tell?
• What is the most interesting visual detail?
• What does the image reveal about your character(s) physically, psychologically, or socially at this time in the story?
• How does the image move the story forward?
• Would the image be stronger if you added something or removed something from it? If so, what change would you make?
HOW IMAGES COMPARE
• How do your key visual images compare and contrast?
• If any images seem similar in content or tone, is there a dramatic reason for the repetition? If so, what does this repetition accomplish? If not, how can the images be changed to bring more visual variety to the story?
• What is the most important visual image in the story, and why?
World of the Characters
A dramatic story draws us into a world where we experience life through the characters. The writer creates this world by fleshing out its physical, psychological, and social dimensions and by understanding how the past can influence the present. To know the world of the characters is to know how it works on an everyday basis, what unprecedented events could arise here under certain circumstances, and how life could be affected as a result of these developments.
PHYSICAL REALM
The physical realm of the story includes where and when the dramatic action occurs, as well as the objects, materials, and elements in this place at this time. This physical life grounds the characters in a certain reality and provides a concrete context for the action. Through physical life, we can literally see and hear the world that the characters inhabit and discover important truths about them and the dramatic journey under way.
Large or small, objects from this realm can become pivotal to the story, such as the automobile in Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive or the hat in Stephen Adly Guirgis’s The Motherfucker with the Hat. Sound can also advance the story at a visceral level, such as the distant sound of an axe striking a tree at the end of Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard.
Writers often make full use of sense experience to bring the world of the characters to life. In addition to the actual sights and sounds of this world, for example, the writer may use visual images, physical action, and dialogue to evoke vicarious smells, tastes, and physical sensations, such as the noxious smell of smoke from a smoldering urban wasteland in José Rivera’s Marisol, the taste of coffee in Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, or the sweltering heat of the Deep South in Tennessee Williams’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
■ DOUBT: A PARABLE
Setting: St. Nicholas church and school
The general setting is described as: “Saint Nicholas, a Catholic church and school in the Bronx, New York.” Over nine scenes, this setting will break down into four playing areas:
• Pulpit of the church (scenes 1 and 6). No physical description is given.
• Principal’s office of the school (scenes 2, 5, and 8). The setting is defined as a corner office. Except for references to a desk and a door, no further description is given.
• School gym (scene 3). No physical description is given.
• Garden between the convent and rectory (scenes 4, 7, and 9). The setting is described as “a bit of garden, a bench, brick walls.”
A distinctive feature of this physical landscape is its isolation from the rest of the world. All of the dramatic action takes place in confined spaces. Even the outdoor garden has walls to separate it from the surrounding Bronx neighborhood. The effect is that of a self-contained arena subject to its own tenets and rules. The outside world is permitted into this arena only once, near the end of the play, when Mrs. Muller enters to meet with Aloysius.
Time: Fall, 1964
The story takes place in the fall of 1964. Shanley establishes the year in scene 1 when Father Flynn in his sermon makes a reference to the assassination of President Kennedy the year before. The first eight scenes span a period of about two weeks. The ninth scene occurs sometime later, after Flynn has had time to meet with the bishop and receive a transfer to St. Jerome parish. This gap in the sequence of events is also long enough for Sister James to visit her ailing brother in Maryland and return to the Bronx.
As the play begins, school has been in session for about two months, which means it is now early November. The time of year will provide Aloysius with an excuse to invite Flynn to her office for a meeting in scene 5. He believes he has come to discuss the school’s Christmas pageant and will be caught off guard when he finds himself being interrogated about his relationship with an eighth-grade boy.
The timeframe also creates the opportunity for a power struggle between Aloysius and Flynn over what music will be performed in the pageant: “O Little Town of Bethlehem” versus “Frosty the Snowman.” Underlying this debate are their opposing views of the Second Ecumenical Council, which urged religious members to become more integrated in the communities they serve.
Physical life examples
Clothing. As Sisters of Charity, Aloysius and James both wear black bonnets and floor-length black habits. This protective and confining attire is a manifestation of their vocation as well as a constant reminder of their submission to the Church. The liturgical vestments that Flynn wears in the pulpit in scene 1 tell us without words that he is a priest. In scene 6, when he returns to the pulpit after a confrontation with Aloysius, similar vestments remind us of his position within the hierarchy of the Church. It will not be easy for Aloysius to unseat him. In scene 3, he appears in a sweatshirt and pants as he addresses the basketball team. This sight of him in casual clothing lets us view him not just as a priest but also as a man with popular appeal and human foibles.
