by Will Dunne
Virginia
Climax: An operatic mess. The high point of Virginia’s dramatic journey occurs in act two, scene 9, when she rebels against her sister’s hostility and her own cleaning fetish to mess up Lane’s house. The rebellion begins with a plant dumped onto the floor and soon leads to an “operatic mess.” During this rebellion, Virginia has an epiphany, described in a stage direction: “She realizes with some surprise that she enjoys this.” Her liberation is reinforced when Matilde asks if she’s OK, and Virginia replies, “Actually. I feel fabulous.”
Resolution: A meaningul life.Virginia gains the strength to deal with Lane as an equal, forces her to admit that she needs help, and then provides that help in different ways, such as counseling Lane to care for the dying Ana and then helping her do so. As a result, Virginia succeeds in making a meaningful connection with her sister as well as her new friends Matilde and Ana.
Lane
Climax: An act of forgiveness. The high point of Lane’s dramatic journey occurs in act two, scene 10, when she breaks down emotionally in front of Ana, acknowledges that Charles loves Ana more than he ever loved her—“you’re like two glowworms”—and forgives Ana. In doing so, Lane accepts the mess that her life has become. Her quest to regain control of her universe thus fails, but she is happier for it.
Resolution: New connections. Lane becomes Ana’s doctor, invites her to move into her house for her last days, and washes Ana’s body after she dies. Meanwhile, Lane bonds with Matilde and Virginia, whom she had previously kept at an emotional distance, and makes peace with Charles, who, in the end, asks her to hold his yew tree and prompts her final affirmation: “Yes.”
Matilde
Climax: The perfect joke. The high point of Matilde’s dramatic journey—and the high point of dramatic action in the play—occurs in act two, scene 13, when she tells Ana the perfect joke so that she can die laughing. It is a theatrically climactic moment, accompanied by a change of lights, sublime music, and a subtitle that reads, “The funniest joke in the world.” The stage directions then describe Ana’s death: “Ana laughs and laughs. / Ana collapses. / Matilde kneels beside her. / Matilde wails.”
Resolution: A start to healing. After Ana’s death, Matilde takes charge, guiding Virginia to pray and Lane to wash the body. The play ends with Matilde’s last imagining: her birth in laughter under a tree. She acknowledges in this remembrance both the joy and pain of being alive: “I laughed to take in the air. / I took in some air, and then I cried.” In experiencing Ana’s death and then imagining her own birth with Ana as her mother, Matilde starts to heal from her loss. The stage directions indicate that there is “a moment of completion between Matilde and her parents.”
ANALYZING YOUR STORY
With your main character(s) in mind, explore the climax and resolution of your story.
CLIMAX
• Where and when in the world of the story does the climax occur? Who is involved?
• What does each character want here and now? Are these the right objectives for these characters at this time in the story? If not, how would you change the objectives?
• What obstacles does each character face here and now? Are there any opportunities to increase the conflict? If so, how?
• What is at stake for each character? Is it possible to raise the stakes? If so, how?
• What happens during the climactic action?
• Does this event feel like the peak of action in the play? If not, how can you change the story to make this event more intense or a previous event less intense?
• How does the climax affect each character physically? Psychologically? Socially?
• What does the climax reveal about each of the characters involved?
• Has your main character succeeded or failed to achieve his or her goal, and why?
RESOLUTION
• Think about what has been resolved and not resolved as a result of the climactic action. What else, if anything, should happen before the play concludes?
• If any loose ends need to be tied up, have you focused only on what matters most?
• Where and when in the world of the story does this resolution occur? Who is involved?
• How does each character feel as the story draws to a close?
• Can you make better use of imagery to reduce the need for explanation? If so, how?
• What thoughts and feelings do you want the audience to experience as the play ends?
• Everything after the climax is literally “anticlimactic.” Can the story end sooner without sacrificing something important? If so, what would the new ending be?
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to John Patrick Shanley, Suzan-Lori Parks, and Sarah Ruhl for writing plays. I have learned much about dramatic storytelling from reading, seeing, and studying your work.
Thank you as well to the University of Chicago Press and the staff who encouraged and supported the development of this guide, particularly Paul Schellinger, who was the first to champion the project; Christie Henry, who later helped steer it in the right direction; my editor, Mary Laur, who helped move it to publication; and my copy editor, Joel Score, who helped refine the words. Special thanks also to the theatre experts who, through the Press, were generous enough to review my materials and offer invaluable suggestions and insights: Arthur R. Borreca, Drew Brody, and Megan Monaghan Rivas.
In addition, I would like to express my gratitude to Emmi Hilger, Dana Lynn Formby, Helen Valenta, and Mary Parisoe, each of whom contributed in an important way to my story analyses in this guide.
FOOTNOTES
ABOUT THIS GUIDE
1 Will Dunne, The Dramatic Writer’s Companion: Tools to Develop Characters, Cause Scenes, and Build Stories (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009).
THE PLAYS AND PLAYWRIGHTS
1 Everett Evans, “Shanley’s Award-Winning Play Is Opening Doors,” Houston Chronicle, May 22, 2005.
2 “Interview: Suzan-Lori Parks,” Academy of Achievement, Washington, DC, June 22, 2007, http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/par1int-1.
3 Paula Vogel, “Interview: Sarah Ruhl,” BOMB Magazine, no. 99 (Spring 2007), http://bombmagazine.org/article/2902/.
GENRE 5
1 The Topdog Diaries, a documentary film produced and directed by Oren Jacoby (Storyville Films, 2002).
STAGE DIRECTIONS
1 “Sarah Ruhl & Blair Brown,” Platform Series, Lincoln Center Theater, New York, November 15, 2006.
SUBJECT AND THEME
1 “The Making of Doubt” (discussion moderated by Roma Torre), Dramatist 8, no. 1 (September/October 2005).
SOCIAL CONTEXT
1 “United States of America Overview/Country Data/Minorities/African Americans,” in World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples (London: Minority Rights Group International, 2009).
2 The Topdog Diaries, a documentary film produced and directed by Oren Jacoby (Storyville Films, 2002).
3 Germaine Greer, The Female Eunuch (London: MacGibbon and Key, 1970).
4 “American Time Use Survey—2013 Results,” Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor, Washington, DC, June 18, 2014.
5 “Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey,” Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor, Washington, DC, February 26, 2014.
6 Linda Burnham and Nik Theodore, “Home Economics: The Invisible and Unregulated World of Domestic Work,” National Domestic Workers Alliance, 2012, http://www.domesticworkers.org/homeeconomics/.
SPIRITUAL REALM
1 Dinitia Smith, “Playwright’s Subjects: Greek Myth to Vibrators,” New York Times, October 14, 2006.
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