What Do You Need to Know About Drama?

1. What Do You Need to Know About Drama? Feature Menu • Types of Drama • Play • Tragedy • Comedy • Elements of Drama • Dramatic Structure • Dialogue • Stage Directions • Your Turn

2. plays tragedies comedies Types of Drama Drama has been a source of entertainment for far longer than movies, television, or even books. Here are some types of drama:

3. Types of Drama Plays A play, or drama, is a story brought to life by real people in front of an audience. Besides being viewed on a stage, plays are usually based on a written script that can be read.

4. funny mysterious serious sad scary Types of Drama Plays Plays can have many moods.

5. Types of Drama Plays Plays can tell all kinds of stories: of kings and queens, of great battles, or of the everyday lives of ordinary people. [End of Section]

6. Types of Drama Tragedy The oldest known plays are from Ancient Greece. The Greeks performed two types of plays: tragedies and comedies.

7. A tragedy usually ends with the death of at least one of the main characters. Types of Drama Tragedy A tragedy tells a serious story about important people and situations; tragedies always have unhappy endings. [End of Section]

8. Types of Drama Comedy A comedy is a play with a happy ending. Though the main characters in the Ancient Greek tragedies were always kings, queens, and other nobles, comedies were about all kinds of people—from nobles to servants.

9. Once you’ve finished laughing, you may start to think about the difficulty of finding your perfect match. A comedy’s humor might focus on a character’s crazy attempts to win over his love. Types of Drama Comedy While you might think of a comedy as a play that is meant to make you laugh, many comedies are also written to make you think.

10. wordplay misstatements exaggeration Types of Drama Comedy Here are some of the elements of humor, the parts of a play that make you laugh: comic actions

11. Amy. Why did you stop taking music lessons? I thought you liked to play the piano. Rosa. Play the piano? All that practicing was more like work. I thought you liked to play the piano. Play the piano? Types of Drama Comedy Wordplay is humor that results from silly verbal exchanges or puns—jokes based on words with similar sounds but different meanings. Amy. Why did you stop taking music lessons? I thought you liked playing the piano. Rosa. Play the piano? All that practicing was more like work. Rosa makes a pun on the word play by using a different meaning of the word than Amy does. Amy uses the word to mean “perform,” while Rosa means “amuse yourself.”

12. Yeah, I love it. I walked into the beauty parlor and told them to make me look like I was auditioning to be a circus clown. Types of Drama Comedy The humor in misstatements arises when a character uses wrong words or says the opposite of what he or she means. Kelly. I can’t believe how bad my new hair color looks. Greta. It’s not so bad. Isn’t that the color you wanted? Kelly. Yeah, I love it. I walked into the beauty parlor and told them to make me look like I was auditioning to be a circus clown. Kelly says the opposite of what she means when she tells Greta she loves her hair color and asked to be made to look like a clown. This misstatement provides the humor in this passage.

13. Types of Drama Comedy Exaggeration is a type of humor in which a character overstates something, making that thing seem like a bigger deal than it really is. Dr. Juarez. Well, Antonio, it looks like you’ll need braces. Antonio. Braces? Anything but braces! How can I possibly show my face at school? Oh, the humiliation! I’ll never be able to smile again. I’ll have to wear a paper bag over my head. Doctor, you can’t do this to me! Antonio’s dramatic exaggeration about how difficult life with braces will be creates the humor in this scene. never be able to smile again. I’ll have to wear a paper bag over my head.

14. Types of Drama Comedy Comic actions, such asunexpected behavior and exaggerated facial expressions, are based more on what a character does and less on what he or she says. Humorous falls and funny faces are common examples of comic actions. [End of Section]

15. Types of Drama Quick Check Which element of humor does this most clearly demonstrate? Detective Marks. Where were you on the evening that the paintings were stolen? Davis. I went out to dinner with friends. Detective Marks. What did you have? Davis. We ordered sushi. Detective Marks. Sushi, eh? This story sounds fishy already.

16. Types of Drama Quick Check Which element of humor does this most clearly demonstrate? Mrs. Mann. Ben, be sure to clean your room before you go to practice. Ben(holding his head in his hands). Will the demands never stop? I have worked my fingers to the bone, taking out the trash, doing the dishes, and now I’m supposed to clean my room. Have you no heart? Next, you’ll be asking me to walk the dog! Mrs. Mann(smiling). Oh, Ben. . . . [End of Section]

17. dramatic structure stage directions dialogue Elements of Drama Several basic elements work together to create a drama.

18. Conflict Character His strict grandmother won’t allow it. Keith dreams of being a rock star. Elements of Drama: Dramatic Structure Characters and Conflicts Like stories, plays are about characters who have conflicts, or problems with which they struggle.

19. Complication Complication Keith’s grandmother catches him sneaking out and grounds him. When Keith misses practice, his band kicks him out. Elements of Drama: Dramatic Structure Characters and Conflicts As characters work to resolve their conflicts, they face obstacles that complicate their struggles.

20. Climax As Keith walks onstage for a big record company contest, he notices his grandmother in the crowd. Even if he wins the record contract, he thinks he’ll probably be grounded for the rest of his life. Elements of Drama: Dramatic Structure Climax The action in the play rises to a climax, the most dramatic point in the action and the turning point in the plot.

21. Resolution Keith wins second place in the contest, but his grandmother is impressed. She promises to support him in his dream of being a rock star. Elements of Drama: Dramatic Structure Resolution The play ends with a resolution that wraps up the action and shows how the conflict ends. [End of Section]

22. Elements of Drama: Dialogue The conversations that take place among the characters in a play are called dialogue.

23. Elements of Drama: Dialogue Most plays don’t have a narrator to describe what is happening, so you must learn about the characters by paying close attention to their dialogue. Even though there’s no narrator to tell you what’s going on, the dialogue suggests that something is bothering Fedra and Mother is concerned. Mother. You look tired. Fedra. I haven’t been sleeping very well lately. Mother. Is everything okay? Fedra(looking away). Oh yeah, fine. I don’t want to talk about it. Mother. Whatever it is, I’m here for you.

24. aside monologue soliloquy Elements of Drama: Dialogue In addition to dialogue, plays may contain other kinds of lines, or spoken words.

25. Elements of Drama: Dialogue Monologue A monologue is a long speech that a character makes to at least one other character. Mayor Hendrix. I thank you again for electing me to lead the city I love. Your support means so much to me. I plan to repay my supporters—and all of the people of this city—with the strong leadership you voted for and with the excellent schools, clean parks, safe streets, and caring mayor you need. Playwrights often use monologue to reveal details about a character’s personality. In this example, you can see that Mayor Hendrix is grateful for his position and has many goals. I plan to repay my supporters—and all of the people of this city—with the strong leadership you voted for and with the excellent schools, clean parks, safe streets, and caring mayor you need.

26. Elements of Drama: Dialogue Soliloquy A soliloquy is a long speech given by a character who is alone on stage. Soliloquies help playwrights reveal characters’ thoughts and secrets. JAMES sits alone after the game. James. We won. We won the state championship. So why do I feel this way? I should be happy. I have to admit it to myself: I just don’t like playing football. I want to be on the sidelines playing in the band. What is Coach going to say when I tell him I’m quitting football to play the tuba? Besides sharing feelings, a character may confess secrets in a soliloquy. I have to admit it to myself: I just don’t like playing football. I want to be on the sidelines playing in the band. What is Coach going to say when I tell him I’m quitting football to play the tuba?

27. (aside) as soon as I book our anniversary cruise to Bermuda. Elements of Drama: Dialogue Aside An aside is a brief comment that a character makes to the audience. Though other characters are onstage, they cannot hear the aside. Ed. Honey, what are you doing up so early? Jane. Nothing, dear. Go back to sleep. I’m fine. Ed(rolling over). Well, turn out the lights. Jane. Okay,I will. . . (aside) as soon as I book our anniversary cruise to Bermuda. An aside can reveal a character’s feelings or secrets to the audience—without other characters finding out. In this case, Jane states her vacation plans, but Ed doesn’t hear them. [End of Section]

28. characters’ actions characters’ emotions setting props Elements of Drama: Stage Directions Stage directions explain what is happening onstage. They may include information about the following:

29. Elements of Drama: Stage Directions Stage directions are usually printed in italic type. Sometimes they appear at the beginning of a scene. The curtains rise on a typical middle school classroom. It is the last period of the day on Friday, before a long weekend. The students try to sit quietly as the teacher writes notes on the board at the front of the room.

30. Elements of Drama: Stage Directions Stage directions may also appear in parentheses next to the dialogue. Jesse(quietly trying to get Andy’s attention). Psst . . . Andy! (hands him a piece of paper) Pass this to Katrina. Andy. Okay, but this is the last time. I don’t want Ms. Nichols to get mad. Ms. Nichols (sounding frustrated). Boys, could you please save that for the weekend? Return your attention to the board. Andy(glaring at Jesse). Thanks a lot. [End of Section]

31. Elements of Drama Quick Check This excerpt is an example of which kind of lines? ELTON, wearing a tuxedo,sits alone on the school’s front steps. Elton. I can’t believe it. She didn’t come. I got stood up for my own prom. Everyone’s staring at me know. They’re laughing, I know it. This is so humiliating! How could she do this to me? What did I ever do to her? I suppose I sort of knew something was wrong. I thought she was just a little nervous. I guess it was more than that. What does Elton reveal in the excerpt?

32. Elements of Drama Quick Check What do the stage directions reveal about the setting and the props? The curtain rises on a stage that is completely empty except for SASHA, who is pacing back and forth, holding a script. Sasha(nervously). I can do this. I can do this. I can get this role. Mike comes running onto the stage, waving a baseball cap. Mike.Oh good, I was afraid I’d miss you. I have something for you—my lucky hat. Good luck! Sasha(putting on the hat). Thanks, I have a feeling I’ll need it. What do the directions reveal about characters’ actions and emotions? [End of Section]

33. Analyzing Drama Your Turn Choose a play or movie you have seen recently and answer the following questions. • Was the play or movie a comedy or a tragedy? How could you tell? • What conflict did the main character face? How was the conflict resolved? • What did you learn about the main character through the play’s dialogue?

34. The End