Director's Notebooks
Okay, George, Winnie, Jess, and Lauren...
Director’s Notebook
The goal of a director’s notebook is to present a complete vision of a scene from the play, with setting, costumes, motivations, actions, and tones. Here’s what you will need to have:
1. Artistic statement of purpose: 3-4 pages. In your statement of purpose, you will explain your vision of the play. It should include explanations of the following:
· Your vision of each of the characters in the scene – their motivations, their attitudes, their personalities. You can “cast” your scene using real actors, living or dead.
· An explanation of the main actions of the scene…what are the most important moments? Why? What choices are you going to make?
· Setting: when, where, why? You need to explain what the stage is going to look like, how the characters will be dressed, etc.
2. A set diagram from a bird’s eye view. If you’re feeling artistic, you can draw or make a collage. Here’s a link to some great photos of different kinds of stage design: Hamlet
Here's a stage diagram with the acting areas laid out.
A stage manager’s/director’s book. This is a double entry notebook, with the text of the scene on one side and every action, tone of voice, gesture, etc. on the other. With this book, the actors could perform your version of the play without you! Please use correct theater terminology. Download your scene here.
Process:
Read your scene over a bunch of times. Figure out what, if anything, you are going to cut. Write down all of your initial ideas.
If you feel inclined, watch your scene in several different versions of the play (there are 3 readily available).
Sketch your set out, including furniture placement, etc. Many directors draw it out and then use markers, like Monopoly pieces, to help them figure out how everyone is going to move around the stage.
Write up your artistic statement.
Using your set drawing and markers, figure out the action of the scene, entrances, exits, interactions between characters, what people are doing while they aren’t speaking. Write these in your notebook.
Using your notebook, see if you can move through the whole scene without a hitch, using your markers. Add detail.
Put it all together pretty –like!
posted by Ms. Clapp @ 12:46 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Hey guys!
Hope you're all enjoying your vacations!
Quick question: I'm guessing we can use first person in our statements of purpose, right? The paper is all about our personal vision, as a director, so it's not a formal essay. Thus, I don't see how we could avoid stating it in first person...
Thanks!
- Jess
In response to you Jess, I also don't see anyway you can avoid first person. One of the questions itself asked why would you make the decision, so yeah.
Ok... Now, my own quick question:
Do we have to do the entire scene? I know we can cut parts away from it, but can we cut the entire ending.
I wanted to do 2.2, but only becuase of the Popo and Hami mockery/fight/mad scene in it. Could I stop after Ros and Guil talk about the actors?
Thanks for answering my question, Winnie.
And I would say that it's all right to cut your scene, because it is pretty lengthy, and your main purpose seems to be to show the interaction between Hamlet and Polonius, so it seems like it would be pointless for you to include the rest of the scene, if it's not relevant to what you're trying to show.
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