Essential Dramaturgy

The Mindset and Skillset

Theresa Lang

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781317450344
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Theatre

Essential Dramaturgy: The Mindset and Skillset provides a concrete way to approach the work of a dramaturg. It explores ways to refine the process of defining, evaluating, and communicating that is essential to effective dramaturgical work. It then looks at how this outlook enhances the practical skills of production and new play dramaturgy. The book explains what a dramaturg does, what the role can be, and how best to refine and teach the skillset and mindset.

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Part I

MINDSET

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1

FROM NOUN TO VERB

Something happens when you change a noun to a verb. To kiss is so much more interesting than a kiss. We may enjoy a run but we can love to run. We can dive, leap, taste, and storm more fully and feel the action as a verb rather than just a noun. It is a linguistic hop, and a conceptual leap – to go from being to doing. Being can be interesting and informative and even all-encompassing, but doing is active and engaged and in the moment. There are numerous words in English that can act as noun or verb, and the essential meaning may change or not, depending on the term. Even when the words mean the same they can have a different connotation; for instance, upstage as a location as opposed to as an action.

In the richness of our language, a whole other term is required when discussing the person who does the action, another word that connotes the doing of the thing. One is not a teach, she is a teacher; not a write but a writer, and a firefighter is one who fights fires. While there is the implied active verb in the name, the role is designated as well. A manager manages, a director directs, and a designer designs.

The exception to the naming practice is the dramaturg. While the discipline is dramaturgy, both the role and the act are called dramaturg. Here is a term that shares the same word between what is done and who does it, and therefore offers an exciting opportunity to make a linguistic connection that reveals the role is the act. This allows us to better understand both role and action. When we shift from noun to verb and see the role as inextricably linked to the action, it becomes clear that dramaturg is something one does; it is simultaneously a process, practice, the person, and the outcome. Its very title requires an acknowledgment of this active nature.

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The purpose of this book is to introduce a new way to consider dramaturgy and to offer a critical introduction to both its point of view and its practice. The book explores the mindset that guides the work of the dramaturg and recognizes the important role of the dramaturg in the theatre. This study considers the change in perspective from noun to verb; from something one is to something one does, in order to better understand the nature of dramaturgy and the contribution of the dramaturg to a project. When we move from noun to verb, from being to doing, we are able to conceive dramaturgy as a mindset rather than a function. Dramaturgy is a way of seeing and communicating, a way of engaging with material and audiences, and ultimately a way of looking at the world.

The American theatre has greatly expanded its inclusion of dramaturgs so there is less imperative to justify our place at the table than ever before, although it is still in its developing stages around the country. There are now a variety of examples of this expanding presence, and places like the giant of new play development the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center and the dramaturgy-driven work of the Oregon Shakespeare Theater remind us that this is an exciting time to be a dramaturg. There are currently more training programs and more theatres that include a dramaturgical sensibility as part of their artistic mission than ever before. The presence of the dramaturg is more conspicuous and the contribution more widely recognized. Consequently, it is a good time to explore what the dramaturg can be in and out of the theatre and consider how to both develop the outlook and hone the skills.

It is worth noting that while the level of involvement has increased, dramaturgs still often face the particular challenge of an unusual title and an ambiguous position. It is a somewhat awkward Germanic term that defies simple definition, and it describes a role that is so situation-dependent that we often find ourselves relying on metaphor and analogy to answer what initially appears to be a straightforward question: “What do you do?” This is somewhat inevitably followed with: “What is dramaturgy?” Definition is where we tend to start most classes, conversations, and books on the subject. Perhaps the most colorful labeling of this activity is credited to Michael Mark Chemers’ work Ghost Light in which the first chapter is titled “What the #$%@ Is a Dramaturg?” While there are more academic programs offering training and degrees in dramaturgy and more professional theatres relying on the contributions of the credited dramaturg, the field still spends many beginnings in definition.

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To begin the defining, one of the reasons for the shift from noun to verb is that the noun of dramaturg too often can be reduced to a list of tasks. Sometimes the role may be understood merely as the collection of those tasks and the genuine contribution that a dramaturg makes to a production is ignored. A simplified definition will explain dramaturg through the tangible work product, the quantifiable activities that she does on a production. Consequently, what is dramaturgy is answered as the list of duties that are done by the person designated dramaturg; which could include casebooks, talkbacks, and study guides. There is some value to a definition that allows for concrete aspects, yet the task-based approach is ultimately wanting. Not only does it restrict the scope of understanding the role of dramaturg, it can also ultimately limit the role itself. When the role is defined by the tasks it can easily become relegated to the fulfillment of those tasks and nothing else. Consequently, a narrow, task-based interpretation of the role of a dramaturg in production may allow room for the completion of those set tasks but may actually prevent the dramaturgical presence throughout the production.

However, when we look at the dramaturg with a broader lens, using a more holistic approach, the tasks are merely parts of a larger picture of a way of thinking and doing. This aspect may be called the dramaturgical perspective, approach, mindset, and so on, and what these share is the notion that dramaturgy is a way of being, almost ontological, not merely the completion of the acts.

Even when the conversation goes to the more inclusive artistic role in the production and the definition attempts to go further than the punch list, it is not a question that is easily answered and the answer often relies on analogy or metaphor. There are some poetic and evocative metaphors that dramaturgs use, including images of navigation and cartography. These images can be useful and the analogies offer an interesting context, but as an analogy it is merely a stand-in as meaning. While useful, it is still limited and so different explanations are constantly being formed and modified in attempts to get closer to the referent point, closer to something particular and specific, closer to a mindset.

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These definitions, then, deal more with this mindset, or perspective, rather than the collection of tasks. Frequently the dramaturg defines her own work within this frame, and the website of the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) has an entire section dedicated to members’ answers to the prompt, what is dramaturgy? For the most part, these contributions and those of other dramaturgs talking about their own work offer insight into the kind of work the dramaturgs see for themselves. Some talk about themselves as a facilitator, questioner, explorer, translator, or catalyst. Others describe their ability to provide context, offer insight, and help navigate the world of the play. Mark Bly, the godfather of American dramaturgy, summons Billy Collins’ poem “Introduction to Poetry” in his essay “Pressing an Ear Against a Hive or New Play Explorations in the Twenty-First Century” where the ultimate goal of the dramaturg is to approach a play as if it were a new world. It is important to note that it is the mindset of the dramaturg that drives the interpretation and shapes how he operates in a production.

The need to define through description is consistent when dramaturgs discuss their work. Since neither the word nor the role lends itself to concrete and tangible definition, so as dramaturgs we try to offer a context of our general approach to the work, the kinds of conversations and questions and revelations we facilitate. In essence we act like dramaturgs in how we answer the question.

So what is the definition? The ability to define, to offer context, is among the most important traits of the dramaturg. Consequently, some of the best training for the development of a dramaturg lies within its existential nature – inherent in the role is the need to define it. The incessant demand to define this role is where we start, and it is this process that offers some of the best practice for our function. The experience of creating the context of the role, of constructing dimension for a term and an idea that is elusive to the questioner, is itself a way to practice dramaturgy. The definition, then, ends up being both verb and noun, the doer and the outcome.

The first thing to do, then, is to set the parameters of the question. “What is dramaturgy?” necessarily encompasses more than the list of tasks, though those also warrant consideration. Yet the starting point is the viewpoint, the approach, and the étude of the dramaturg. What does she bring to the production? How is her place in the room defined? How are his questions framed? What is the unique point of view that the dramaturg can offer? In short, what is the dramaturgical mindset, and more importantly, how does one develop it?

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The path to the mindset of the dramaturg is through that process of definition, starting with changing the parameters of the word defined. Rather than define the noun dramaturgy we define the verb to dramaturg. It is a change that refers to the active process the dramaturg undertakes and enables a shift in perspective to open up the possibilities of what dramaturgy can do and how it can be understood. When a person is able to explain the doing of dramaturgy, the tangible products of the role can be a useful illustration of the kinds of output a production dramaturg may provide in the course of a production, an example of her work. However, these tasks alone cannot encompass the verb to dramaturg and consequently will not allow for the definition to end with them. The role is elusive and requires context, and useful context can be found with the verb to dramaturg. The verb allows the discussion to be about what we do, not as the list of tasks but as the active perspective on the material, as the way of looking and engaging that is responsive and challenges our audience each step of the way. We call ourselves dramaturgs and study the practice of dramaturgy, and what we do as artists is dramaturg.

Ultimately, the definition is to dramaturg: to curate an experience for an audience.

It is a simple definition that is broad in scope and in its breadth it seems that one can dramaturg virtually anything. This is a useful starting point in understanding the dramaturgical mindset as it is one that relies upon its flexibility and creativity. The process by which the dramaturg curates the experience and the specificity with which the audience is addressed are the benchmarks of its efficacy, but since the process is established by its definition, that process can be applied to any activity.

The straightforward definition still can use some expansion, starting with the choice of the word curate. The selection and organization that is part of “to curate” is an important connection to dramaturgy. The sifting and sorting through material, as well as the persistent editing and reconfiguring of content, is a part of the daily work of the dramaturg, and so connects to the connotations of the notion to curate. There is some reticence to use the term curate in part because of the extensive use and popularity of the word in recent years. It is historically connected to museum curators yet the contemporary use has grown to include almost any kind of gathering or assembling. However, the composition implied in the traditional and contemporary use of the word curate is part of the value it provides in defining dramaturg as verb. It is not merely the collecting of content that curate implies, but its informed selection, purposeful editing, and most important, its designed presentation. While there is an (arguably) over-use of curator as title for a variety of jobs, DJs, furniture stores, and all over ETSY and craft fairs, the word offers an effective point of contact with dramaturgy.

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To curate an experience, any experience, relies on the clarity of what characterizes that experience. If one is to dramaturg a production, there is a large-scale action that is taking place, yet within that there are many smaller pieces, more fixed experiences to curate. These may include the experience of the language of the script, the music of the era, or the politics of the community. To perform the overall process well, each piece needs to be dramaturged, and to do that, each experience needs to be framed. The definition, then, includes the experience itself and the parameters of that experience. How does one frame it into a particular and comprehensive whole? What is it that needs curating?

Since one dramaturgs by curating an experience for an audience, the particularity of the audience is another important element for the dramaturg that will be explored. It is a defining point for dramaturg as verb and drives the shape of the project and absolutely determines the manner in which it is delivered. The content is not only selected and organized; it is delivered in a specific way based on the recipient. Who is being spoken to decides the language spoken, and the presentation of material is defined by the recipient of the material. The audience can be any or all members of a production team, the back office, publicity, or any part of the theatrical audience and each project that is dramaturged has a known audience that will determine how the information is shared – what language is spoken.

The move to looking at dramaturg as verb rather than noun opens up the possibility of an active integrated activity that is dramaturgy. It is a way to shape a perspective, a way of seeing that supports flexible thinking and helps one become a more effective member of the creative team.

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The definition of dramaturg as verb corresponds with a three-step method to doing it. Each of the three steps is as important as the others and each needs to be executed fully for effective dramaturgy. The method will be developed more fully in a later chapter; however, the following are the three steps.

• First, the dramaturg sets the parameters of the project.

• Second, the dramaturg compiles the information needed for that project.

• Third, the dramaturg constructs the most effective mode of presentation for that information.

This straightforward process will help to keep the dramaturg on track and stay effective. It is a process that offers the tools to keep the dramaturgy thoroughly linked to the project. The dramaturg both guides and responds to the audience experience through the development process.

First, you set the parameters of the project, and define your role at the beginning and throughout the process. The process to dramaturg necessarily starts with definition and the best way to establish effective dramaturgy is to define the role as clearly as possible. This is a role that is completely case-dependent; it is up to the particular needs of the project to determine how its dramaturgy will be defined. This first step requires clarity of purpose more than anything. We ask the question: “What is this for?” in order to answer fully the question: “What is this?” Self-reflection is key to this step. The specific circumstances of the project and thus the particular circumstances to dramaturg are formed through the clear understanding of the end goal; what is the need being met by this dramaturgy? Once that is understood, the particular ways the role will serve the project can then be articulated and then communicated to others.

The next step is the one that most closely resembles the series of tasks that so often stand in for a workable definition of dramaturgy. The second step is the gathering and editing of content. Once the project has been defined, we begin to ask and answer questions through the various avenues available. You begin to engage with others around you – director, actors, designers or whoever the project collaborators may be. This step in the process is what many of the analogies and elevator speeches are referring to. It is the research part of dramaturgy. It is the chance to find context, historical and political circumstances, meaning, and convention. It is the opportunity to push out past the limitations of the script into the world of the both the play and the production. It is the step on which we spend a lot of our time and energy. An important thing to remember in this step is that it is predicated on the first step. The project’s definition is what shapes the content. Dramaturg as verb relies on focused and purpose-driven research. The content sought is the particular pieces that support the project as defined.

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The final step of the process is to determine and construct the way to share our content with the intended audience. Is it a text-based or visual medium? Is it a physical artifact or an electronic file? What shape does it take and what does it look like? These are all q...