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Character Excerpt
Character
What’s In A Name? Objective:
To develop a character and to make character choices.
Outcomes: Writers will have created a character based on a name. Writers will have the tools to create a character using a list of characteristics.
Procedure:
Note:
If a writer has a difficult time picking a last name, ask the group to suggest positive names. You could also think of a recent academic or extracurricular accomplishment to suggest to the writer.
Note: If writers try to explain
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or justify their names, explain that you will get to that at the end of the exercise.
1. Tell your writers that they are going to introduce themselves to the group, but instead of using their real last names they will be creating new ones. Ask each writer to substitute her or his last name with a new one that reflects something of which they are currently proud or something they’ve recently accomplished.
Some examples of new last names include: Lisa Outfielder Sheri Vegetarian Ahmed Diplomatic Ken Jump Shot
Juan 4.0 Keisha Math Wiz
2. Begin by using your name and writing it on the board. Next, hand the marker off to a writer for his or her turn. The writer should announce his or her name, then write it on the board. Ask that writer to pass the marker to another. Continue this process until everyone has had a turn to announce his or her new name and write it on the board. 3. Let the writers know that the group will be choosing one of these names to work with today. Choose a name by vote or other method you feel works for whole-group participation, and circle that name on the board. Explain to the writers that the name doesn’t represent the real person in the room; this is a brand new creation.
4. On a new section of the board, write the name of the character you will be exploring. Begin by asking writers who _____ is. What could writers readily observe about _____ if they were in the room right now? Write down all suggestions on the board. 5. When the board is filled up, give the marker to the person whose name was chosen and ask them to cross out anything they don’t want for the character and to circle anything they want to keep for the character. Not every characteristic listed needs to be crossed out or circled, but some need to be. 6. Tell the writers that _____ is with us today. _____ will walk through the door any moment and say something. Ask what _____ will say. Take three or four suggestions and have writers vote on what they think _____ would say. Choose a volunteer to leave the room and come back in saying the line the way she or he imagines _____ would say it.
Note: It’s fine if writers shout out conflicting characteristics — write them all down. The next step will be making choices.
Note:
Sometimes writers want to characterize with feelings, e.g., “She’s happy,” or “He’s hungry.” Encourage writers to stick with what can be readily observed. You can ask, “But how do we know that?“ Or, “What does that look like?”
Summary Activity and Questions: Discuss character with your writers: A character is anything or anyone that has something to say or to do, that has obstacles to overcome, and that has a goal or a dream. Character is revealed by what is said and done in the play. Characters can be created in a variety of ways; you have chosen today to use a name for inspiration. Ask the writers: Can names tell us something about a character?
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Ask writers how they chose their new last names and why. Note their reasons and remind them that they will make similar kinds of choices for their characters as they write.
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Ask writers for examples of character names that seem to tell us something about the character (Willy Loman [Low-Man] from Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Gorgeous from Wendy Wasserstein’s The Sisters Rosensweig). While writing plays, writers will discover how their selections impact on characterization.
Character
The Need to Tell Objectives:
To create an individual character and establish a foundation for characterization. To write a monologue based on a photograph used to create a character.
Outcome: Writers will have written a monologue based on a visual image.
Preparation:
Note: Try to avoid advertising
and photos of celebrities or other recognizable subjects; images that allow for a wider range of interpretations foster creativity and tend to result in more inventive writing.
A critical part of the preparation for this exercise is finding photographs or other visual images. We often use art photography by Diane Arbus because of the dramatic nature of her work. You may choose photos that emphasize a specific theme, correspond to a specific historical era, or use more fanciful images (caricatures, animals, etc.) with younger writers or to inspire more imaginative writing. Make sure you have enough photographs for each writer to pick her or his own copy when the time comes.
Procedure:
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1. Hold up a photograph. This will be used for a group brainstorming session. 2. Tell the group that there are no right or wrong answers, as you will all be making this up as you go along. Ask the following questions: • What is her or his name? (Get a specific answer. You may have to vote between two or three names.) • Who is this person? (Have writers begin to define the age, occupation, and general biographical history from what they see in the picture. Make a group decision about who this person is.)
• What is special or unique about her or him? (Have writers think about the way she or he talks, walks, or dresses. Begin to flesh out the outward signs of personality and some specific character traits.) • Where is she or he? (Derive what information you can from the photograph. Get writers to be as specific as possible. For example: A restaurant. What kind of restaurant? Expensive or cheap? Does she or he eat there all the time or is this the first time? What’s the name of the restaurant?) • How does she or he feel about being there? Why? Happy? Sad? Angry? Worried? What does the expression in the picture tell you? (This gives the character an identity grounded in place, time, and tone.) • What does this character need, want, or dream about? (Whatever you get is fine: a boyfriend, a job, an iPod.) • What’s stopping her or him from getting it? (He needs an iPod, but has no money. She needs a job, but no one will hire her because she has a police record.)
3. Inform the group they will now have the opportunity to allow her or his character to speak. Instruct writers to begin a speech (written in first person) bearing in mind what the character Needs To Tell. Add three new questions writers should answer individually: • What does she or he need to tell?
We are now moving away from what can be seen and transitioning into inferring emotions and thoughts from visual cues.
Note:
As writers are working, encourage them to hear the voice of the character and to hear the peculiar phrases and distinct way this character has to speak to evoke a particular place and time.
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• Who is she or he telling? • Why does this need to be told today? The character doesn’t need to answer these questions in the monologue, but the answers should be what drives her or his words.
Note:
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Summary Activity and Questions: Have a few writers read their monologues aloud. Note in each what the individual had to say. Ask your writers:
Note: Make sure that every
time a writer shares her or his work out loud, it is affirmed with applause.
Who was this character talking to?
Was she or he alone in the room?
What happens next?
Who would the other characters be?
What might happen?
Were there any words or phrases that the group found interesting?
Tell writers that they have begun to create characters by using a set of key questions and inventing their answers. You can use these questions to develop characters from other pictures, drawings, or faces you see or imagine. Discuss monologue with your writers: A monologue is a speech given by one character. It is usually written in the first person and may be delivered to another character or even to the audience. Monologues often take place in extraordinary moments for extraordinary reasons.
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Expand the Activity: You may wish to have writers write a second monologue based on an individual picture of their choosing. If this is the case, let writers first individually answer the preceding “What,” Who,” and “Why” questions before they begin writing. It is often fascinating for writers to see how many different and distinct stories and characterizations can emerge from a single photo.
Keep Building!
Young Playwrights Inc. offers a wealth of resources for young writers and their teachers. Here’s a bit of what we have to offer:
For Young Playwrights: Young Playwrights Inc. National Playwriting Competition Our annual competition seeks the best plays in the United States by writers aged 18 or under. Every play is read and evaluated by a theater professional, giving each playwright enriching written feedback. Winning writers are brought to New York for our Young Playwrights Conference to work with professional artists on Off-Broadway readings of their plays.
Write A Play! New York City Playwriting Competition Our local competition encourages New York City writers by judging plays in three divisions: elementary, middle, and high school. Every play receives an evaluation from a theater professional. Winners receive monetary prizes and each playwright who submits to the competition is invited to our annual Awards Ceremony.
Advanced Playwriting Workshop In this free year-long program for high school age playwrights in the New York City area, participants meet weekly to hone their craft with professional playwrights, attend productions, and develop and revise their plays. The workshop culminates in a professionally staged Off-Broadway reading of selections of their work.
Urban Retreat Each summer, young writers come to New York City to attend this nine-day intensive playwriting program. Participants attend workshops, discussions with prominent theater artists, and a variety of productions. The Retreat culminates in collaborations with professional dramaturgs, directors, and actors on the staged reading of their new plays.
For Teachers: Teacher Training Institute Our professional development program teaches you to use playwriting to help your writers master literacy goals such as reading, writing, and critical thinking, while fostering their powers of expression. You’ll see how our curriculum can be applied to all subjects — not just theater — to help your writers appreciate one of the greatest art forms. And of course, check out our website www.youngplaywrights.org for more information, other opportunities for young writers, and much, much more!
Young Playwrights Inc. is the only professional theater in the United States dedicated to identifying, developing, and promoting playwrights aged 18 and under: on stage, in the classroom, and in the artistic community.
Copyright Š 2013 Young Playwrights Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher. Young Playwrights Inc. Post Office Box 5134 New York, NY 10185