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Chapter 8
The Art of Directing
Directors
Turn the script into
a production
 Coordinate the efforts
of a team of collaborators
 Represent the intentions
of the playwright and the
expectations of the audience

Directors
Inspire the actors to perform
their best
 Create an environment in
which each member of the
theatre ensemble can excel
 Offer creative solutions
to questions and problems
 Demonstrate strong
communication skills

Directing: A History
The word director comes from the Greek
didaskalos, or teacher
 Middle Ages pageants and the conducteur des
secrets
 The playwright as director (i.e. Moliere)
 The actor-manager of the 19th century

George II, the Duke of SaxeMeiningen (1826-1914)
•First director in the
modern sense
•Long rehearsal
periods
•Attention to detail in
acting
•Advocated historical
accuracy
•Keen ability to stage
large ensemble scenes
Konstantin Stanislavky
(1863-1938)



Viewed directing as a
process of discovery
rather than simply being
that of a traffic cop
Emphasized that each
role on and off the stage
was very important
Encouraged long
explorative rehearsal
periods
The Directing Process
In the Beginning

Script analysis


Explore the world of the play in terms of character,
language and environment
Dramaturg

Assists the director in researching and thinking about
the play, the playwright, the audience, and questions
of style
The Directing Process
Structural Analysis
Theme
 Characters
 Language
 Environment
 Plot

 French
 Beats
scenes
The Directing Process
Concept to Casting

Production Concept



The primary metaphor, symbol, or concept that is
essential to the production of this play
Production meetings serve to bring the production
team a central point in the collaborative process
Casting

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Cast to type
Cast against type
Gender-neutral casting
Cross-gender casting
Color-blind casting
The Director in Rehearsal
Focus
Shared focus
 Stealing focus or upstaging
 Profile
 Stage areas
 Triangulation

The Director in Rehearsal
Picturization
The Director Collaborates with Others
Assistant director
 Stage manager
 Assistant stage manager
 Movement coach
 Fight director

The Director Collaborates with Others
(cont.)
Vocal or dialect coach
 Music director
 Choreographer
 Assistant
choreographer
 Dance director

Types of Directors:
Interpretive

Interpretive directors attempt to translate the
play from the page to the stage as accurately
as possible

“The director must be the master of theatrical
action, as the dramatist is the master of the written
concept.”
--Harold Clurman, American director
Types of Directors:
Creative

Creative Directors create “concept productions”
based on their unique ideas or interpretations of
a play script

“The director builds a bridge from the spectator
to the actor. Following the dictates of the
author…[and] must present a certain image
which will aid the spectator not only to hear the
words, but to guess the inner, concealed
feelings.
--V. E. Meyerhold, Director and designer
Types of Directors:
Contemporary Trends
Ensemble
Directors, designers and actors work with
playwrights in the development of a play from its
very conception
Curtain Call
“I know of one acid test in the theatre …
When the performance is over, what
remains? … It is the play’s central image
that remains, its silhouette, … this shape will
be the essence of what it has to say.”
Peter Brook
The Empty Space