DIRECTING

FOR THE STAGE

 History of the “Director”

• No name for the director before Modern Theatre.

• Considered as a “regisseur maitre de jeu” = a person
who stages a theatrical production especially a ballet /
a manager.
• He was a disciplinarian who conducts rehearsals.
• A super stage manager – sometimes a poet,
antiquarian and costumier.
 History of the “Director”

• During the 5th century BC, playwrights conducted

rehearsal and gave instructions on chanting and
dancing.
• During the passion plays of the medieval period, they
were considered as managers.
• During the Elizabethan times, Shakespeare directed
his plays, coaching, coaxing actors to conform to his
standards.
 History of the “Director”

• Moliere explained fine points of acting, convincing a

reluctant actress of the correctness of his casting.

• Ben Jonson was known for shouting, stamping at the

book holder, swearing for the props, cursing, swearing
every time actors commit mistakes.
 History of the “Director”

• During the 20th century, the term ‘director” was coined and
was considered as a profession with the modern movements
in the theatre, there was a need in homogeneous values in a
production.
• If theatre was to retrieve its unique, primitive, and communal
power, a director would have to impose a point of view that
would integrate the play, production and spectators.
• There was a need to blend a harmonious art and a cohesive
audience.
FUNCTIONS OF A
DIRECTOR
What is Directing ?
 Directing is a delicate and
demanding activity, it calls for
scholarship, experienced
taste, infinite patience,
great physical stamina and a
capacity of leadership.
 Functions of a Director

• The DIRECTOR as:

❑Literary Scholar
❑Acting Coach
❑Production Manager
❑Designer
❑Critic
❑and a Surrogate Audience
Pre - Production
A Director Prepares / Getting Ready
 Pre - Production

A. A Director’s first encounter with the play – Read the

play not as a potential production but a literary work.

BASIC CONCERN: MEANING, STRUCTURE AND

STYLE
 Elements of Drama
(Aristotle)
• Plot
• Character
• Language
• Theme
• Music
• Spectacle
Understanding the
Action
 Understanding the Action

• Action and Plot

• Determine the Motivating Force.
• Analyze the underlying dynamic energy that drives the PLOT.
 Understanding the Action
PLOT – the way the specific events generated by the action are
organized so as to provide a dramatically satisfying experience.

❑Exposition
❑Point of Attack
❑Conflict
❑Complication
❑Climax
❑Denouement
❑Resolution
Action and Characters
 Action and Characters

Characters – are the agents of the action

❑ Distinguish the Protagonist – Antagonist.
❑ Analyze their thoughts and behavior.
❑ Determine the Cause and Effect resulted by the characters’
conscious and unconscious choices.
❑ Understanding the flow is also basic for understanding the
characters.
 Action and Characters
Character Analysis
❑ Physical
❑ Social
❑ Spiritual
❑ Mental
❑ Intellectual
❑ Emotional
❑ Decorum
❑ Three Dimensional
❑ Biography
Action and the Given
Circumstances
 Action and the Given
Circumstances
• An action requires 3 things to happen:
• Place
• Time
• Situation
This is what we call GIVEN CIRCUMSTANCES.
 Action and the Given
Circumstances
Categories of Given Circumstances

a. What is happening?
b. Who is involved?
c. Where is it happening?
d. When is it happening?
e. Why is it Happening?
f. How is it Happening?
g. Atmosphere
h. Mood / Tempo
i. Polar actions
j. Milieu
Role of the Dramaturg/
Literary Manager
 Role of the Dramaturg/
Literary Manager

a. Assess new plays.

b. Accumulate necessary research materials for the
production.
c. Provide different perspectives to the production.
 3 Principal Thrusts of
the Director’s Research
 3 Principal Thrusts of the
Director’s Research

• Interpretation of the Play (Gathering of critical opinions)

• History of the Play (Accounts and Stories when it was
written)
• Background of the Author (Readings/Insights on his/her
life)
 3 Principal Thrusts of the
Director’s Research

• Information on the play’s theatrical life.

• Material on the culture from which the play sprang

A careful examination of the given circumstances can

provide the director with the beginning of the
PRODUCTION CONCEPT.
Production Concept
 Production Concept

• After Analyzing
❑Action
❑Character
❑Language
❑Structure
3 Processes of
Discovery
 3 Processes of Discovery

1. Analysis – The director’s penetration of the

text in order to fully grasp the story of the
play and the manner of its telling.
 3 Processes of Discovery

2. Translation - The discovery of the

theatrical means to recreate the text
as a living event.
 3 Processes of Discovery

3. Synthesis - The editing of the

experience/ Event to make it accessible
to the audience.
A Director’s
relationship
to the text
A Director’s relationship to the text

A. CONSERVATIVE – fidelity, degree of transparency –

way of transmitting the meaning

➢ Transmit the text directly, completely,

faithfully and with the effort to conserve the
play.

➢ As it is. Follows the period and milieu -

Realistic/ Representational or Presentational
A Director’s relationship to the text

B. LIBERAL – holds that the value of a play lies in the

way it lives, relative to the present, the directors work
in the specifics of a given cast, theatre and audience.
A Director’s relationship to the text

C. RADICAL – source of inspiration for a new, intuitive,

creative process

➢ Tends to go to the interpretative mode,

but rather function as a primary creator
– using an original text as the basis for a
new creation
Director as Translator
 Director as Translator
• Translates the play from its literary form into a new
manifestation as a living theatrical event.
• Translates cultural and theatrical values that infused
the play at its birth to the values and conditions
through which it will be experienced by the present
audience.
Groundplan
 Groundplan

• Shows the exact location of the stage’s furniture, walls, windows,

doors and other scenic elements.
• Used for blocking/staging purposes.
• Defines Stage Audience Relationship.
• Sets the configuration of scenic elements and pieces.
• Establishes the Axes of Conflict.
• Helps in the placement of critical moments.
 Groundplan

Staging for different types of Theatre Stages :

• Proscenium
• Arena
• Semi – Arena Stage
• Thrust
• Traverse
• Environmental
 What makes a good Groundplan?

• The set is open. Sight lines are not covered.

• Open up your set pieces to the audience.
• More than 5 or 6 acting areas.
• Pin down the set’s boundaries or limitations.
• Create obstacles.
Selection of the
Artistic Staff
 Selection of the Artistic Staff

• Director = Captain of the Ship.

• He can sail smoothly if he has faith in the capacity of
his team and trust that they will be able to deliver
• A production is a blank canvass that must be painted
with lines, strokes and even shadows, and for the
director, it is very important that his concept and
interpretation stems out from every artistic staff.
 Selection of the Artistic Staff

• Emphasis on the importance of Collaboration.

• Determine the needs of the production: designers,
choreographer, trainers, coaches, etc.
Casting
 Casting

• A Director makes his choice and makes sure that it is

a right choice.
• Typecasting – according to size and shape
• Anti Typecasting – finding of a specific quality in the
actor ( Looking for that “X” factor)
 A director should consider
an actor’s

• Physical Appearance
• Age
• Voice: Quality and diction
• Sense of movement and rhythm
 Further determining the
suitability of the actor:

• Sense of theatre and background

• Sensitivity and imagination
• Audience appeal and power of projection
• Acting experience
• Personal tonality
• Playing ability for kind and style of play
Strategies for Casting
 Strategies for Casting

• Pre-casting
• Audition
• Personal iInterview
• Read for a Certain Role
• Sing / Dance / Special Skills

• Workshops
 Rehearsal Schedule

• Determine the needs and requirements of the

production.
• Create a Calendar that starts from the opening of the
production then work your way backwards to the first
creative and production meeting.
Rehearsal Process
 Reading

• A Director validates his casting.

• Check if a certain actor may be too weak or too strong for
the role.
• Detect speech problems or speech pattern.
• Listen to very nuance stress, or the blandness of the
reading
• Determine initial impressions about the range of an actor.
 Blocking

• Precise staging of actors in a play , ballet, film or

opera.
• It is how your actors specifically move on the stage’s
groundplan.
 Blocking
• Types of Blocking
• Organic - Emanating from the Actor or Improvisations during
Rehearsals
• Technical / Mechanical – Paper Blocking

• Stage Geography
• Composition
• Arrangement of objects or elements in a given state
• Maintain balance
• Push the text into a picture – three dimensional
• Use of props, set pieces, and actors as visual instruments
 Scene Work

• Polishing specific scenes in the play.

• Employ a clear and direct relationship with your actors
to discover choices and nuances.
• Push and explore the possibilities of a scene.
• Develop other design elements like sound cues or
choreography.
 Run-through

• A Director strips himself of everything and critically

judges the actor and the different elements of the
play.
• Strengthens the backbone of the play and to
determine whether the play can stand or not.
 Visual - Sees

• As a painter and choreographer.

• Studies the composition for points of emphasis and
mood connotations.
• Picturizations for proper expression of story and
emotional relationships; making sure that movement
expresses character, atmosphere, and mood.
• Makes sure that business is appropriate, explicit, and
in proper proportion.
 Auditory - Hears

• Use of Speech Elements during Run-through

Rehearsals.
• Listening to elements of pronunciation, diction, line
delivery, clarity, proper emphasis, force, variety etc.
 Empathic - Sensitivity

• Be sensitive in determining the sincerity of the play /

performance
• Be critical with the production’s aesthetics and
standards.
 Audience – as if seeing the play
for the first time

• A Director must remember that the audience must

understand the story, theme and characters. How
every element is developed in every scene.
• Validates the quality of the play.
 Stage Adjustment

• Adjusting the whole show on stage for the first time.

(From blocking, staging, transitions, costume changes
etc)
• Requires a lot of patience and eye for detail.
• Must be able to solve problems quickly and efficiently.
 Dress - Tech

• Integration of all performative elements.

• A condition that every dress - tech is a show. (You
are are about to open the show in a few minutes)
• Play must be presented without interruptions –
corrections are made after the run.
Tips for Becoming a
Good Director
 Tips for Becoming a
Good Director

• Read / Be familiar with theatre history / with plays

classical / contemporary / experimental
• Historical Stages and Conventions / Staging
• Stage Craft - Lights – Props / Costume / Make up
• Acting- Voice Training / Physical Movement
Tips for Becoming a Good Director
According to Robert Benedetti
• Well grounded in theatrical traditions but also eclectic
with a wide range of interests including the other arts.
• Open and involved with life, curious, must be
observant.
• Adventurous with an appetite for risk taking.
• Skillful collaborator and able executive with good
communication skills.
 References:

Ahart, John. (2001). The Director’s Eye. A Comprehensive Textbook for Directors and
Actors. Colorado Springs: Meriwether Publishing Limited.

Benedetti, Robert. (1984). The Director at Work. (1st ed.,) Harlow , United Kingdom:
Prentice Hall.

Carra, Lawrence and Dean, Alexander. (1989). Fundamentals of Play Directing. (5th ed.,) :
Holt Rinehart Winston.
Hauser, Frank and Reich, Russel. (2003) . Notes on Directing : 130 Lessons in Leadership
from the Director’s Chair. New York: Bloomsbury.

Hodge, Francis. (2009). Play Directing: Analysis , Communication and Style (7th ed.,):
Routledge.

Loewith, Jason. (2012). The Director’s Voice, Volume 2 . New York : Theatre
Communications Group.
 Thank you!
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Lecture by Prof. Dexter M. Santos