Creating Drama from Character

(4 Credits)

This course will immerse students in the process of using in-depth character exploration and an ensemble process as the basis of dramatic storytelling. Embracing the intimate constraints of the digital realm, students will work together to develop character-based scenes by combining improvisation and playwriting, taking playwright/filmmaker Mike Leigh's "improvised play" and "drawing from life" as a particular model. We will also be analyzing (and sometimes trying out) a variety of contrasting practices and theories of ensemble creation in the US, Britain and South Africa, comparing earlier models (the Serpent Players, Joint Stock, the Wooster Group) with contemporary companies, some of which continue Leigh's approach. The class will draw on instructor Ian Morgan's experience developing and producing character-driven ensemble work, including work by Mike Leigh and Tectonic Theatre Project, at Off-Broadway's The New Group, and will include visits from master practitioners.