About the Author
Robert Spira, Mathematics Ph.D. Berkeley 1962. Various academic positions through 1982. Playwright from 1982 on. Video producer from 1990. Wrote about 40 mathematics papers and about 40 plays and musicals.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Stanislavsky put first the morality of the actor. Those who influence public morality as writers have a special duty in that regard. A script is used in production. There must be space for added notes and stage directions, and for line changes. Stage directions must be set off clearly from dialogue, but should not be obtrusive. Who is speaking must be clear. Since the script must be easily readable in rehearsal, do not justify right margins. No rule of playwriting is sacrosanct. But every rule has its reasons, and when a rule is broken, especially from ignorance, a play defect usually results. The most common reason for play rejection is poor line economy. When a line is not tightly written a dull spot results in performance. A play is not a novel, and doesn't need extra words to make reading easier. The lines on stage may appear to be common, but they actually can never have been uttered before. They must be fresh at any cost. (Though a cliche can be used for comedy by twisting its meaning.) It is possible to write for a mass audience without writing garbage. NORMAL THINKING IS A RANDOM MESS. THE BRAIN GETS ORGANIZED WHILE YOU SLEEP. A MAD MESS IS PREFERABLE TO NOTHING AT ALL. The finale of a play must promise hope, joy, happiness. An act must end on a high. The audience should want to find out what happens next. Good storytelling is out of control.
Two-character plays are quite difficult to sustain past an hour. The best source for characters is people you know really well. Each name has an aura of meaning. A very important trait for high status is extremely careful conscientious work, beyond the commonly accepted professional standard. A useful document for the task is to write down the effect of the play on each character. A promise sets up a scene to follow, usually after one or more intervening scenes. When an actor for the first time in the play comes on stage it is wise to have someone use his/her name early on. The audience wants to know who it is. Stage conventions can be absolutely wild. A straight line has to be unobtrusive. Before agreeing to work with a director be sure he/she understands diction. Some don't. A line puzzling to decode will cause an audience to either not understand it, or miss some of the following dialogue. Obscurity is a vice of fourth-class leadership. Aphorisms of any depth get lost. An ordinary fault is that the playwright expresses the same idea in two adjacent sentences. If one sets aside financial ambition and all thoughts of catering to a market, the problem remains of earning a decent living. Starting your own theatre is easier than one might think.
