Auteur Performance Analysis
AUTEUR PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS - APA / MLA / CMS
FIVE PARAGRAPHS / ONE-PAGE CRITIQUE
MARGINS: Standard margins. Tab indent the first line of each new paragraph five spaces.
PAPER: White bond stock.
FONT: Times New Roman – 10-12 font (only).
SPACING: Single space inside paragraphs and double space between paragraphs. Label each paragraph as (P1) and (P2).
STYLE: Submit all drafts in your own words with your own thoughts. Do not copy another writer’s words and/or ideas without full citationality. Be creative and trust your instincts. Each paragraph must be no less than five full sentences and no more than fifteen full sentences. A perfect paragraph is eight sentences.
WRITE IN THIRD PERSON EXCEPT PARAGRAPH 4.
CONTENT:
PARAGRAPH 1-Third Person
Include all introductory information: The title of the play (italicized), the full name of the playwright (and performance artists, filmmaker, auteur, director, choreographer, designer, leading actors, etc., if desired). Be sure to include the name of the theatre and the date when the play was attended. Do not include bullets of information. Only write in an analytic narrative style. Frame the introduction with an opening statement about the play and playwright and then introduce key themes (meaningful ideas or assessments) in the second and third sentences guiding the reader as to how this revival production was positioned into the terrain of the auteur and innovative. Explicate in a macro analysis how this transition has been negotiated from the traditional realistic staging to the current minimalist and operatic revitalization. This section is intended to mention to the reader the big ideas of the event. Also follow with the foci of the following four paragraphs. Remember to think macro.
PARAGRAPH 2-Third Person
Expand sentence two from the introduction into a full paragraph in (P2) but focus on a universal. This is your decisive recognition of an Aristotelian ‘universal’ and needs to capture at least one of the best ideas in the play and/or theatrical aspects of the production. It is one of the most impactful elements(s) that propels the development of the dramatic structure(s) and encapsulates the main conflict.
The conflict is always more than just between the protagonist and antagonist – it is also operating on a cultural, societal, spiritual, and psychic level.
Another way to recognize what is worthy as a universal is to identify the inherent flaw (hubris) of the protagonist that manifests inside the character and extends into her/his relationships with significant effect. Identify if the playwright (or production’s director) has illuminated this tragic flaw through the Poetics’ analytical elements of plot, character, theme, music, diction, and staging? If it is the overarching theme, consider how it is rooted in the given circumstance. If it extends across time, place and culture, take note of how it is repeated as a normative human condition. In both (P2) and (P3) this is the frame you will consider and select in order to focus your critical analysis.
However, select only ONE of Aristotle’s categories in Poetics to analyze:
PLOT: SEQUENCE OF DRAMATIC ACTIONS THAT PROGRESSES THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STORY AND THE RELATIONSHIPS OF THE CHARACTERS INVOLVED. This can also be approached through the frame of David Ball’s terms of art: Trigger and Heap as Two Happenings = Event that gather and serve as linked dominoes – organizing the plot structure of the play within a sequence of dramatically-structured tension-filled building blocks. (Ball, 1983).
CHARACTER: PERSONALITIES OF THE INDIVIDUALS IN THE STORY (SYMBOLIC CONSTRUCTS). Analyze the main characters that are in conflict with one another. Cite character name first and then in parenthesis the actor’s name: Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart); Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman); and Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid). When listing the cast in a sequence of names, remember to use the semi-colon to separate. Take note of how the playwright’s characters revealed. Are they abstracts? Archetypes? Real to life?
THEME: THE MESSAGE, THE MEANING AND THE PURPOSE OF THE WORK. Identify and explore how the central message – or idea – of the play been updated, interpreted, deconstructed, and/or subverted through an auteur adaptation, unusual direction of the play script, unique revitalization, or original production.
MUSIC: INSTRUMENTAL, CULTURAL AND PERSONAL RHYTHMS OF THE PLAY AND/OR PEOPLE WHO POPULATE THE WORLD OF THE PLAY. This is the unscripted heartbeat of the play’s text. Has it amplified the text?
DICTION: BOTH VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL MODE OF COMMUNICATION. The spoken text structures the play’s plot through expressed thoughts, wants, and needs of each character interacting with one another, while the non-verbal teases out each character’s emotions, desires, deceits, fears, and secrets. The spoken words quite often function to both reveal (and conceal) what the character feels and wants. The non-verbal inadvertently exposes what is not always openly shared or talked about directly.
SPECTACLE: THE VISUAL CONTENT OF THE PLAY OR FILM. SPECIFICALLY, ALL ENVIRONMENTAL STAGING THAT INCLUDES PROPS, STAGE SETTING, LIGHTING, COSTUMES, SCENIC DESIGN, OTHER ELEMENTS, AND PHYSICAL OBJECTS IN RELATIONSHIP TO ONE ANOTHER (MISE-EN-SCENE). This is everything that the eye can see, the senses can feel, and the psyche can recognize.
CONVENTION: THE ACCEPTABLE MORALITY, CUSTOMS OR IMPLIED STYLE AND MODE OF BEHAVIOR GIVEN TIME FRAME, MILIEU AND LOCATION OF PLAY. This is Robert Cohen’s additional category. Best to utilize in analyzing auteur works when considering a work that is interpreting an ever-changing world. (Personal Communication. May, 1983.)
PARAGRAPH 3-Third Person
CITE ONE PARTICULAR ELEMENTS THAT STOOD OUT TO YOU AND WHY.
Same list as (P2). Select a DIFFERENT category!
PARAGRAPH 4-First Person
EXPRESS YOUR STUDIED OPINION AND EMOTIONAL RESPONSE TO THE AUTEUR PLAY PRODUCTION. IDENTIFY WHETHER THIS CREATIVE WORK WAS WORTHY OF YOUR TIME. PRAISE OR CRITICIZE. ‘I’ writing is acceptable. This is the up close and personal response paragraph. Yet, it needs to be carefully composed and edited.
PARAGRAPH 5-Third Person
SUMMARIZE WHAT YOU WITNESSED, WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT IT AND COMPLETE YOUR CRITIQUE WITH A FINAL QUOTE, OR ARTISTIC OR PHILOSOPHICAL STATEMENT. This conclusion is your best writing and must be at arm’s length from the auteur work analyzed. Include in-text citation and end source reference – when appropriate.
FOCUS: TAKE NOTES, WRITE, REWRITE, PROOF, AND SUBMIT IN FORMAT!
For extra credit, have your paper reviewed and stamped by the Writing Center. (The professional writers in the class would only do this to examine the level of university support available.)
HAVE FUN!
ENJOY THE ANALYSIS OF AN AUTEUR THEATRICAL PRODUCTION!
PROOF: ALL WRITING IS TO BE DEVELOPED THROUGH THE TEN STEPS.
EMAIL TO THE DESIGNATED EMAILS IN THE SYLLABUS.
SUBMIT IN CLASS AS A HARD COPY ON CLEAN PAPER – AND ON TURNITIN
ALL WORK MUST BE A FULLY IN-FORMAT FINAL DRAFT
1.) Submit on Moodle (TurnItIn) no later than 11:00 pm (on due date).
2.) Email (to designated emails) on time by each deadline – No later than 11:00 pm on the date of the deadline.
3.) Hand deliver (on the day of class). Extra credit if stamped by the Writing Center.
Use the Checklist(s) if in question.
PROTOCOL - PARAGRAPH ORDER: Third person (No use of ‘I’ or ‘We’ or ‘Us’.)
CITE: EVERYTHING THAT IS NOT YOUR IDEA OR COMMON KNOWLEDGE.
CITATION MODEL: MLA / APA / CMS (Refer Owl Purdue and Easy Bib eBook on Moodle).
FIVE PARAGRAPHS / ONE-PAGE CRITIQUE
MARGINS: Standard margins. Tab indent the first line of each new paragraph five spaces.
PAPER: White bond stock.
FONT: Times New Roman – 10-12 font (only).
SPACING: Single space inside paragraphs and double space between paragraphs. Label each paragraph as (P1) and (P2).
STYLE: Submit all drafts in your own words with your own thoughts. Do not copy another writer’s words and/or ideas without full citationality. Be creative and trust your instincts. Each paragraph must be no less than five full sentences and no more than fifteen full sentences. A perfect paragraph is eight sentences.
WRITE IN THIRD PERSON EXCEPT PARAGRAPH 4.
CONTENT:
PARAGRAPH 1-Third Person
Include all introductory information: The title of the play (italicized), the full name of the playwright (and performance artists, filmmaker, auteur, director, choreographer, designer, leading actors, etc., if desired). Be sure to include the name of the theatre and the date when the play was attended. Do not include bullets of information. Only write in an analytic narrative style. Frame the introduction with an opening statement about the play and playwright and then introduce key themes (meaningful ideas or assessments) in the second and third sentences guiding the reader as to how this revival production was positioned into the terrain of the auteur and innovative. Explicate in a macro analysis how this transition has been negotiated from the traditional realistic staging to the current minimalist and operatic revitalization. This section is intended to mention to the reader the big ideas of the event. Also follow with the foci of the following four paragraphs. Remember to think macro.
PARAGRAPH 2-Third Person
Expand sentence two from the introduction into a full paragraph in (P2) but focus on a universal. This is your decisive recognition of an Aristotelian ‘universal’ and needs to capture at least one of the best ideas in the play and/or theatrical aspects of the production. It is one of the most impactful elements(s) that propels the development of the dramatic structure(s) and encapsulates the main conflict.
The conflict is always more than just between the protagonist and antagonist – it is also operating on a cultural, societal, spiritual, and psychic level.
Another way to recognize what is worthy as a universal is to identify the inherent flaw (hubris) of the protagonist that manifests inside the character and extends into her/his relationships with significant effect. Identify if the playwright (or production’s director) has illuminated this tragic flaw through the Poetics’ analytical elements of plot, character, theme, music, diction, and staging? If it is the overarching theme, consider how it is rooted in the given circumstance. If it extends across time, place and culture, take note of how it is repeated as a normative human condition. In both (P2) and (P3) this is the frame you will consider and select in order to focus your critical analysis.
However, select only ONE of Aristotle’s categories in Poetics to analyze:
PLOT: SEQUENCE OF DRAMATIC ACTIONS THAT PROGRESSES THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STORY AND THE RELATIONSHIPS OF THE CHARACTERS INVOLVED. This can also be approached through the frame of David Ball’s terms of art: Trigger and Heap as Two Happenings = Event that gather and serve as linked dominoes – organizing the plot structure of the play within a sequence of dramatically-structured tension-filled building blocks. (Ball, 1983).
CHARACTER: PERSONALITIES OF THE INDIVIDUALS IN THE STORY (SYMBOLIC CONSTRUCTS). Analyze the main characters that are in conflict with one another. Cite character name first and then in parenthesis the actor’s name: Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart); Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman); and Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid). When listing the cast in a sequence of names, remember to use the semi-colon to separate. Take note of how the playwright’s characters revealed. Are they abstracts? Archetypes? Real to life?
THEME: THE MESSAGE, THE MEANING AND THE PURPOSE OF THE WORK. Identify and explore how the central message – or idea – of the play been updated, interpreted, deconstructed, and/or subverted through an auteur adaptation, unusual direction of the play script, unique revitalization, or original production.
MUSIC: INSTRUMENTAL, CULTURAL AND PERSONAL RHYTHMS OF THE PLAY AND/OR PEOPLE WHO POPULATE THE WORLD OF THE PLAY. This is the unscripted heartbeat of the play’s text. Has it amplified the text?
DICTION: BOTH VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL MODE OF COMMUNICATION. The spoken text structures the play’s plot through expressed thoughts, wants, and needs of each character interacting with one another, while the non-verbal teases out each character’s emotions, desires, deceits, fears, and secrets. The spoken words quite often function to both reveal (and conceal) what the character feels and wants. The non-verbal inadvertently exposes what is not always openly shared or talked about directly.
SPECTACLE: THE VISUAL CONTENT OF THE PLAY OR FILM. SPECIFICALLY, ALL ENVIRONMENTAL STAGING THAT INCLUDES PROPS, STAGE SETTING, LIGHTING, COSTUMES, SCENIC DESIGN, OTHER ELEMENTS, AND PHYSICAL OBJECTS IN RELATIONSHIP TO ONE ANOTHER (MISE-EN-SCENE). This is everything that the eye can see, the senses can feel, and the psyche can recognize.
CONVENTION: THE ACCEPTABLE MORALITY, CUSTOMS OR IMPLIED STYLE AND MODE OF BEHAVIOR GIVEN TIME FRAME, MILIEU AND LOCATION OF PLAY. This is Robert Cohen’s additional category. Best to utilize in analyzing auteur works when considering a work that is interpreting an ever-changing world. (Personal Communication. May, 1983.)
PARAGRAPH 3-Third Person
CITE ONE PARTICULAR ELEMENTS THAT STOOD OUT TO YOU AND WHY.
Same list as (P2). Select a DIFFERENT category!
PARAGRAPH 4-First Person
EXPRESS YOUR STUDIED OPINION AND EMOTIONAL RESPONSE TO THE AUTEUR PLAY PRODUCTION. IDENTIFY WHETHER THIS CREATIVE WORK WAS WORTHY OF YOUR TIME. PRAISE OR CRITICIZE. ‘I’ writing is acceptable. This is the up close and personal response paragraph. Yet, it needs to be carefully composed and edited.
PARAGRAPH 5-Third Person
SUMMARIZE WHAT YOU WITNESSED, WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT IT AND COMPLETE YOUR CRITIQUE WITH A FINAL QUOTE, OR ARTISTIC OR PHILOSOPHICAL STATEMENT. This conclusion is your best writing and must be at arm’s length from the auteur work analyzed. Include in-text citation and end source reference – when appropriate.
FOCUS: TAKE NOTES, WRITE, REWRITE, PROOF, AND SUBMIT IN FORMAT!
For extra credit, have your paper reviewed and stamped by the Writing Center. (The professional writers in the class would only do this to examine the level of university support available.)
HAVE FUN!
ENJOY THE ANALYSIS OF AN AUTEUR THEATRICAL PRODUCTION!
PROOF: ALL WRITING IS TO BE DEVELOPED THROUGH THE TEN STEPS.
EMAIL TO THE DESIGNATED EMAILS IN THE SYLLABUS.
SUBMIT IN CLASS AS A HARD COPY ON CLEAN PAPER – AND ON TURNITIN
ALL WORK MUST BE A FULLY IN-FORMAT FINAL DRAFT
1.) Submit on Moodle (TurnItIn) no later than 11:00 pm (on due date).
2.) Email (to designated emails) on time by each deadline – No later than 11:00 pm on the date of the deadline.
3.) Hand deliver (on the day of class). Extra credit if stamped by the Writing Center.
Use the Checklist(s) if in question.
PROTOCOL - PARAGRAPH ORDER: Third person (No use of ‘I’ or ‘We’ or ‘Us’.)
CITE: EVERYTHING THAT IS NOT YOUR IDEA OR COMMON KNOWLEDGE.
CITATION MODEL: MLA / APA / CMS (Refer Owl Purdue and Easy Bib eBook on Moodle).