Play Directions

[inksplotter]

Should play directions be as simple as possible, or should you embroider them?

[tiny e.a]

I'm no expert but I think it's very much about personal preference. I recently read the plays of Oscar Wilde and did notice that in some of his plays the stage direction was very simple while in others there were very lavish descriptions laying out exactly what the look of the play should be. Perhaps it depends on how imortant they are to you, the playwright. Whether you feel there can be left room for director/actor interpretations or whether you feel it's important for the play that it follows a very rigid set of directions.

[Octavius]

It depends how much control you want over it, or how important a specific element is to you. There is merit in providing simple instructions and leaving some artistic licence to the actors and the director.

[jno]

few of Shakespeare's directions survive except 'Exit pursued by a bear'. He would probably just have told the actors what he had in mind. This gives directors a lot of scope to imagine the action as they wish. Shaw as I recall has lots of directions, but people will still ignore them as they choose. Personally, I'd keep them to a minimum, but probably include more than Shakespeare did. 'Exit stage right pursued by a bear' would be so much more informative.

[saxy_jag]

Thing with Shakespeare is that you can often surmise the intended actions from the text - if you know what to look for.

As tiny says, though, it's very much down to personal choice and what kind of brief, if any, the playwright is given.

[kp nonuts]

yes