Playwright’s Workshop

Who are you as a writer? What do you write about, and why? Are you merely writing the play that you want to write—or the play that you need to write? Where is the nexus between the amorphous, subconscious wellspring of the material and the rigorous demands of a form that plays in real time before a live audience? This course is designed for playwriting students who have a basic knowledge of dramatic structure and an understanding of their own creative process and are ready to create a complete dramatic work of any length. (As Edward Albee points out, “All plays are full-length plays.”) Students will be free to work on themes, subjects, and styles of their choice. Work will be read aloud and discussed in class each week. The course requires that students enter with, at minimum, an idea of the play on which they plan to work; they may also bring in a partial draft or even a completed draft that they wish to revise. We will read some existent texts, time allowing. This class meets twice a week.