Introduction to Playwriting

• Credit value: 30 credits at Level 7
• Convenor: to be confirmed
• Assessment: a 1000-word essay on craft (15%) and either a complete one-act play or 15-25 pages of a full-length script (formatted to industry standard) (85%)

In this module you will develop both your understanding of, and writing skills in, playwriting, from first principles to final draft. Through weekly workshops you will also consider the various means of theatrical production and the nature of the business of writing for the stage.

The weekly sessions combine presentations by both lecturer and student on aspects of craft, writing exercises and feedback, analyses of canonical and contemporary plays, and ongoing script development. You will gain a thorough grounding in the fundamental elements of playwriting such as:

• dramatic structure
• character
• dialogue
• subtext
• the manipulation of theatrical space and time.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• demonstrate awareness and control of the elements of dramatic writing
• discuss and evaluate the work of fellow students and established playwrights in relation to elements of craft
• experiment with style and form
• solve craft-related problems in your own dramatic work
• implement the practice of redrafting and editing.