Storytelling Battles: Part 2 Theater

Storytelling Battles: Part 2 Theater

by | Dec 9, 2019 | Blog

Star Trek: The Reality as a Play

 

This is the same story as last week – the destruction of the Starship Indianapolis. But this time it’s a play, not a film.

See the difference?

STAR TREK: THE REALITY

by

Patrick Blake

Characters: Crewman, Offstage Voice

 

TIME

Present

LOCATION

The Starship Indianapolis in Outer Space

A bare stage. Center stage, a man in a star fleet uniform is sitting in a chair in a cone of light.

 

CREWMAN

Can I have it back, please? My communicator? I can use it to refresh my memory. Maybe there are details…

 

VOICE (O.S.)

Soon. We need to run a few more tests on the new unsanctioned app. We just want you to tell us what you remember.

 

CREWMAN

Ok…I’m in engineering. I kept being interrupted with lots of stupid questions. So I go into the life pods. I shut the hatch, and its computer starts up. More questions. Decisions to make. So I set all functions to automatic.  Now, it’s quiet. No distractions. I’ve almost figured out how to get to the next level. I’ll be the first person in engineering to do it. Are you sure I can’t get my communicator?

 

VOICE (O.S.)

Soon.

 

CREWMAN

Ok… I’m getting into my grove, and the whiney ship’s computer starts up. Everything is always an emergency. Everything is always, “Captain to the Bridge.” So, I turn the sound off. I’m just about to win when there is this bright light, and the next thing I know the pod is being brought aboard this ship. Now, can I get my computer?

 

Film … or Play?

 

Same story. Which way of telling it did you like better?

Let me know, and thanks for playing along!

 

 

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Storytelling Battles: Part 1 Film

Storytelling Battles: Part 1 Film

by | Dec 4, 2019 | Blog

Am I writing for Film or for Theater?

 

We do plays and musical theater. This means that there are some stories we can’t tell.

Theater stories have to be told with words. Film stories are told with pictures.

Some stories can be told both ways. Which medium is best for your story?

Rather than talk about it, I’d rather show you by telling the same story first as a short film and then as a short play. This week is the film, next week is the play.

In the sample short screenplay below, notice how few lines are needed to tell the story as a film.

 

Sample Screenplay for Film

 

 

STAR TREK; THE REALITY

Int. Day. Starship Indianapolis recreation room.

The recreation room is a group of round tables with matching chairs. Every table is occupied with crew members, some alone, some in groups. All are hunched over their communicators.

 

V.O. SHIP’S COMPUTER

Captain to the bridge.

The captain, alone at his table, raises a finger in a gesture meaning, “In one minute.“ A few seconds pass.

V.O. SHIP’S COMPUTER

Captain to the bridge. Emergency.

The captain continues to work on his communicator. Another few minutes pass.

V.O. SHIP’S COMPUTER

Captain to the bridge. Emergency.

A red light begins to flash. The captain continues to work on his communicator.

V.O. SHIP’S COMPUTER

Captain to the bridge. Emergency.

A red light continues to flash, but faster. The captain continues to work on his communicator.

CAPTAIN

Almost done with this level of the game.

V.O. SHIP’S COMPUTER

Captain to the bridge. Emergency.

A red light flashes even faster. The captain jumps up from his chair in excitement.

CAPTAIN

I won!

The sound of an explosion and a bright light fill the screen before it goes black.

 

THE END

Next Week, the Theater Script

 

 

As you can see, the primary storytelling “language” in film is visual. The action happens and builds tension by what is shown on the screen. Some stories need to be told through action, on film.

Next week, I’ll contrast this with a sample theater script so you can see the difference for yourself.

I hope you’re enjoying this as much as I am. 🙂

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Thankful or Grateful?

Thankful or Grateful?

by | Nov 25, 2019 | Blog

Happy Thanksgiving?

 

Since it’s that time of year, I want to spend sometime talking about the things I’m grateful for.

You might notice I didn’t say thankful. That’s because the two are different.

Thanks, for instance, requires two people. The person who is thanked, and the person giving thanks. Gratitude, on the other hand, can involve one OR two people.

That is, you can be grateful for accidents of birth. But thankful? I don’t think so.

Say my uncle dies childless, and wills me, his only surviving family member, ten million dollars. If this had happened (it didn’t and won’t; I have no rich uncle, and I have lots of cousins), I’d be grateful. But who do I thank? My uncle for dying? My parents for not having other children?

 

Are You Thankful or Grateful?

 

 

When I think about my life in theater, especially hip hop theater, I’m as grateful as can be. But thankful? Not so much.

If you want to be thankful for something, be thankful to me for making this blog a shorter, quicker read than usual. 🙂

From all of us at Rhymes Over Beats – Happy Grateful Day.

.

 

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Wanna Make a Play?

Wanna Make a Play?

by | Nov 20, 2019 | Blog

Where Does an Idea Start?

 

Did you ever think about how writers get ideas for plays?

In the real world, this doesn’t happen as it did in the movie Shakespeare in Love. In that movie, the writer is blocked. He then meets the love of his life, and the next day a play, fully formed and polished, comes into existence. Poof!

If only it happened that way.

Usually a writer toils in solitude. He sits alone at the computer, typing away for months, sometimes years, until they have something. If they are very lucky they will have the help of a dramaturg, who works with them to make the play the best it can be.

 

Enter the 20th Century Model

 

In the 20th century, theatre-makers were experimenting with structure and form everywhere. Maybe you’ve heard of experimental theater from La Mama Experimental Theatre Company, or FreeStyle Love Supreme, an improvisational rap show currently on Broadway. Experimental theater is about experimenting with how plays are created and told onstage. They heyday of experimental theater was in the 1960’s and 1970’s, and it revolutionized the way theatre is written and performed. This is also known as “downtown” theatre, postmodern theatre, or simply “avant garde” theatre.

So today although a play can be written by a single person sitting alone in front of a computer, plays can also be created collaboratively by an ensemble.

 

Plays Created by an Ensemble

 

John Walton defines ensemble creation, known as “devising,” as a process in which the whole creative team develops a show collaboratively. Our friend Martine Kei Green-Rogers further explains that “numerous educational and professional theaters are using the techniques of devised theatre to address social issues.”

This method of collaborative theatre-making is a perfect model for Rhymes Over Beats to create theatre that matters. We want to talk about issues that our Collective feels is important.

Devised theatre happens when a group of people with a similar experience talk about their experience, and a play results. This is how A Chorus Line was created, and is how a work we co-produced in 2017, The Assignment, was created.

 

See Something, Say Something – Theatrically

 

Rhymes Over Beats is all about creating new work, new work to appeal to our audiences and that says something important about the way we live and how we see the world.

We’re looking for Collective Members to tell stories. Want in? Email info@rhymesoverbeats.org and talk to us.

Diversity Part II

Diversity Part II

by | Nov 11, 2019 | Blog

Diversity’s Not Only Onstage

 

Last week’s blog discussed diversity, and the main focus was on what is visible to the audience. The actors, the directing, the sets and the costumes.

But I don’t rap, or act, or sew. Or design. How can I participate in the effort to increase diversity?

So now in this blog post, let’s take a look at some of the jobs in theater that most people don’t even know exist.

But first, I want to hit you with the Truth.

 

Theater is an Insular Community

 

Theater is very insular. Friends work with friends, because friends hire friends. It’s only human.

BUT if we are committed to diversity, we need to reach outside our regular circles to hire people who are not YET friends.

Even more, we must make an effort to mentor a diverse workforce.

The world of theater is divided into two pieces: one half is the show itself, the artistic creators (the artists and crew who create the show), and the other half is the production team (the people who make the production possible). It is as important to increase diversity in these jobs as in the ones that show from stage.

Some of the jobs I’m talking about, with a brief description of what they do, are:

 

  • Box Office Manager:  Someone needs to make sure that tickets are sold and the right ticket goes to the right person.

 

  • House Manager: Someone needs to make sure that the person and the ticket are sitting in the matching seat.

 

  • The Company Manager: Somebody needs to supervise the front of house staff, and deal with the theater owners.

 

  • Publicity: Who better to create interest in a diverse show than a diverse publicist

 

  • Producer: Somebody needs to be the boss. At this time, there is only one company of black producers that are lead producers on Broadway. There needs to be more.

 

Rhymes Over Beats is committed to diversity in all aspects of theater. Please join us.

 

 

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What We Mean By Diversity

What We Mean By Diversity

by | Nov 6, 2019 | Blog

Diversity

 

I once wrote a short play called Speed Dating for Actors. A male and female actor meet on a speed date. The encounter is going great until they discover they are both up for the same part. The casting breakdown for the part reads, “Robin 20s, bartender.” Both think the other is unqualified. The date ends badly.

I was reminded of the play when talking to our associate artistic director Cate the other day. We both agree there is not enough diversity in theater. We agree we should all be trying to increase diversity in what we write and how we cast.

At issue is how do we do this?

 

Here’s a Plan

 

I thought of a some small changes we can make that would create significant differences.

To increase diversity here are a few things we can do:

  • If a play specifies an actor of color,  don’t change the casting.
  • Actively cast an actor of color when no ethnicity is specified.
  • If gender is irrelevant to the part, always cast a woman.
  • Experiment with non-traditional casting.

And remember, these suggestions don’t just apply to our casts, but to the entire production. We are looking to involve a diverse artistic and management backstage roles: designers, choreographers, directors, company manger, etc.

As a reminder, I want to end with a quote from the book Hamilton:The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter

“When the Battle of Yorktown sequence ended that day, the largely black and Latino cast (singing a song written by a Puerto Rican composer, wearing costumes selected by an African-American designer) climbed on top of boxes and chairs to celebrate having done the impossible.”(Miranda 116)

That is what we aspire to!

Help us make this vision a reality by donating to Rhymes Over Beats  end of the year donor drive.

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