p.131

8

DRAMATURGY TO ENHANCE AUDIENCE EXPERIENCE

Audience-directed dramaturgy is a significant part of the process and will be closely allied with the work that happens in pre-production as well as throughout the rehearsal process. The ideas, questions, images, and metaphors that inform the composition of the production are the same ones that will help to create the narrative of the audience outreach materials. The process of identifying, compiling and communicating the dramaturgy will allow for the work to be clear and specific and, hopefully, effective.

The work the dramaturg does during the rehearsal process is in preparation for the performances in more ways than one. First, she helps to shape the production into what is ultimately presented to an audience. In addition, she compiles information and a perspective that shapes the direct contact she has with the audience through dramaturgy’s most identifiable tasks. The contact with the audience is where we can see the work of the dramaturg most directly, and when it is effective, the work can be an integral part of the production. It tells the story that will help to attract the audience, one that will both draw the best audiences for the piece, and prepare them for what they are going to see.

As the production approaches opening, the dramaturg’s work is most visibly on display through the audience-geared work as it is usually a dramaturg who creates a lobby display and writes a program note. He is often recognized as the person who facilitates a talkback or coordinates a panel discussion. If there is an educational output, such as a study guide, that also tends to be tasked to the dramaturg unless an organization has a separate education department. Consequently, a fundamental aspect of the view of dramaturgy is the extra-performance contact with the audience.

p.132

The dramaturg is the advocate and surrogate for the audience during the rehearsal process. The advocacy serves two functions. It helps to shape the choices made in the production process and also indicates for the production what additional input the audience may benefit from. The purpose of audience-directed dramaturgy is not to explain what the audience sees, to tell them how to feel about it, or to defend the choices made by the production. Instead, the dramaturg’s advocacy and later contact with the audience is a way to bring them more fully into the world of the play and give additional context that will add to the experience of the production. The audience outreach is a branch of the production, not an intermediary for it.

The dramaturg’s contact with the audience may begin early in the production cycle and include contextual commentary in publicity plans and materials. Dramaturgical support can take many forms. In smaller companies and educational theatre it often includes assisting with audience outreach and publicity in addition to the production dramaturgy. The dramaturgy from the onset is connected to the “why this, here, now” and so the output can be a direct appeal to the intended theatrical audience, which makes for useful marketing materials. The dramaturg can help a marketing department by writing press releases or sharing images or content that informs the production and can potentially be useful outreach. For example, a well-executed website and production blog can provide effective audience engagement, especially for a targeted group or an established audience base.

A useful way to capture the production narrative is through a blog or a website, and this is something that is becoming a more common practice with dramaturgs. It is a way to chronicle the production life while it happens, as well as an opportunity to create the narrative record of the show. The dramaturg’s written materials can also be the voice of the production team, the extra-performance commentary that can channel from production team to audience. It is an opportunity for outreach, advertisement, education, or discussion. At the same time, it is a line of communication that needs to be used deliberately so that it is an important part of the whole rather than a side note to the production.

Again, when there is a clear and specific purpose in mind, the shape of the dramaturgical output is much clearer. The audience outreach that aligns with marketing shares the end goal of bringing the audience into the theatre. Consequently, clear communication and a coherent plan are vital to the success of this collaboration as much as all the others. It is more than merely transmitting the materials from one department for use in another; the dramaturgy is deliberate and crafted to assist the marketing or publicity narrative in a way that serves the whole production. Whether it is in a season brochure or a press release, the first impressions that are transmitted can lay the foundation for a strong dialogue between the production and the audience.

p.133

When the dramaturgy is holistic and the artistic needs of the production are considered alongside the big picture the audience needs, the trajectory of the dramaturgy will be serving both from start to finish.

Once again, the mindset of the dramaturg enables the work to be deliberate and connected to the needs of the production, and the process allows the task of the dramaturg to stay relevant and useful. When approaching the tasks that connect directly to audience outreach, the emphasis on a specific purpose and the focus on particular targets will shape the work and increase the likelihood it will be effective. This can happen when the dramaturgy joins with marketing for publicity and outreach purposes and is seen more directly in the audience-specific tasks that are typically associated with dramaturgy.

Dramaturgy constructs a narrative, it tells a story of play-making in a variety of ways. It starts with a mindset as a way of seeing and engaging with material, it adopts a method that connects to purpose and intended audience, and ultimately it tells a story. The story told to the production team is the story of the text, and the story told to the audience is the story of the event. This story is told in a number of ways and it is essential that it offers a clear and comprehensible narrative. This chapter explores some of the tasks with which the dramaturg tells the audience the story of the production. They are noted in order of when they are experienced by the audience – lobby, note, talkback, and study guide.

The Task: Lobby Display

The lobby is an unusual place; in many locations it is a gathering and a waiting place. Whether there is an actual lobby space or a hallway outside the door to a black box, the transition from the world into the theatre is a threshold to cross and one that provides an opportunity for audience engagement. Threshold indicates something physical that is passed over as well as the point at which something changes. The lobby fits both of these images. Whatever space is designated as “lobby” is physically crossed over in order to enter the place of performance, and more profoundly, the transition into performance is inherently one in which something begins, or changes. The lobby is the space of that conversion.

p.134

There are a variety of different kinds of lobby displays, including an interactive display that allows the audience to post comments on a board, move pieces around a board, or try out dance steps. Another common form is an educational presentation in which things like timelines and maps may be used to illustrate the shifting demographics of a population, or the presentation of historical biography to present a context for the production. The display can be an opportunity for designers to present renderings, models, and inspirational materials, or it can be a chance to contextualize the world of the play in images and a compositional frame of reference for the audience to experience.

The lobby display is one of the opportunities the dramaturg has to prime the audience for the production. It is the literal threshold through which a person moves to transition from their world to the world of the play and the experience of that transition will affect the readiness with which an audience enters the production. Frequently the lobby display is used as an advertisement for a company or coming attractions, or sometimes it will be an educational display about a subject somehow related to the play or the production process itself. These can be interesting materials for the audience to peruse while they are waiting for the house to open; however, it seems like a squandered opportunity for a significant contact with the audience.

The first step to creating an effective and engaging lobby display is to determine what the lobby display needs to accomplish and for whom. Then location, resources, director’s ideas, and budget need to be considered, as do the nature of the play and the production. Whether the lobby is a small corridor outside a studio space that requires the display to be set up and struck each day, or a self-contained and elaborate gathering space in a theatre lobby, the size and type of space is going to influence the kind of threshold constructed. The intent and design need to take into account the actual space that is used, and then figure out if and how to transform it.

The dramaturg works with collaborators to define the project – what is the lobby display going to be? How is the display going to coincide with the relative crowd and its movement? Is the audience required by traffic flow to move through or past the display or is it something that must be actively sought? What kinds of resources are available to support the creation of the lobby environment? These are all questions that point to the practical application of the display and they also contribute to the overall challenge of defining the project because it is something that will be largely defined by how it can be used.

p.135

If the purpose of the display is to educate the audience on a social or political issue that is addressed in the play, the character of the project will be defined by that educational impulse. For example, the display meant to introduce an audience to the circumstances surrounding civil war in the Congo may have maps and timelines, ethnic demographics and fighter mobilization. The display will include content about refugees and government corruption. The lobby will be composed in a way that not only offers the information about the situation, but can also give a visual and experiential feeling to that conflict.

In another instance, the historical context is selected to be an important educational opportunity; consequently, the display will be construed to serve that end. Court life may be the theme, and explanations of etiquette and stature will drive the display. The importance of pedigree and the visible displays of status may create the threshold into the playing space.

p.136

If the purpose is genuinely to bring the audience into the world of the play, then perhaps it will be an experiential display that allows for the materials of the world to be introduced to the audience in an interesting way. The audience may interact with the materials of a potlatch ceremony in order to create an ethnic and community feeling in preparation for the performance. Finally, the definition may reside on the need to engage the audience in a philosophical or theoretical process – to raise questions or ideas that will shape the way they look at the play. This kind of display can engage from an intellectual or emotional perspective and may include images and ideas that confront the audience members with troubling ideas, perhaps a presentation of eugenics or “ethnic cleansing.”

Once the dramaturg knows what the lobby display is going to be, she can start the second step of gathering the materials. This part of the process happens differently than in some of the earlier production team-oriented tasks, in part because the lobby display is connected to the dramaturgy that has already happened. The compiling of material for the lobby is more a case of selecting and editing the dramaturgy from the production; finding the pieces that will help support the narrative of the display. What does it need to do, and who is it for? How can it prepare the audience for the experience of the production? What can it offer that will be meaningful at specific points in time, before the show, during the intermission, and after the production has concluded? These same questions shape the selection of material and will help to determine how much of what kind of thing will be most effective.

For audience engagement, there are generally up to three opportunities for effective use of this threshold of the world and the play. The audience uses the lobby before and after the production, as well as during an intermission if there is one. A holistic approach and flexible thinking are particularly useful for this construction, as is a sense of timing. Looking to tell a whole story in an interesting way, the dramaturg asks if there are ways to shape the experience going into the theatre, if there are equally effective ways to create an impression for the audience as they are exiting the theatre. In a production of Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist play Rhinocéros, the carefully crafted lobby had been torn up, as if it had been trampled, when the audience left the theatre. The lobby was transformed into this mess while the spectators were in the theatre and it was a clever way to disorient the audience, bringing the world of the play out into their world. Similarly, a production of Jean Anouilh’s Antigone in which the philosophical and moral argument was emphasized finished its commentary in the lobby where audiences were asked to drop a stone in a jar voting for which side was right, Créon or Antigone – or for those more inclined to contemporary resonance of the argument, audiences could also vote through #TeamCreon or #TeamAntigone. Once again, the timing was an important component and by choosing this activity at the end of the show, the audience was invited to be invested, to have a personal stake in the outcome of the debate, and to choose sides.

p.137

Making it personal for an audience is an effective way to inspire engagement, and dramaturgs often look for ways to use the lobby display as a way to connect to a specific challenge the play implies, or somehow place the audience into a point of view that may help them understand a character. There was a production that included a museum curator who had to choose which works of art to save before fleeing the country. The lobby display invited audience members to put a pin near the work they would save. It was an activity that the audience got very involved and invested in, though one that did not seem to have a strong effect on their experience of the play. The political and social implications of the destruction of the works ended up being a much more potent point of conversation in the after-play discussions. Similarly, in another section of the lobby, audience members were asked to identify what personal belonging they would choose once they knew family was safe. The lobby did an effective job of drawing people into the conversation about what to save, though the creative team was not sure it was ultimately as effective a mode of drawing the audience into the production. This question of making it personal comes up often, and sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking it has to be about our audience in order to be meaningful for them. Time and again we learn that is not a necessity, so even in our displays we can be sure to find the personal connection as one – but not the only – way to engage.

The final step in the process of this composition is selecting how to transmit the content. The materials selected for the lobby display are those that will support the purpose of the display. Some of the choices are practical – how much text should we use, how can images be included in a dynamic fashion, should we use digital media or construct a tactile experience? Is there enough space for the audience member to experience the display as intended? The mode of presentation needs to reflect that which is being presented and take into consideration who will be receiving it. The materials selected from the dramaturgy will not necessarily be presented in the same format to the audience. They are very different methods of connection with completely different purposes so it follows that there will be little about their presentation that will overlap. Something as simple as readability – even if the material is conveyed through text to both actors and audience, not only does the kind of content need to be modified, but the physical construction of it. How can it be readable in a case, or on a lobby board? If it is on a screen, how is that screen going to be integrated for the audience? The question of screens brings up another issue that dramaturgs are faced with in the composition of all of their output. Are our audiences so accustomed to the digital mode that they are essentially immune to screens and will they walk past a digital display without taking notice?

p.138

In addition, the narrative function of the communication is important to consider. It is not merely the practical consideration of the architecture of the lobby that affects the choice of form, but it is the desire to find the best mode of transmission for the material in order to convey the function. Again, the three steps are equally important and also inextricably linked. First, define the project, second, gather the content, and third, effectively communicate it. The defined project determines the selected content, which steers the manner in which it is conveyed.

A production of Peter Shaffer’s Equus offered an evocative display that was in a self-contained space. Each audience member could enter and encounter numerous altars to modern worship. The space itself was deliberately claustrophobic with images of entertainment, consumerism, sex, and other cultural idols. It was chaotic and disorienting, and was an intriguing glimpse of the perspective of a disturbed character. Another intriguing aspect to this display was that it was an experience that had to be actively sought by the audience member. The display space was off to the side of the theatre lobby and even though there were signs notifying people they were allowed to explore it, it was dimly lit and appeared somehow illicit in its presentation, which reinforced the need for the audience member to choose to enter.

The mode of communication determines how the audience experiences the lobby display. Is it an immersive, participatory experience? Are there guided or free-form activities available in order to engage the audience directly with the materials? Do we have the audience making things, writing notes, trying out a tap routine? If so, the structure of the space needs to convey what is expected and allow for it to occur. This has a practical aspect in that we have to have enough room and enough materials for the size of our audience, but also includes the more ineffable: is the space constructed in a way that encourages an audience to take a risk, to do something outside the expected activity of moving through a lobby? Are there visual cues that tell people what is allowed and expected? Are there instructions, explicitly stated or implied, that let our audience know how to navigate this display? Is it something that is crafted in such a way that a person has to encounter the activity or immersion, or is it something that must be chosen?

p.139

The method of transmitting content is not merely how the information is crafted – text or picture – it is how the experience is shaped. It highlights the necessity of having a clear sense of the targeted audience because the cues must be clear to that specific group of people, and the experience needs to be fitting to their role. For example, there are times in which an almost hostile or confusion-inducing lobby display would be an effective preparation for a production; perhaps for a show about disorientation or displacement. However, if the audience is not primed for that kind of approach it could backfire and end up either losing them or bringing them into the production in a way that is aggressive or inflammatory. When the dramaturg understands what she wants to have happen, and who she is bringing in, she can temper the mode of communication to her audience. Often that will be merely a matter of degree; things that can be intimated for some audiences are better explicitly stated for others. Ideally these relationships are formed over time, and the more work a company does to intimately connect the lobby to the production, the more accommodating that audience becomes to those possibilities.

The lobby display in its most traditional form is a series of posters that offer a timeline and a text-based explanation – for example, a display consisting of posters with images and information about the Dust Bowl and its impact on the country presented in order to give the audience a context with which to understand The Grapes of Wrath. It can be well written with strong composition that allows the audience to learn something about the world of the play as a way to mark the threshold between their world and that of the characters. It can be seen coming in or going out and can provide an effective dramaturgical contribution. There are as many variations to the composition of the lobby as threshold as can be imagined, and decidedly non-traditional approaches may be suitable for certain plays, audiences, or spaces. The lobby display can be an opportunity to write on a wall, walk through a shower of torn-up letters, or peruse a carefully curated replication of a nineteenth-century doctor’s office. It can be an activity that puts the audience into the place of a character in some way; for instance, they can be asked to choose what works of art they would save if they had to make that choice. The lobby display is just one of the places where the dramaturg tells the story of the production, and needs to be defined, compiled, and constructed. It will affect how the audience experiences the play since it is the point of crossing; consequently, it is a great opportunity to make it a significant one.

p.140

The Task: The Program Note

Like the lobby display, the program note is a direct point of contact between the production and the audience that is constructed by the dramaturg. This element is another visible contribution of the dramaturg, with authorial credit. The note is an opportunity to tell the story of the production and offer additional information or context to help shape the experience. The note connects the world of the play to the world of the audience. The program note is also an opportunity for the dramaturg to write an essay from her point of view. The note allows the space for a commentary about the world of the play and the production that the dramaturg wants to share with her audience. It is also a situation that is inherently challenging, since it is a voluntary act on the part of the audience member and may be read before the show, at intermission or at the end, depending on the individual. There is no way for the dramaturg to control the timing of the reading of the program note, when or even if it is read. Consequently, the note needs to be crafted in such a way that it is important but not vital information and is immediate but not linked to its timing.

The general rules apply. The program note needs to inform something about the play while not telling the audience what they are about to see or explaining artistic choices that should be allowed to speak for themselves. It needs to complement the director’s note, if there is one, and any additional materials in the playbill. The program note gives some kind of insight into the production that will add to the audience experience and offer them a way to think about the play. Well articulated; with a fixed word count; to be read or not at the discretion of an audience member. It is not an insignificant challenge to construct an effective program note. The reality is that the program note is usually a thoughtful, well-researched essay that people will first read in five minutes while sitting in the dark.

p.141

For the dramaturg, the process is the same as with all the tasks. The first step is to identify and define the project. What does he want to accomplish with this note? What are the constraints with which he is working? There are a variety of things one can choose to attempt with a note. It is an opportunity to offer information on the time and place in which the play occurs or when it was written. The note can be the chance to share important information about the playwright or the production history. It can be used to discuss important thematic, philosophical, social or political issues raised in the play. The program note can do a lot of things, so the beginning is to determine what the specific note should do in order to define what it should be.

The notes are typically done pretty well in advance of the show to allow for whatever production process is needed and so this decision will often be made relatively early in the production dramaturgy. Consequently, it will frequently be connected to the content and point of view of the earlier part of the rehearsal process. This context and parameter form part of the understanding of how to write an effective note. The dramaturg can assume there will not be significant changes in the overall thrust of the play and so he can write a note based on the intent of the production, coupled with the content he has uncovered. While it is safe to assume no major changes, he needs to create the note with the understanding that some changes will likely occur. The project must be defined with its place in the production cycle in mind; and that place is unusual because it is created early on but will be experienced during the run of the show.

A variety of considerations go into the defining, including practical limitations and artistic desires, and ultimately a conclusion is reached. For example, a program note might offer a historical point of view of the world of the playwright in order to provide insight into the place from which the playwright created the piece. For instance, the play is a political farce that takes place in Italy in the 1970s, and so the program note is a historical essay on the political circumstances of Italy in the second half of the twentieth century. This type of program note is frequently adopted and has a clear purpose.

p.142

There are other kinds of program notes and other kinds of content the dramaturg may seek to communicate. The note may be a vocabulary lesson or a philosophical musing on the nature of a theme or metaphor from the play. It can be an exploration of the relevance of the play to the contemporary moment or to the theatrical movement. Whatever the form of the note, the style needs to be accessible and ideally suitable to the tone of the production.

Step two is compiling the content, which will generally come from the same materials collected in the casebook for the production team. The initial gathering of context cues that become the casebook and rehearsal materials provides the information, or at least the beginnings of the information, for the program note. At this point the challenge will be in editing and synthesizing the materials until there is something that can provide the spine for the narrative of the note. The key is to find enough information to create this historical frame, yet that is also interesting and can be transmitted through this short burst of a program note. Again, the different kinds of projects will require a different assembly of content in order to shape that specific note. A theoretical musing will demand something different than a historic timeline; however, the commonality is that the content will support the dramaturg’s read of the play and production. The note is a way to speak to the audience, to tell a story of the process.

The project is defined, the content assembled, and the final step is to determine the mode of presentation. Once again there is a practical aspect: how much room is there in the playbill, what is the content of the director’s note, and what additional content is present in the program? The practical will shape the delivery somewhat, but it will be more concretely influenced by the desire to target a specific audience and offer a particular experience. Much of the time the note will be a traditional text generated by the dramaturg and the style and structure of the writing is crafted in a way that links it to the mood and genre of the play, as well as reflecting the overall voice of the production. The word choice and theoretical connections are informed by the relative knowledge and sophistication of the audience, with the understanding that it will be read in the five minutes before curtain or skimmed at a later time. The style needs to encompass that.

p.143

Since the program note does not have to be a note, nor even necessarily in the program, the creative impulse of the dramaturg may extend past the essay format to create a visual collage or a pastiche of image and word. The form can be a pamphlet that is scattered through the space or a golden ticket under a seat. The purpose is to make the program note an effective point of connection with the audience, and the form it takes is integral to the connection. If it is something that the audience should read and/or see, the dramaturg needs to make sure it is constructed in a format that makes it visible and accessible to that particular audience. If it is not something the audience would derive value from, the dramaturg should save the ink. Like all dramaturgical output, the material needs to be effective, immediate, and necessary.

The program note is direct communication between the dramaturg and the theatre audience. It is a way to give more information, offer insight, ask questions, connect to metaphor, or engage the reader on a personal level. Once the dramaturg decides what he wants the note to be and defines the project, he can use the content he gathered in the early production phase and determine the most effective mode of communication for his specific audience. That process will allow him to stay connected to the overall thrust of the play and make effective use of this point of contact with the audience.

The Task: The Talkback

The dramaturg uses the lobby display and the program note to transmit information and ideas to the audience, and a third opportunity is the talkback, where he can have a conversation with them.

The audience talkback is a way to get direct feedback, create further conversation, and develop an audience. Talkbacks are particularly useful in educational outreach and in university theatres since they can help to teach an audience member how to articulate a response to performance. The term is used as a kind of umbrella for pre- and post-show talks of various kinds and may include a panel-style lecture with experts, a facilitated conversation among the audience, or a question and answer session with artists. They can be conducted for the benefit of a creative team, a playwright, an organization or an audience. Different kinds of talkbacks will offer different input and information to intended recipients, and the choice of what kind of talkback is largely determined by who it is meant to benefit.

p.144

The talkback is the extra-production opportunity to engage directly with the audience in an exchange rather than the one-way transmission of information. A well-crafted talkback gives the chance to speak about some of the decisions made in the production and to hear a direct response from an audience. A dramaturg can bring in experts from a particular field to help spark a conversation about the world of the play and the world of the production. The talkback can be the chance to hear a moderated response from an audience that has just experienced the show. It can ask questions, instigate discussion, answer questions, and give the audience something to think about. The talkback can be a way to garner community action, help rewrites, or shape future season planning. Ultimately the talkback provides an important occasion to listen, and when effective is enjoyable and important.

Talkbacks are often associated with those done as part of new-play development, and as such can be considered a somewhat sensitive dramaturgy task. Many playwrights do not like the practice and there is some contention over whether or not the audience response is a valuable contribution to the development of a play. This will be looked at in more detail in the next chapter.

From a dramaturgical perspective, pre- and post-show discussions are intended to increase audience engagement in the production. Whether it is to mine audience members’ input as a way to inform the theatrical choices or to give a stronger sense of connection to the work, a company uses talkbacks to speak directly with the audience, and the challenge for the dramaturg is to make it a valuable and significant point of contact.

As with the other tasks of dramaturgy, the talkback is defined by a simple question: what is its purpose and for whom?

A pre-show talk is often a part of an educational outreach or sometimes is a special invitation to specific members of the audience. These talks may be used to invite people who are involved in issues surrounding the play and use the time to give the audience some context on the ideas they will see explored in the production. Or sometimes they are used as an opportunity to start the discussions that the production team hopes will be generated by the show. For example, a production of a play about three women in the Iraq War may invite experts on the region as well as on the political history in order to give the audience a stronger context on the circumstances of the play; and the dramaturg may bring in someone who can speak about the ways that gender plays a part in the circumstances of the play.

p.145

The post-show talkback is different in that it is usually an open invitation to any audience member who is in the room and will be an immediate response to what they have just seen. These talkbacks can also take many different forms and may include cast or production staff members in a question and answer format. One example of a post-show discussion is a variation of a pre-show format; the humanities-style lecture wherein the dramaturg assembles a panel of experts to discuss important facets of the play and production. Perhaps you bring in people to discuss important theatrical history and practice context, or you bring in someone who is experienced in a sociopolitical topic that is manifest in the show. The fundamental idea is that this format can give the audience even greater contextual understanding. Finally, a moderated audience response is another model of the post-show talkback. This way of engaging with the audience is less about offering context or information and more about giving the audience members the opportunity to speak about what they saw. A production of Lynn Nottage’s Ruined, a play that deals with the ravages of war as played out on women’s bodies, could be well served by a guided opportunity to articulate a response to the shared experience of seeing that story presented.

Production teams sometimes reject the idea of a talkback out of hand because the benefits are not clearly understood, likely because who and how the group would benefit has not been clearly identified. Important to note, the talkback generally benefits the audience more than the production staff, although there are occasions in which the production team will profit from the talkback. However, as the talkback occurs after the play is produced, talkbacks are to help future productions. Consequently, understanding who the audience is and what point of contact will be effective for them is at the core of defining the project. Talkbacks in university theatres are particularly successful, as they provide the opportunity to connect more directly to the educational aspects of the production. In addition, they can pull in other departments and fields of study and ultimately assist in furthering the mission of the department and the school.

p.146

Another popular type of post-show talkback is a “meet the artists” where the audience is welcomed to stay for a moderated conversation with members of the production team. These types of talkbacks can be done for any kind of show and tend to have an appeal based more on the process of the production and the personalities of the artists. Young audiences, in particular, enjoy conversing with the artists and having the opportunity to ask questions about their work, even though there is almost inevitably the question, “How did you learn all those lines?” Even still, these kinds of post-show discussions can be useful and informative about the play-making process, especially where there is a non-traditional approach to the work such as devised theatre.

The second step of the method to dramaturg is gathering the content, and for talkbacks that content is the people and the questions. Who are the experts to bring to the humanities-style panel? Can we assemble a dynamic group and people who can speak to the playing of the piece as well as their own areas of expertise? Are the styles and tones compatible, both with the other members on the panel and with the ethos of the company and the temperament of the audiences? Similarly, if it is a moderated response, what are the questions that will help guide the process while still having the room for an open-ended conversation?

Finally, the importance of the final step cannot be overestimated. What is the best way to accomplish this purpose and communicate with this audience? This stage also includes the practical ways the talkback is framed and communicated. The dramaturgical output in this task is communication – the ability to listen as well as speak. Whether she is answering questions or asking them, the person who dramaturgs is one who is present and focused and able to respond to what she hears and sees.

There are some important practical guidelines when facilitating a talkback, including when and how to take the stage and even suggestions on how to deal with hecklers. The professionalism with which the talkback is advertised and framed helps the successful continuance of it. It is important to have open questions prepared in advance and then go off the pre-planned as soon as it becomes necessary to engage more fully in the moment. A thoughtful question or comment as well as a disruptive questioner can draw the dramaturg into the production further, though she will need to be sure to maintain the professionalism of her style and output.

p.147

The biggest asset a dramaturg can offer is himself, and understanding what that means is an important part of the process to finding the dramaturg’s mindset. It is more than knowing strengths and weaknesses and styles, it is a way of seeing clearly one’s own responses and allowing that to be the foundation of the work. Talkbacks give a particularly potent example of this importance because effective facilitating is done by people who have a clear purpose, target, and focus. Those elements are found in one’s own style and approach.

A talkback leader at a regional theatre I frequent starts hers off by telling the audience the talkback is what we would do if we went out for a cup of coffee to talk about the play. She is warm and invites the audience to come and have a chat with her. It is a very effective mode of presentation and audiences quickly relax and participate in the conversation she helps create. Another local theatre has a talkback facilitator who is dynamic and energetic; he speaks quickly and exudes intelligence and wit and creates a lively discussion that energizes anyone who elects to stay and participate in the talkback. When the dramaturg elects to be himself and creates an environment based on his own style and personality, the talkback can be an exciting and useful activity. It touches all aspects of the event, including how to redirect a conversation or deal with an inappropriate or unusual line of questions. The audience responds more favorably to the comfort and confidence of being led by a prepared professional who is being oneself rather than trying to play a role based on a perceived notion of dramaturg as a formal, erudite intellectual or some such image. In addition, it creates a much more stable environment conducive to effective conversation.

When the dramaturg knows what the talkback needs to accomplish and defines the parameters with that in mind; when she compiles content that supports the specified goal; when she constructs a format that is complementary to the production, her own style, and considerate to the nature of the particular audience, that is when the talkback can be its most effective.

p.148

Tips for Facilitating a Post-Show Talkback

In summary, the dramaturg answers the questions about the pre- and post-show talkbacks. What do we want the talkback to accomplish? In what way can it best serve the production and the audience? If we are in the very beginnings of creating a regular and invested audience, the primary function to develop that audience and give them some personal stake in the production seems a useful model. For a very complex play or one that deals with controversial and difficult subjects, the idea of bringing in experts and framing a more thoughtful conversation around those issues will make sense. Is there already an audience base that feels connected and entitled to the work? Are we seeking a new audience that needs some guidance? Then a talkback that is a well-guided conversation about their own response to the work will be well placed. Once again, close attention to “the who and the why” will determine the shape of “the what.”

p.149

The Task: The Study Guide

The story of the production that the study guide tells is one that is meant to make the production as clear and meaningful as possible to a specific audience. Study guides are typically created for school programs and are supplemental materials for the curriculum the production is supporting. If there is an educational outreach program, the dramaturg is often involved in curricular support and may compile a study guide for the participating schools. The content and activities in the guide vary greatly depending on the grade levels and kinds of students who come to the productions. The study guide includes information about the play and the production process and suggests some topics of discussion as well as interactive activities that are age-appropriate. The study guide is a useful addition to educational programs in theatre and can help school groups increase the value of the experience.

Educational materials are relatively straightforward when it comes to informational content on the play and production; however, a holistic approach to dramaturg is useful to the creation of these as well in that it helps to shape the intent of the work. Knowing the audience is of utmost importance, age as well as experience with theatre, and this points to the kind of study guide to create. Clarity of purpose helps guide the work. The step of definition requires some choices to be made about the purpose of the study guide and the educational opportunity. Does it need to inform a well-educated student about the particulars of a theatrical movement? Is it an introduction to live theatre for a brand new audience? Is it an opportunity to inspire aspiring theatre-makers or lure future theatregoers? When the function is determined, the nature of the guide can be decided and the project defined.

Content will be compiled from the early work that oriented the dramaturg to the play and the additional output she created through the process. It will reflect the selected purpose so if the curriculum is based on introducing students to live theatre it will likely include information about designers and technicians and the overall process of play-making. The information about the playwright and the world of the play can be contextualized in a manner that highlights its identity as script for performance, furthering the connection to the process of production. Plot, character, thematic elements may be included, as well as any other contextual information that can support the project as defined.

p.150

The mode of presentation will depend on the audience and will be selected and written with regard to a particular age and perspective. The inclusion of non-text elements such as drawings, photos, or charts, as well as digital or interactive components, will all depend on the parameters of the project and the targeted audience. The starting point is to aid in the curriculum and engage the student audience. What those things mean, and how best to execute them, is how to dramaturg.

Educational outreach is an important part of the mission of many theatres and in some cases is connected to their funding. Theatre companies want to expand audiences and build the next generation of theatregoers, and outreach to schools is an effective way to accomplish these. It is a natural extension of the dramaturg’s work and even theatres that have education departments tend to utilize dramaturgs in the creation of materials and execution of student outreach programs.

The effectiveness of educational outreach depends on finding the right audience for the work and creating a context that will make it a meaningful educational experience. The first part is dependent on understanding the play as well as having a strong frame of reference for what is appropriate and appealing to various age groups and then creating those relationships with schools that allow access. An educational department will be able to serve that role, in general, although even in a smaller theatre there is no reason to neglect the opportunity to reach out to a young audience for a production that may appeal.

The study guide will accompany the program. Once a school group is coming to the production, the dramaturg will schedule a pre- or post-show discussion that is appropriate to the show and group, and she will provide the students with her study guide. This document is as much an ambassador to the theatre as the dramaturg herself, so it needs to be engaging and well constructed and suitable to the particular audience.

p.151

Some Things a Study Guide May Include

From the first read of a play through the final blog entry posted after the last performance, the dramaturg is working on multiple levels of contact with the audience. He reads the script with particular attention paid to what questions may arise for an audience seeing the play so he can make note of what to look for in rehearsal. He is the surrogate for the audience through the process of the rehearsal and build, helping to keep the show cohesive and ensure that the willing suspension of disbelief that is asked of the audience is also respected by the production. Finally, he works to shape the experience of the production for the audience, through pre-production communications and publicity, in the lobby, playbill, pre- and post-show conversation and any other opportunity to act as conduit between the audience and the production. The points of communication directly between dramaturg and audience are executed through the method and shaped by the mindset. Thus the dramaturg tells the story of the production.

Exercises

These exercises are intended to practice designing audience materials. Think about the kinds of ways these materials can be used to tell the story of the production. For each prompt, be sure to have a specific play as well as a particular theatre’s audience.

Lobby Display

Talkback

p.152

Study Guide

Outreach