Guidelines for the PaperYour paper should be composed as an essay with an introduction paragraph followed by three supporting paragraphs and ending with a conclusion.Your paper should include a supporting paragraph for each of the of the following three writing prompts. First, you will critique the performance of one actor in the production. You will describe what was effective or ineffective about the performance. You will back up your general opinions with evaluations of specific moments. Be sure to give both the characters name and the actors name in your critique.Remember, the actor’s tools are their voice, body, and interpretation of the lines. This does not mean, “Jane did a good job using her voice and body.” Be specific, such as “Jane leaned down and whispered in a shaky voice as she wrung her hands which showed the emotional pain of her character.” Second, you will write about what was effective or ineffective about the directing. You might include a discussion of casting, the production concept, the blocking, or the stage pictures. Be sure to refer to the director by name.Third, you will discuss one particular design element of the production. You may write about the set, costume, sound, lighting, or projection designer. Be sure to refer to the specific designer by name. As always, back up your general opinions with specifics. All papers will begin with a short introductory paragraph which will end with a THESIS STATEMENT that states what you will prove in your paper. When you are finished, compare the body of the paper to the statement. If they dont match, change your thesis or change the body of the paper. The last paragraph will be a conclusion that summarizes the major points of the paper. FormatAll papers must be 700 to 1000 words, typed, 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced with one inch margins. You will submit your paper as a PDF (portable document format). Most word processors such as Microsoft Word have a “Save As” feature where you can save your document in PDF. You will then upload the paper into Canvas. Want a good grade? Here are some Do’s and Don’tsMy graders will expect examples from act one and act two.Proofread your paper more than once. Good writing is rewriting. When you think it’s done, read it out loud. I promise you will discover many ways to improve it.Give credit where it is due. For example, if you’re discussing the costume design, the designer’s name should be in your thesis.Dont recount the plot unless it is absolutely necessary to make your case.Dont speak for the audience (ex. The audience loved the production.). Speak for yourself.Don’t hand in I didnt understand papers. You must guess as to why a choice was made. Only then can you disagree with it or describe it as poorly executed.Use past tense when discussing the production.Like books, titles of plays are either consistently underlined or italicized (ex. Oedipus the King or Oedipus the King). Only newspapers put the names of plays in quotation marks.When you mention a theatre artist for the first time, use their full name (Ming Cho Lee). The second time you refer to him or her, abbreviate to the last name (Lee).Avoid superficial words such as “things” and “stuff” or misused words such as “basically” or “actually.”Refer to the production, not the play (ex. the production was inventive — not the play was inventive.) The play is the text. The production is the interpretation of the text by theatre artists.Introductory paragraph ending with strong thesis statement5.0 ptsActing Paragraph – Backed up general statements with quality examples. Used college-level writing with good mechanics. No Do’s and Don’t violations.10.0 ptsDirecting Paragraph – Backed up general statements with quality examples. Used college-level writing with good mechanics. No Do’s and Don’t violations.10.0 ptsDesign Paragraph – Backed up general statements with quality examples. Used college-level writing with good mechanics. No Do’s and Don’t violations.10.0 ptsConclusion paragraph summarizing paper.5.0 ptsTotal Points: 40.0
