Sarah Aezer

Sansom
THEA 1013-F16
11-27-16
Theatre Presentation
Introduction
I initially took this class because I thought I could gain insight and knowledge about
an art that is similar to my own and apply what I learned to future endeavors. When
this project was assigned, I decided to do just that. I contacted my boss, the owner
of Creative Arts Academy, a dance studio in Bountiful, and asked her if I could
create a piece. During the semester, as we learned aspects of theatre, I found a way
to apply them to my piece, Love.
The Playwright
It may seem as if playwrighting is primarily a literary activity. It is not other
[plays], though dramatic in structure, are entirely non-verbal- that is they include no
dialogue, no words, and very little that is written other than an outline of physical
actions. -Robert Cohen
As we learned about playwrighting this semester, I really began to see parallels
between playwrighting and choreographing. Some of the things that I was reading
about, I had already been subconsciously doing in my choreographic process. Many
of the things I had never considered doing, but they seemed like they would be so
helpful. Reading and learning about the process of writing a play really helped to
solidify what elements I should be focusing on while choreographing. Here are a few
of the things that really stood out to me within the chapter on playwrighting:
Gravity
a plays central theme is one of serious and lasting significance in
humanitys spiritual, moral, or intellectual life. comedies as well as
tragedies- are always concerned with the human predicament: those
universal problems- aging, discord, regret, insecurity, rejection, loss- for
which we continually seek greater lucidity. -Robert Cohen
I wanted to push some boundaries and challenge societal norms. I wanted to
challenge the idea of happiness being found in another person. Basically, the
notion that marriage=success and true happiness. In my experience as an
unmarried Utahn in my late 20s, it seems that society leads us to feel
insecure in our happiness until we walk down the aisle. Life gives us so many
opportunities for satisfaction and happiness, and I wanted to break the
pattern of only highlighting relationship love. This was my plays
significance, my predicament, my gravity.
However, I wanted to do this in a light way. I wanted to choreograph a
comedy with a musical theatre-esque style. Something meant to delight and
entertain, but with a touch of a feminist agenda.
Plot

Sarah Aezer
Sansom
THEA 1013-F16
11-27-16
In the past, I had allowed the music that I created to dictate the plot of my
pieces. After learning about playwrighting and putting thought into gravity, I
decided to switch up my approach. I was going to use my music in an almost
sarcastic way. I wanted to lead the audience to believe they knew the
direction of the story, and then present them with my true plot, hopefully a
jarring enough switch for them to challenge their idea of what love can be.
The plot is super simple, it is only a snippet, a vignette of life. A girl,
seemingly excited and twitterpated, is on her way home to what one would
assume is a significant other. She walks in the door and it is then that we
then come to realize that what was creating such joy was the moment that
she will be greeted by her pets.
Depth of Characterization
Any time I take on a project, I immediately know Ill need Matt. Working with
someone else, particularly him, almost guarantees depth of characterization,
which we learned is ensuring that each character has their own unique [and
consistent] voice. He did most of the choreography and direction for Shy,
our Cat Lady character, while I focused on the cats. Our different movement
styles helped to keep their body language (voice) as separate as possible.
Speakability and Stageability
Speakablility also requires that the spoken line appear to realistically
emanate from the character who utters it and that it contain- in its syntax,
vocabulary, and mode of expression- the marks of that characters milieu and
his or her personality. -Robert Cohen
Were not working with the spoken word, however we wanted to give their
body language speakability. Instead of syntax and vocabulary, we are dealing
with movement style and the proper era of movement to match the era of
the song/setting. As far as expression goes, we wanted to make sure that the
plot was the focus of the piece, rather than athleticism and spectacle. These
dancers are capable of spectacular physical feats, however we avoided too
much technical difficulty as to not detract from the plot and to not make the
Cat Lady character too grandiose.
Dialogue must be conceived as an integral element of a particular staged
situation in which setting, physical acting, and spoken dialogue are
inextricably combined.
Stageability was a particularly tricky element of this piece. We wanted each
dancer to have their own movement and staging that was unique to their
individual character. What made it most difficult was making each cat unique
and visible. Staging is always my favorite part of the process but it is also the
most difficult and time consuming. I wanted it to feel like there were 1000
cats, so we staged many entrances and exits, several formations, and

Sarah Aezer
Sansom
THEA 1013-F16
11-27-16
intricate traffic patterns, all while maintaining dialogue (movement and
physical acting).
Compression
This piece will be competed later in the season, and a requirement of those
competitions is that it not exceed 3:30. Trying to fit all of these elements into
a three minute span is difficult and necessitates consolidation (economy). We
kept the piece to two scenes, two set pieces, and 3:20.
Naturalism and Anti Realism
Naturalist plays offered only a slice of life in which the characters are the plays
entire subject.
If realism was the art of depicting reality as ordinary men and women might see it,
symbolism sought to explore- by means of images and metaphors- the inner
realities that cannot be directly or literally perceived. -Robert Cohen
Dancing cats definitely fit into the category of anti-realism because, they are
dancing cats. But also, this piece fits into antirealism because of the symbolism of
the cats. They represent any aspect of life that could bring happiness: hobbies,
nature, art, work, friendships.
Designers and Technicians
The designers of a play (dance) have such an important role in the overall feeling
and understanding of the audience. Some design elements, such as light, are out of
my hands, but I had a say in both scenery and costume design, and had a wonderful
team of people to work with.
Scenery
Realistic scenery attempts to depict, often in great detail, a specific time and
place in the real world where the plays events are presumed to take place.
The scenery for this piece needs to be mobile and fit into any different
dimension, so I wanted to keep it simple. I gave my design drawings to my
scenery and prop specialist, and she created a wheeled door frame, and
found the most spectacular couch.
Costumes
Usually, I would either order a costume online, buy something in a store, or
allow the studios seamstress to come up with a costume. This process made
me excited to create a tailor-made costume. I created a book with a few of
my design ideas and presented it to the set and costume teams. My desired
costume aesthetic was modeled after Andrew Lloyd Webbers Cats. A few of
the cat characters needed to be specific, and I illustrated those details for our
seamstresses, but the rest were within their creative control. We had

Sarah Aezer
Sansom
THEA 1013-F16
11-27-16
measurements taken, and periodically had meetings to look at fabrics and
paints. Once the costumes were almost finished, we had a final meeting to
try on the costumes and make final changes.
The Director
Directors entering the profession today, therefore, are more likely than not to have
been trained in a dramatic graduate program or conservatory- and often they have
supplemented this training with an apprenticeship at a repertory theatre.
I have no training in directing whatsoever. I extensively trained in dance, and had a
professional career of nine years, so I have a great understanding of the craft and
have had some remarkable directors myself to emulate. I decided that in addition to
learning about the roles of a director in theatre class, Id also seek out some advice
from a director who I admire. Eldon Johnson was the associate director (but for all
intents and purposes the director) of Odyssey Dance Theatre for 20 years. I
contacted him with a few questions to help equip myself for being the leader of an
artistic venture.
1. As head of an ambitious and emotionally consuming enterprise, the director
will be the repository of the companys collective artistic hopes- and the focal
point for the companys collective frustration, anxiety, and, on occasion,
despair. -Robert Cohen
What, in your experience, is the best way to keep a company hopeful and
positive in the sometimes tumultuous would of art?
2. What advice would you give to someone who wanted to become a director?
Conclusion
This project and this class have given me so much inspiration and perspective. I am
excited to have new techniques and ways of thinking about creating. It has been
such an involved process, and I cannot wait to see the final project on stage this
Saturday.