Drama is a genre of writing that can be performed for theatre, movies, radio, or television programs.

Learn about the terms, history, time periods, and styles of dramatic writing.

What Is Drama?
In literature, the word drama defines a genre, or style of writing. Drama is a play that can be
performed for theatre, radio, or even television. These plays are usually written out as a script, or a
written version of a play that is read by the actors but not the audience.

This is where theatre comes in. Drama, as in a play, is meant to be performed on a stage in front of
an audience at the theatre. So, drama refers to the script, while the word theatre is the performance
of the script.

History of Drama
Drama has changed over time. The word itself comes from the Greek word meaning 'action,' and it's
with the Greeks and Romans that we start to define classical drama. In fact, classical drama was
more than just acting out a story. These plays were highly symbolic and included music, dance,
poetry, and audience participation. While performances on stage exist throughout history all over
the world, for this lesson, we will focus on European historical influence.

As Christianity spread, theatre took a religious turn, which opened the door to the morality plays of
the Medieval Period. In Europe, during the 15th and 16th centuries, morality plays, which featured a
hero who must overcome evil, were allegorical in nature.

An allegory is a literary device where characters or events represent or symbolize other ideas and
concepts. In the case of the morality plays, the hero represented mankind. The other characters
served as personifications of many things, including the seven deadly sins, death, virtues, and even
angels and demons - anything that wanted to take over mankind's soul. In fact, this theme has
transcended through many dramatic periods. Also, the fact that these plays were performed by
professional actors makes them a transition between classical drama and the plays we see today.

Of course, today we have drama popping up all over the place. There is drama for what we call the
theatre, both the stage and at the movies. Staged theatre is acted out live in front of an audience.
The movie theatre is a different story. This is drama that has been acted out to perfection and is
presented as a recording to a live audience. The same goes for television, but on a smaller screen.

Radio is a bit different, however. Most of us don't listen to many radio dramas, but if we did, we
would know the actors are using their voices and probably some sound effects. Sometimes we see
these elements within audiobooks. In the case of the Harry Potter series, the narrator, Jim Dale,
goes to great lengths to create different voices for each of the characters, as if there were many
actors playing the different parts. While we might not actually see the actors acting, we do see them
in our mind's eye, and we use our imagination to play out the story that we hear.

Play: Definition
A play is a form of dramatic literature that is intended to be staged before an audience. Play scripts
are the written material used to produce a performance. Theatre makers, including actors, directors,
and designers, use the script to stage the play. As the script is composed of dialogue, plays have
significantly fewer words than other forms of literature. Where other types of literature, like the
novel, utilize words to express the plot and actions of a narrative, plays do the reverse. They use
actions to express the ideas of the narrative. Action, meaning the physical performance, is a
significant part of a play. Where the novel must describe what is happening, the play shows what is
happening.

Elements in a Play's Script

Plays are composed of dialogue, which is spoken by the actor on stage. Plays also utilize stage
directions, which are non-spoken pieces of text within the play script that describe the action of
characters and the setting of a scene. Plays are often divided into story units called acts and
scenes. Acts are composed of scenes. How many acts or scenes a play has varies. In the 17th
century, it was typical for a play to have five acts, but now they might have three acts or even just
one.

Stage Directions in a Script

Stage directions are instructions found in the script that inform the reader about how to perform the
play. There are two main varieties of stage directions. The first type is written in a paragraph. These
usually begin a scene and provide contextual information. For instance, this type of stage direction
will set the scene, including when and where the scene is set, who is on stage, and any other
necessary design elements. This might include props, set dressing, or even information about the
characters. For instance, Susan Glaspell's famous play Trifles (1916) begins with the following
stage direction:
The kitchen in the now abandoned farmhouse of John Wright, a gloomy kitchen and left without
having been put back in order- the walls covered with a faded wallpaper.

In this line, Glaspell communicates where the scene is set, the tone of the scene, and the state of
the kitchen. Using this information, a production team can begin to design the set, while the director
and actors gain vital information about how to present the action of the play.

Another type of stage direction is the parenthetical stage direction. This is usually written in
parentheses directly after a character's name or between lines. The parenthetical stage direction is
used to communicate physical actions, emotions, or pauses. The actors learn information about
their physical actions that informs their acting choices. For instance, in Trifles Glaspell uses this type
of stage direction as follows:

COUNTY ATTORNEY (at stove rubbing his hands): This feels good. Come up to the fire, ladies.

MRS. PETERS (after taking a step forward): I'm not--cold.

Dialogues in a Script

Dialogue is the most significant aspect of a play script. The dialogue is intended to represent what a
character would say in the given circumstance of the scene. The audience only hears the dialogue,
so it is a significant means of communicating the narrative of a piece of theatre. Dialogue conveys
the ideas the playwright is communicating and the bulk of the plot of the narrative. This means that
the dialogue must attend to each character's objectives and the tactics they use to achieve these
objectives. This means that what a character says might not always be true, but there is always has
a specific purpose behind what was said.

Dialogue also must reflect the character who is speaking the words. This means that the playwright
must consider what makes this character unique. This can include examining how a character
speaks. There are many ways to approach answering this question. One way could lead a
playwright to questions about the character's profession, their education level, their vocabulary, and
their dialect. Another way is to consider how the character feels about their dialogue partners. Do
the characters trust each other? Are they competitive with one another? Are they strangers? All of
these questions, and many more, will influence how and what a character says.

Acts and Scenes in a Script

Acts and scenes are the story sections of a play. Scenes are small sections that compose the larger
section, the act. Each offers a discrete section that has a distinct function in the development of the
play's plot. Plots emerge from a central conflict between the characters. Often this occurs because
two characters have objectives that directly oppose one another. As they try to obtain their object,
the plot is constructed. Gustav Freytag created a system to analyze a plot's structure. This is called
Freytag's Pyramid, which includes the following plot components:

● Exposition: Exposition is information about what happened before the play started that
brought the plot and characters to this point. This is sometimes also referred to as the
primary event.
● Rising Action: Rising action occurs in the first half of a play and includes plot points like the
inciting incident that starts this particular narrative.
● Climax: This is the pinnacle of suspense and tension in a play. The stakes and emotions
could not be higher. The rising action leads to this moment.
● Falling Action: In the remainder of the play, the main action of the play moves toward
resolution.
● Resolution: The resolution concludes the action of the play, creating a new status quo for the
characters. This can either be positive or negative.

Other common devices used in playwriting include:

● Monologues: Monologues are a long speech performed by a single actor.

 ● Soliloquies: A soliloquy is a monologue that is not delivered to another person but instead
reveals the inner thoughts of a character.
● Asides: In an aside, the character speaks directly to the audience. Typically, though this
might be in the presence of other characters on stage, they are not aware of it.

Play Script Example

Here is an example of a play script from Proof (2000) by David Auburn:

Night. CATHERINE sits in a chair. She is exhausted, haphazardly dressed. Eyes closed. ROBERT
is standing behind her: He is CATHERINE' s father. Rumpled academic look. CATHERINE does not
know he is there. After a moment:

ROBERT: Can't sleep?

CATHERINE: Jesus, you scared me.

ROBERT: Sorry.

CATHERINE: What are you doing here?

ROBERT: I thought I'd check up on you. Why aren't you in

bed?

CATHERINE: Your student is still here. He's up in your study.

ROBERT: He can let himself out.

CATHERINE: I might as well wait up till he's done.

ROBERT: He's not my student anymore. He's teaching now.

Bright kid.

(Beat.)