ShmoopTube

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[Coop and Dino singing]

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Have you ever seen a play that was…how do we say this nicely….a downright disaster? [People watching a play]

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...hm.

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Maybe that could've been nicer.

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Anyhoo!

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You know what we mean…actors forgetting their lines...

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Set pieces falling apart... [Set pieces falling apart on stage]

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The lights shutting off halfway through scenes…

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And worst of all, the audience is laughing… and it’s not even a comedy.

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Now that is a director's worst nightmare. [Audience laughing and director makes a shocked face]

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Seriously, it's even worse than that one where he shows up to rehearsal in his underwear…

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So what's the best way to avoid all that mess?

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Planning.

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Directors don't make random decisions when they turn a script into a performance.

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Every choice they make is designed to make the audience feel, think, and experience the

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play in a certain way.

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From the first read-through to the final dress rehearsal, directors are constantly making [Director walks on stage]

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decisions.

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Decisions like...

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How will the set look?

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By making decisions about how the set will appear to the audience, who will design it, [Dino discussing the set]

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how it will be constructed and what exactly it will look like, the director can greatly

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influence the entire meaning of a play and how audiences interpret it.

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Because, whether we admit it or not, we all care about how things look. [Newspaper article of bigfoot appears]

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You have to see it to believe it, after all.

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And the same can be said for costumes.

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By choosing how the people look and dress in the play, a director can drastically change [Coop explaining costumes in theater]

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the experience the audience will have.

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Each costume tells a lot about the character and is an essential part of who they are.

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Side note: the same thing goes for your everyday life.

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It might be time to throw out those stained sweatpants. [Man wearing sweatpants and sandals walks on stage]

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Anyway, another aspect that a director must make decisions about is the audio.

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What sounds will be in the play?

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Will there be sound effects?

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Or background music?

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Will the actors sing?

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Do we need mics on the actors?

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Because mimes are great and everything –but we usually want to hear the lines in a play. [Mime artist on stage]

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Whenever a play rehearsal begins, directors immediately begin making countless decisions

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about the kind of performance they want to build. [Director watching the play]

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It's not an easy job, but the pay-off is a unique and compelling play that feels like

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it belongs specifically to that director.

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And hopefully, the audience will laughs when the director actually wants them to.

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