Dramaturging Script Analysis
by Dr. Amanda Dawson and Dr. Scott Knowles
Dr. Amanda Dawson is an Assistant Professor at Utah State University and Dr. Scott Knowles is an Associate Professor at Southern Utah University. As professors and dramaturgs, they believe in constantly developing their pedagogy and mentoring our students to think holistically and broadly about their storytelling. Within this context, they have published an article, “Dramaturging Script Analysis” in Theatre Topics. Vol. 33, Issue 3 where they discuss applying dramaturgical analysis to script analysis courses.
AD: What is the goal of a script analysis course in undergrad theate programs?
SK: Script analysis has largely been taught with the goal of helping future theatre artists understand how to analyze a script, specifically as an actor, director, or designer. This leads to a focus on specific elements within a play that might be important for those roles in theatre. A traditional section in the course on character might be particularly useful for an actor and costume designer, while a section on structure resonates strongly with a director. This overall and specific eye towards production in some ways can limit the broader conversations that can surround a script.
Why did we want to infuse more dramaturgy into that process?
AD: You and I are both working dramaturgs and we train student dramaturgs. As you said, the goal of a script analysis course is to train theatermakers. But our approach to teaching script analysis is a dramaturgical approach in order to develop students’ conversation and engagement with storytelling. We want students to do more than just read and understand the play, but also to ask questions of the play to employ a “dramaturgical sensibility” as Geoff Proehl suggests. And as we wrote in our article, this idea of “sensibility” points to “emotional and aesthetic influences, rather than a system or tool. This sensibility suggests a range of acts: looking at the surface and then looking deeper; attempting to place things in context of the world and histories surrounding it; asking questions, not just for criticism, but also for understanding and unpacking; visioning towards clarity and focus. It means asking the play what it’s trying to do. Does it change the audience, the community, the artist?” (122).
How did we suggest adding more dramaturgy into script analysis?
SK: To do this, we came up with five themes that help us group the kinds of conversations and thinking we want our students to master within a script analysis course: context, audience, creation, shape, and conceptual frameworks. Very briefly, context is often the foundational work of dramaturgy, a chance to include historical, social, political, biographical types of information within our understanding of a play. With audience, we focus on making sure that we have an eye pointed at those who we are creating a performance for. The theme of creation allows for us to “resituate the student as a collaborator of the playwright in achieving … artistic aims” (126). Shape deals with structure, but tries to broaden the scope past the more traditional ways covered in script analysis courses and textbooks. And finally, conceptual frameworks take a more dramaturgical approach to understanding theme or main idea by focusing on patterns and the multiple possibilities that they can provide. All of these themes are meant to open up ways of thinking about a script that are inherent to dramaturgy, but sometimes overlooked in the traditional script analysis curriculum. \
How did we collaborate on this article?
AD: You and I go way back. We both earned our Ph.D. from The University of Kansas and graduated together in 2016. And in 2021, I coordinated a panel at the Association for Theatre in Higher Education annual conference entitled, “Rehearsing and (Re)Forming Approaches to Script Analysis: Pedagogical Frameworks and Inclusive Practices” You joined me on that panel and from there we discussed the idea for an article. When we sat down to write the article, you provided a framework for thinking through a writing project that you use with your students and we were off and running. We worked together on Zoom and independently on a shared Google doc. We would meet every week or so and go over what we had written in sections and make edits and suggestions. It was a great process, not only because we are friends, but also because we really value each other’s perspectives.
We hope folks will read the article and consider how they might utilize dramaturgy in their script analysis courses.
Scott C. Knowles, PhD, (he/him) is an associate professor of theatre at Southern Utah University. His scholarship focuses on the intersections between cognitive science, emotion, and theatre, with specific emphasis in directing and dramaturgy. He has served as a dramaturg for Lyric Repertory Company, Kayenta Center for the Arts, and Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival. He has published in Etudes, A Critical Companion to Lynn Nottage, and Theatre Topics.
Amanda Dawson, Ph.D. (she/her) is an Assistant Professor and Head of the BFA Theatre Education program at Utah State University. Her research investigates theatre pedagogy, dramaturgy, and theatre history. Amanda as served as dramaturg for the Unicorn Theatre, Coterie Theatre, and Lyric Repertory Company. Her work has been published in Theatre Topics, HowlRound, Etudes, ArtsPraxis, and New England Theatre Journal.