So you finally saw the show that convinced you — I gotta try out this theatre thing. Maybe it was a murder mystery, a historical family drama or an experimental clown turn that finally did it. Whatever your gateway drug may be, I’m here to help you dive right into the world of playwriting.
Writing Your Play
Playtexts are composed of two main aspects: dialogue (what the performers say) and stage directions (what the performers do). Reading plays can give you more insight into the relationship between dialogue and stage directions — luckily for us Albertans, Theatre Alberta has the largest playtext library in North America with 24,000 titles from around the world. This includes a vast online catalogue, but if you need a hard copy, they mail out plays to their members across the province, free of charge. The best part is memberships are pay-what-you-will.
Once you’ve got the form down, you’ll want to start working on the content of your play. This includes plot, themes, characters, setting — all the English class basics. In a play, everything is expressed outwardly and in three dimensions. Dialogue must move the plot forward, reveal emotional interiority, generate stakes, and drive tension. You also need to take into consideration that an actual actor will speak the lines (tip: say your lines out loud as you write). The content of your play relies on your ability to write precise, interesting dialogue.
You’ll need to work and re-work your play, and that process will be different for each play you write.
Local Resources for Playwrights
Theatre Alberta, Alberta Playwrights Network (APN), and the Writers Guild of Alberta offer workshops and other services to their members, with membership costs generally sitting between $65 and $95 per year. Alberta Playwrights Network offers one-on-one online feedback with their Act One program, which costs $100, and the Writers Guild of Alberta often organizes writer meet-ups, guest speakers, and discussion panels for all kinds of writers. These are provincial organizations, so double check the event you want to attend is happening in Calgary.
For more extensive training opportunities, keep an eye out for playwright units. Generally, these are months-long programs where playwrights work on their own projects in tandem, often under the guidance of a dramaturg (similar to an editor) to get consistent feedback throughout their writing process. In Calgary, Chromatic Theatre has an annual late-summer intake for BIPOC writers, Lunchbox Theatre accepts submissions for their Stage One program every fall and Verb Theatre accepts applications for their Queer & Trans Playwrights Club in October. All of these programs include dramaturgy and culminate in public readings with actors and an audience.
Getting Your Work Staged
The next step is finding a stage for the world premiere of your script. There are a few ways to do this.
Self-producing affords an artist a lot of control over when, where, and how the play gets produced. You will need to secure funds to rent a venue, hire the cast and creative team, and pay for materials and equipment rental. If you’d rather a professional company take on that work, you will need to get your work in front of the Artistic Director.
For a successful pitch, you’ll need to know a little about the companies you’re approaching.
Over at Downstage Theatre, they’re on the hunt for plays that shake things up a little. “We’re always looking for plays that can spark something visceral in our audiences,” says Downstage’s Artistic Director, Clare Preuss.
Kathryn Smith, Artistic Director of Verb Theatre says, “Lately when I’m looking at what scripts to program for Verb, I’m considering three things: Why this script now? What does the writer want to share with the audience? How would this story impact the audience?”
You can also split the difference with a FRINGE Festival production. FRINGE Festivals occur annually around the world, and the performances are chosen by lottery. You’ll see standup, puppetry, or gonzo punk clowns right alongside traditional family dramas. The deal is you bring the play, the actors, and a stage manager, and they bring the venue, which you’ll share with at least one other show.
Michelle Gallant, Executive Director of Calgary Fringe Theatre Festival, says it’s all about creating space for artists to take risks. “The Calgary Fringe, as with other Fringes across the globe, are considered open-access, meaning anyone can participate regardless of level of experience,” she says.
Like any other art form, it takes time to get good, and even more time to find your community within the discipline. Calgary has a wide range of theatre companies and artists for you to explore. I hope you give it a try!
