Chapter TwoChapter Two

Stage Versus Stage Versus ScreenScreen

Audience: No Cell Phones, Audience: No Cell Phones, Please!Please!

TheatreTheatreAudiences are Audiences are

active participantsactive participantsCommunication Communication

flows both waysflows both waysa pure form of a pure form of

acting because it acting because it belongs to the belongs to the actors and actors and audienceaudience

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Audience: No Cell Phones, Audience: No Cell Phones, Please!Please!

Film and TVFilm and TVAudiences are Audiences are

passivepassiveCommunication Communication

flows in only one flows in only one directiondirection

Usually know in Usually know in advance what advance what you are getting you are getting for your time and for your time and money money

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Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-upup

Acting in FilmActing in FilmPhotographic Photographic

charisma is charisma is importantimportant

Often shot out of Often shot out of sequencesequence

Memorization is Memorization is not as importantnot as important

Allowed to failAllowed to fail

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Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-upup

““We’re tightrope walkers. When you We’re tightrope walkers. When you walk the wire in a movie, the wire is walk the wire in a movie, the wire is

painted on the floor, but when you walk painted on the floor, but when you walk it on the stage, it’s a hundred feet high it on the stage, it’s a hundred feet high

without a net.”without a net.”

Al Pacino, ActorAl Pacino, Actor

“…“…acting for film is like a musician acting for film is like a musician playing in a recording studio and acting playing in a recording studio and acting

in the theatre is like playing live in in the theatre is like playing live in concert…”concert…”

Willem Dafoe, ActorWillem Dafoe, Actor

Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-Acting: I’m Ready for My Close-upup

Acting on the StageActing on the StageTalent and Talent and

training are training are essentialessential

Everything is a Everything is a wide-shotwide-shot

Memorization Memorization skills are requiredskills are required

Must perform well Must perform well with each with each performanceperformance T

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Directing: Direct and IndirectDirecting: Direct and Indirect

TheatreTheatreIt is a playwright’s It is a playwright’s

mediummediumDirector Director

understands that understands that when the when the performance performance begins, the actors begins, the actors are in chargeare in charge

The director tends The director tends to work to work collaborativelycollaboratively

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Directing: Direct and IndirectDirecting: Direct and Indirect

FilmFilmIt is a director’s It is a director’s

mediummediumExerts absolute Exerts absolute

control over control over every shotevery shot

The director The director tends to be tends to be solitary authoritysolitary authority

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Funding: Follow the MoneyFunding: Follow the Money

Funding for the Screen Comes fromFunding for the Screen Comes fromTicket salesTicket salesDVD rentalsDVD rentalsAdvertisingAdvertising

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Funding: Follow the MoneyFunding: Follow the Money

Funding for Theatre Funding for Theatre comes fromcomes fromTicket and Ticket and

concession salesconcession salesFederal, state and Federal, state and

local government local government grantsgrants

Corporate funding Corporate funding and private and private donationsdonations

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Control: Who Pulls the Control: Who Pulls the Strings?Strings?

Screen entertainment tends to put Screen entertainment tends to put the values of the audience foremostthe values of the audience foremost

Theatre tends to value the voice of Theatre tends to value the voice of the artist the artist

Bourgeois theatre and independent Bourgeois theatre and independent filmmaking will often combine both filmmaking will often combine both considerationsconsiderations

The Theatre Next DoorThe Theatre Next Door

• Who controls Who controls content? content?

• Screen entertainment Screen entertainment policies are policies are dominated by a small dominated by a small handful of executives.handful of executives.

• Hundreds of differing Hundreds of differing political view are political view are promoted by promoted by thousands of theatres thousands of theatres across the US.across the US.

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Ownership: Copyrights and Ownership: Copyrights and CashCash

Copyright – a legal guarantee granted by the Copyright – a legal guarantee granted by the government to creative artists that allows government to creative artists that allows them to maintain control and profit from their them to maintain control and profit from their workwork

Royalty payment – fee paid to playwrights for Royalty payment – fee paid to playwrights for the rights to produce their playthe rights to produce their play

Public domain – once a playwright has been Public domain – once a playwright has been dead for 70 years, his or her plays become dead for 70 years, his or her plays become public propertypublic property

Writers for hire – writers in screen Writers for hire – writers in screen entertainment who forfeit their rights to the entertainment who forfeit their rights to the works they author for a film or television works they author for a film or television programprogram

Curtain CallCurtain Call

Screen entertainment tends to view Screen entertainment tends to view their audiences as consumers and their audiences as consumers and what they do as a productwhat they do as a product

Theatre tends to view their Theatre tends to view their audiences as equal participants in audiences as equal participants in the theatre experience and what the theatre experience and what they do as artistic productionthey do as artistic production