THEA 1314 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Ben Jonson, Joanne Akalaitis, The Mountaintop
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The Playwright
Clarifications
• Every play throughout the history of theatre started out as a "new play"
• Playwright (as in craftsperson), not "playwrite" nor "playright" nor "playrite"
• Actually putting pen to paper is playwriting
What the Playwright does…
• Builds a story and new worlds
• Defines characters
• Writes dialogue
• Creates a whole script for interpretation
• Rewrites as needed
Reasons to Write a Play
• Representation of history or heritage
• Provide commentary on social and political issues
• Give voice to unheard stories
• Explore a different way of living
• Portray the human condition
• Create a work of art
• Provide entertainment
History of the Poet/Playwright
• Classical period : playwriting as contests and at festivals
• Medieval period : playwriting seen as a Civic Duty
• Renaissance period : playwriting as entertainment
Elizabethan England
• Ben Jonson : coined the term "playwright" as an insult to others; described himself as a "poet"
• Playwrights wrote for court and commoners alike
• Playwright controlled the script until a company purchased it, after that, there was no creative
protections
• Paid in increments during writing; if it reached performance, paid for one day's performance
• Stays this way until the late 19th century in most of the Western world
The Playwright's Copyright Laws
• 1971 : French National Assembly passes the first law for royalties
o Royalty : fee for each performance
• 1886 : First International Copyright Agreement
o Works written before 1923 are in the public domain (owned by the public)
o Work written after 1978 -- royalties are paid seventy years after author's death (family
estate continues to receive money even after their death)
Interpretation
• When done right, it can be awesome
• Either with the living playwright or with works in the public domain