Chapter 9Editing and Movement for Challenging Text and Stage Directions

Certain plays include requirements, either in the stage directions or the scripts themselves, which pose challenges in the limited rehearsal time offered for most Play Readings.

Common Challenges

  • Long sequences without dialogue, where important information is revealed through action described in the stage directions
  • Stage directions that depict physical action, either comic or dramatic
  • Stage directions that involve intimacy
  • Sound effects
  • Singing in a nonmusical
  • Foreign language dialogue
  • Accents
  • Unconventional stage directions.

If a play contains many sequences with challenging stage directions, directors should find simple, consistent solutions. If a play contains only ...

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