Well Designed Costumes Drama Analysis

For this essay, you can choose any drama you have watched or the link I posted below

Please remember this paper is going to be written in MLA formatting.

Here is the outline you may need.(You don’t have to refer strictly to this outline, just use it as extra support）

Introduction

In this paragraph you will write an introduction to the play. Include the title of the play, where you saw it, the theatre company who produced it, who directed it, when you saw it. You will need to capture the reader’s attention in a way that “hooks” the reader into your essay. In this paragraph also include the time period and setting of the play, and what you believe to be the intention of the play. What is the play trying to do or communicate to an audience? What subjects, topics, and themes did the play address? What are the play’s fundamental ideas? Keep this short, concise, and to the point.

In this paragraph you will need to write a clear and concise thesis statement which will outline at least three major points to be made in the body of the paper. Your thesis statement is very specific and should cover only what you will discuss in this paper. You will support this thesis statement with evidence in the coming paragraphs. The thesis statement should make several claims and is your overall opinion and interpretation of the play. Your goal is to convince your reader that your claim is true based on the evidence you will provide in subsequent paragraphs. For example, “Wicked was an extraordinary play, with excellent acting, superb set design, and well designed costumes.” Were the artisans successful in what they were trying to do? Put yourself out on a limb and offer your opinion!

Discussion

In this paragraph examine the directing components. How did the director artistically compose the play? How did she interpret the play? How did the overall movement patterns and blocking contribute to your understanding of the play and its’ significant messages or themes? Did the themes come through? How? When? Give the reader specific examples of directorial choices and why they were successful (or not).

In this paragraph examine the acting elements. Concentrate on character believability and truthfulness; use of voice, diction and clarity; use of accents; and the physical aspects of portraying the characters. Which actors were successful in interpreting, developing, and performing their character? Why were they successful? Which actors were not successful? Why were they not successful? Did any of the actors enchant you with any particular performance skills, emotional power, or breathtaking performances? What stood out to you and why? Remember that an actor portrays a character. The character itself is written by the playwright and does not make acting choices. Only the actor can do this. Specifically name the actor and the character they were portraying. For example, “Johnny Depp was very successful in his interpretation of the character, Captain Jack Sparrow, because of…” You may need to use several paragraphs if you are analyzing several different characters. Use examples for every opinion that you offer. Do not just say the actor was good or bad. Tell the reader why their acting was effective or not effective. Remember that you are writing an analysis!

In this paragraph (and perhaps one or two more) examine the technical elements. Choose several. This can include the set design, lighting design, sound and music design, special effects, make-up and hair design, costume design, etc. How did each technical element (that you choose) contribute to the overall artistic composition and theme(s) of the play? Write a separate paragraph for each technical element you are examining. Again, give evidence and support every claim you make.

Conclusion

This paragraph is your opportunity to prove to your reader that your thesis is true. In high school most of us were taught to do a summary in the conclusion. In college papers you must go a step beyond this. The conclusion is the place where you ANALYZE. Think of yourself as a lawyer. You have laid out all of the evidence to prove your points so far in this paper. Now, you must convince the jury that your evidence is correct and true, and bring them into your way of thinking. You may include some “summing up” but this paragraph should not be a summary of the rest of the paper. It should be thoughtful and comprehensively express your final arguments.