Play-Making - A Manual of Craftsmanship is an exceptional manual which aims to answer the essential question: "How do you write theatrical plays?"
This book is a valuable resource for aspiring playwrights who wish to learn essential techniques of authoring a quality stage play. William Archer, an educator in English literature, presents the traditional theory of play composition in a manner both straightforward and engaging in a manner useful, practical and highly accessible.
The text begins by examining the choice of theme, the casting of characters, and what constitutes dramatic and undramatic elements of a play. A sequential look at each portion of the typical play begins; the first act establishes the place and characters, and must set up what is to follow with tension and curiosity.
Aspects crucial to a good quality play, such as the winding of tension and the contrast between logical developments and ones which happen by sheer chance, are detailed. An extensive discussion of the manners a play may conclude - whether it be a conventional climax or an anticlimax - round off the manual. Finally as an epilogue, William Archer instructs on various points concerning dialogue, and the psychological presentation of characters.
Drawing on unrivaled masters of the craft such as William Shakespeare and Henrik Ibsen, this book offers an informed and authoritative commentary on composing plays useful for both students and teachers of English literature or drama, as well as those aspiring to write drama.
