Week #1: What is good directing?
Think about this question and answer with some clear examples from experiences you have had in the past. When you're ready, hit "comment" and write 200 words or more on the topic. Remember, you can also tackle another topic of your choice or start a new thread for your classmates altogether! Have fun and be critical!
Well I can tell you what BAD directing is.....
ReplyDeleteIn one particular show (a straight play...that piece of information is important and I'll come back to it later), the director kept telling me to "open your da*n eyes" and "not talk so Southern" (that's a laugh since the play took place in Alabama), and my personal favorite, "don't be so cartoony." I’m thinking to myself, "Yeah that totally makes sense...NOT." He thought I was being a rebellious little *insert expletive of choice here* and wanted to do the show my way. The assistant director, bless her soul, realized what the disconnect was and, having had the same mis-experience with the same director, also realized that I was not being rebellious--I simply didn't understand him. She took me aside before my eyes spilled over with tears of frustration and said, "Chels, you come from a musical theater background, and musical theater is larger than life. You're trained to be larger than life and just a little charicature-ish. This is a straight play. Straight plays are entirely natural on stage. In other words, you have to stop trying so hard, and without losing the quality of *insert character name*, still be yourself. Just be natural. That's what he means. And don't take offense to anything he says because I know you well enough to know it's not true." She had given me the magic key (with a band-aid for my ego). Thereafter, I took myself out of musical theater mode, shifted into straight play gear, and we all lived happily ever after until closing night curtain.
Good directing is knowing whom you're working with and taking the time to make sure they FULLY understand you and what you want before verbally flaying them in front of their castmates and any bystanding crew finishing up the set. Bad directing is the "I'm king and you suck" attitude, which creates the infamous discord and friction most actors associate with "the big bad director."
A director can have a fantastic vision for a production but if he’s a ba***rd to work with, the show has a good chance of flopping. Even the plainest of production concepts can come off swimmingly if the director is fun and easy to work with. (But that’s my humble, totally unbiased opinion.)
Lovely insights, Chelsea. The key idea I'm focusing on here is communication. The Assistant Director seems like she took the time to consider your point of view and then communicated accordingly. We'll come back to these basic speaking, listening and leadership skills again and again in the course.
DeleteGood directing will obviously stem from the work of good directors. I believe that a good director has the power to pull the chords of the production together and ultimately compel the crew, cast, and producers to instill trust within them. The best example I've employed a number of times would come from my first theatre experience ever, being cast in the show Holes. I don't believe the show would have come together as well as it did if we didn't have the management or vision of the director guiding us.
ReplyDeleteWhen questions about the text arose, the questions were quickly and efficiently met with his answers. The man had a rhyme and a reason for literally every page of the script and obviously knew what he was doing. I was dependent on him and felt a little abandoned once he returned to his home state after opening night. "So when is David coming back?" I would question my cast mates, only to be told that after opening night out of state Equity directors are usually onto the next thing/production.
Now being that Holes marked my first time working on a play with a director, I did not have any material to compare the experience with. As the years progressed, I became familiar with an uncounted amount of directing styles and methods. I soon realized that not many of them could match or surpass David's, and how lucky I was to have him as a director. David's work falls under the category of "good directing" because of his ability to attain trust from all of the folks with which he worked, and to push forward a clear and insightful concept to the audience.
The ideas of preparation and "being an expert" come to mind when reading this blog. It seems like David knew the material inside and out and passed that confidence with the material on to the cast. I also like the ideas of trust and concept that you touch on at the end. We'll talk about all of these details as we progress. Thanks!
DeleteI'm sure as theatre students we have all had experiences with good and bad directing. That being said we also know what an important part the director plays in the process of putting on a show. I believe that a good director needs to be able to work with the cast and crew members, value their opinions, and lead with a positive attitude. The cast and crew need to feel comfortable with the director and feel like their creative opinions and ideas are valued. They also need to be able to trust their director to lead them in the right direction and do what is best for the production.
ReplyDeleteThis summer I was working at The Heartland Festival and was a part of the production "Nunsense". It was a fun upbeat show and the collaboration was amazing. The show had a cast of five and I always felt like we were encouraged to give our opinions on the blocking and vision of different scenes as well as the show as a whole. Our director would explain what he wanted and we would work through it and if something didn't work on our end as actors or his end as a director, we would work through it until a collective decision was made. The same type of collaboration was also shown to the set,costume,lighting,and sound designers. Feeling like my opinion mattered made me feel like I had the respect of the director which in turn made me respect and trust him even more. This mutual respect and trust made who whole experience a positive one which led to a very successful show.
Hey, Rachel! I'm picking up on a lot about positive energy in this post, and that is really important. What's even more interesting is the old question of whether or not there is ever a time and place for negative energy from a director! We'll think about that one on another day!
DeleteWhat makes a good director is as subjective as anything else in theatre. The answer to this question also depends on who is being asked. As an actor I prefer a director to have been an actor first. This allows me to better understand the directions of the director because they are giving me information the way an actor thinks. I also appreciate when a director allows me, as an actor, to play with my own idea of who the character is and how they should be portrayed. I enjoy getting to work with someone who I can bounce ideas off of and who will be open to using the cast as members of the production team.
ReplyDeleteDirectors that bring positive energy to the rehearsal are instrumental in the creation of a good production. Someone who engages personally with the cast members, including the chorus, helps with solidifying the cast into a cohesive whole, rather than a group of individuals. A good director is a partner in the work, but must also be in control of the overall picture. A director who can split the partner and leader roles is the best type of director to have for a complete and well done show.
You cover a wide range of traits in your short blog, from having some acting chops to respecting all cast members to composition. All of these factors are important. Even more than just having acting chops, I like to see directors who have tried everything in theatre at least once! It definitely helps with communication with all parties. Thanks for you post!
DeleteBased on past experiences I believe a good director is decisive, a great communicator, and encouraging. One of the directors I worked with while doing makeup for an independent film did not make decisions well which added to the poor communication skills. Half of the crew did not know when to show up the other half did not know what they were supposed to be doing. It was hard to work on a set that had no leader.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand I worked with a director on a musical as an actor. He knew exactly what he wanted and communicated it effectively. He had a great attitude and encouraged us to do our best. With his directing ability we were able to put on a great show and everyone had a lot of fun doing it.
From the experiences I've had I believe that a director must be a leader. He or she is the person that has a specific vision in his or her mind and is able to bring the different departments together to create one unique and cohesive vision. They are the ones that everyone goes to when they have a question about what to do and how it fits into what the director wants. A good director will know how to answer these questions and point his or her cast and crew in the right direction.
I'm really interested in your use of the word decisive. No doubt, a decisive nature is ultimately helpful, but I'll challenge us all to consider the difficult spectrum of control that it takes to be in charge of anything. Still, at the end of the day a director generally has to make final decisions, and I agree that somebody who can't do that isn't going to go very far in directing! Thanks for your post.
DeleteI think good directing can mean many things to many people. I think everyone can agree that a director’s main job is to tell the story of the play or film effectively. This requires a lot of work from the director. In my experience, good directors have respect for an actor’s creative choices. Also actors hope that the director really understands the script. Directors need to give clear direction for the actors. When I was in The Diary of Anne Frank, my director was 100% committed to this show. She understood the script, knew the history behind the play, and more importantly cared about every single actor in the show. In my opinion, directors need to make the actors feel comfortable. Actors can at times doubt themselves and it’s important for the director to keep a positive attitude and not make the actor feel like he/she did something ‘wrong’ when giving the actor direction. Good directing also requires pushing the actor, allowing them to learn and evolve. I’m lucky enough to have had directors push myself, even when it seemed difficult at the time. A good director is also patient with actors. For example, the rehearsal process is about making mistakes so that by the time the curtain is opened on opening night, the actors are prepared and ready to portray the story you want to tell.
ReplyDeleteI like your juxtaposition of comfort with pushing. These are two words that we usually think of as contrasting terms, but many would argue that directors are responsible for both. Of course the reality is that striking a balance is hard and often dependent on the personality of individual directors. Still, it's a great point to start thinking about!
DeleteAs I keep writing this post, three words keep popping up in every draft: vision, knowledge, and respect. I think a director really needs all three of these to be successful.
ReplyDeleteFirst is vision. A director –like an actor, playwright, designer, painter, etc.-is an artist. The director creates art. For this reason, a director must have at least some creative bone in his or her body. Yes, the director could certainly read the stage directions and scene descriptions and probably end up with a coherent play. But the world doesn’t need another version of Death of a Salesman, Wizard of Oz, or Hamlet that is like countless other high school versions. This isn’t about competently directing, it’s about good directing. And a good director must have a new and creative vision for the story, a new angle that no one else has discovered. It doesn’t have to be a life-changing discovery, but it can’t be the same as every other production, or any other production. I was once in a production of Twelve Angry Jurors. It was called that because our director wanted to use women and men. It felt different and new. The director must have a new idea of what to do with the setting, lights, blocking, costuming, etc.
Speaking of, this brings me to point number two: knowledge. I don’t know who of you on the internet has ever designed lights for a show, but it’s not something you can just do. Likewise for sewing a costume, building sets, designing sound for a show, and acting. The director must know how to do a little of everything, do be able to see what’s possible, so that the vision is clear. In Twelve Angry Jurors, we were in a black box. There was no back wall, because we were in a free floating box. There was only a door, and a free floating window, which looked eerily beautiful. Our director had a vision of the window right from the start.
There is a possibility, however, that the director will be wrong. The window might have looked silly, or it might not have matched the tone of the show. For this reason, the director must have respect for those around him: designers, carpenters, actors, etc. Beyond that, he must trust them all to a certain extent. It must be a balance. A lighting designer may have a different sense of timing to fade out a show. A scenic designer may have a different sense of scale for a certain set piece. An actor may have a different take on a character. I did. I was Juror #4, and I played it much differently than he envisioned. I saw him much quieter and reserved than he did. We never quite saw eye-to-eye, but we respected each other and eventually came to an agreement.
So, to recap: a director is an artist. He or she must have a new vision. That vision should be motivated by the director knowing what he or she is talking about and coming from a realistic place. The vision should be clear, and they should stick to their instincts, but they should also respect and trust those around them to be knowledgeable. Directing is a balancing act. Balance on, directors.
I'm particularly interested in your ideas on having a creative vision vs. merely doing a very solid production. I think this is a great area for us to focus a class discussion on in the future. We usually think of theatre artists as "interpretive," in that they don't often create something from scratch. I think these are some concepts we'll want to unpack as we proceed. Good stuff!
DeleteI think good direction comes from a willingness to collaborate and respect not only the work itself but everyone that is a part of the production. Personally, I have been a part of the Marion Civic Theatre for five years and I have been in and seen too many productions where the director sees the play as an artistic vehicle to be contorted to their own vision and ideas. My main pet peeve is when a director won't let actors be "actors". The main problem with a lot of civic directors is that they don't realize, actors are smart and they need space to grow into a part. So many bad directors want a certain part done a certain way and will not give an actor permission to be an actor and make choices. Sure, some choices will be mistakes but that is a part of the process and every so often the actor will naturally make a choice that is better than anything the director could have manufactured.
ReplyDeleteNow, on to good direction. This past spring I was in Fiddler on the Roof at Muncie Civic and it was damn near a perfect experience. The whole production felt safe and was conducive to the formation of a community, which in that particular show is incredibly important. Everyone's input, not just the leads' or the producer's or the higher ups', was accepted and considered and used if it aided in guiding the show to it's final cohesive goal. By the time the curtain rose on opening night, everyone knew that they had made clear choices and everyone knew exactly what the vision was and where it was coming from. When the time came no one had to "play" the community, we were the community, and that was the goal from the very beginning.
I think that we'll all agree bad directing often involves forcing or imposing a directorial will upon the actors and designers. I wonder, though, if we can think of times it is appropriate for the director to take a firm stance for the production. It is an interesting balance and one we should talk about more in class. I'm glad to hear that Fiddler was so successful. It's rare to feel that level of contribution to a huge musical, and good that you were able to experience it.
DeleteI have worked with several "good" directors but quite a few awful directors. The tricky line that directors ride is when is it time to give actors the creative freedom to solve the problems of their character and allow for the actor to take their own take on the character. Its hard not to want to turn your actors into lifesized barbie dolls and control their every mood and objective and tactic, but alas some of the best shows I've worked on allowed for the creative freedom of the actor to be at the forefront rather than the director's narrowminded approach. Directors are there to "direct" you to the right path, not shove you down it. Karen Kessler is the best director I've ever worked with and she was hard on me because I needed to know the character. She constantly questioned every move I made, allowing me to create a well-rounded and honest-to-life character in a larger than life show.
ReplyDeleteNow, bad directing... I have been in one too many community theatre shows where the unprofessionalism of the directors was amazing. Directors often times place their attention and focus on other things beside the story they want to tell. It gets incredibly frustrating when a director is more preoccupied with the details of the scenery when the second act of the show has not been blocked a week before its showtime. The one worst director I've ever had actually was one of the best. He literally left for the two weeks before the show including tech, and the show turned out amazing and is still talked about because actors were given the chance to tell the story they wanted to tell.
So, yeah, I'd have to say that good directing is a combination of a clear and focused story you want to tell and the ability to allow your actors to collaborate and flesh out your vision.
There's so much in here about control, which is a very interesting conversation to get started in any directing class. The elephant in the room is that the director is "in charge." If they don't make decisions, everybody hates them. On the flip side, if they make decisions in a completely autocratic fashion, we get the response from actors and designers that you're talking about above. Clearly it is one of the biggest challenges in directing, so we'll take a lot of time considering it!
DeleteGood directing is probably a subjective topic, based on your perspective and the way you work as an artist. But for me personally, a good director can get on my level and know how my mind works. My first director in college was fantastic about this. I was cast in Almost, Maine for my first role, and instead of giving some wordy, flourishy direction to me he put things very simply and in a way I could immediately understand and build upon.
ReplyDeleteHe used people I knew in the department and would give me examples of how they are like my character, and how they would react to a situation. It helped me get out of my own head and really imagine the situation as if I were a completely different person (while at the same time keeping ahold of who I am). Instead of saying "Do it like ____ would do it" he would say "Your friend _____ is very stubborn like your character. Imagine that your friend _____ was put in the same situation as your character. How would they feel? And how would they react?". Sometimes I forget that characters are real people, and I need to put them in the same mental category as those I know.
So in short, I guess the best kind of director is one that understands how an actor works, and goes with it.
I'm pulling out that magical element that is entirely "personal" from your blog. That is to say, good directors react to their collaborators on a personal level. This observation is definitely cool and provide a lot of food for thought. Can a director get too personal?
DeleteBefore I began my education here at Ball State, I had but a very little understanding of the difference between successful and unsuccessful directing. Everyone has had that middle school or high school director who says "on this line, walk here; on that line, move over there" for no apparent reason other than to move. These directors will most likely tell you exactly how they want you to deliver the lines, as well. Reflecting back, I can understand the reasoning behind their approach- I mean, what seventh-grader REALLY knows how to make discoveries and be organic without actually being taught? Still, these directors, while most of them probably just aim to allow the kids have fun, wield the potential to instill habits. I know this became a bit true for myself. I never truly knew that the work was up to the actor until I came here. I thought the actor's job was essentially to listen to the orders, then execute them.
ReplyDeleteThe directors I worked with in high school- my school director and those of the community theatres- sat in a broad scale ranging from pretty decent, to flat-out terrible. I have now learned that what makes an excellent director, is one that leads the actor to discoveries. Just like the saying, "you can lead a horse to water". This type of director asks many thought-provoking questions, and helps the actors to see what he/she is seeing. I am currently the understudy for Ernestine Shuswap, directed by Kip Shawger. I love watching the way in which Kip tells the actresses how he wants something to be said. He disguises it through questions like, "doesn't that disgust you? Wouldn't this make you angrier? Let's see that anger!" And then he gets the result he desired without actually ordering them to do anything; they found it on their own, making it organic. It's terrific!
Ah, questions. They are a director's best friend, and knowing when and how to ask them is always beneficial. Keep thinking about this as we progress.
DeleteIn my eyes, good directing starts with being present in the room with everyone else. If you aren’t present, no one else will be, and your story will not be able to come to life. One must also have the ability to command a room while not attempting to be controlling. It’s the vision of the director that is coming onto the stage, but the director must be open to the interpretations and thoughts of the actors as well as technicians and designers.
ReplyDeleteThe director I worked with when I first started doing theater was named Becky Viola, but everyone called her Ms. Becky. Ms. Becky directed a summerstock setting but with child performers called the “Children’s Theater Workshop”. Within a week, she would take 30-40 kids aged 7-16 and develop such shows as Godspell Jr., How to Eat Like a Child, and Alladin Jr. into wonderful (and cute, I might add) pieces of theater for friends and family to love and enjoy. The reason why I see Ms. Becky as a great director is because she was able to take so many rowdy, awkward kids who had so much energy and control them. She had this ability to allow kids to simply stop thinking about the play and just fall in love with the world of the show. She helped kids learn what it meant to be actors, to love theater.
Ms. Becky was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago. She went through treatment and officially won her battle against cancer in April of this year. As soon as she knew that she had won, she was back into the swing of directing. Immediately she knew that she had to spread the word about this wonderful art and be a leader for any kid she can help. Ms. Becky is a born leader, and a good leader is a good director.
I'm responding to this idea of presence and command. I find both the terms very interesting (and potentially loaded) in terms of good directing. The Ms. Becky example was a great one. Working with children is a special gift and talent that can be developed-but the greats make it seem like they were born with the skill. I guess some people are!
DeleteI was in a play called Bugsy Malone and the director was a great director because he had an image that on how he wanted the play to go and what kind of people he wanted for the characters. He made us sing and read a piece of the play and if you were shy and nervous he worked with you to see how good you are. he tired his best to get everyone a part. He would also always say there is no small parts only small actors. haha well of course it was a kids show :) He made sure everyone got along and when one of the main stars got in a car accident and died on impact. He found a replacement right away and had the show still go on. He also pay tribute to the kid that passed away. It was a fun time even tho it had its depressing moments and the way he handled everything was well done. He even talked to the kids about the passing and was there for kids to cry on his shoulder. He was not only just a great director but a great guy in general. If it wasn't for his support and courage then i probably wouldn't be in the theatre program at all.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a really challenging situation and it seems like your director rose to the occasion. Often directors end up being the spiritual leaders through very difficult situations that arise during the process. It isn't easy, but it sounds like your director did a lovely job.
DeleteOverall, great job with Question #1. Next week, you all will develop your own question to work on in class. After your excellent contributions this week, I'm really looking forward to where this blog is going! Keep up the introspection!
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