Robert Knopf has served as Chair, Producing Director, and Director of Theatre at the University at Buffalo; and Associate Chair and Director of Graduate Studies in Theatre at the University of Michigan. He holds a PhD in Theatre (Michigan) and an MFA in Directing (Wisconsin). His books include The Director as Collaborator (Routledge), Script Analysis for Theatre (Methuen), and The Theater and Cinema of Buster Keaton (Princeton). He teaches all levels of directing and acting, intro to theatre, script analysis, and avant-garde theatre and performance, among others.
Script Analysis for Theatre: Tools for Interpretation, Collaboration and Production provides thea... more Script Analysis for Theatre: Tools for Interpretation, Collaboration and Production provides theatre students and emerging theatre artists with the tools, skills and a shared language to analyze play scripts, communicate about them, and collaborate with others on stage productions. Based largely on concepts derived from Stanislavski's system of acting and method acting, the book focuses on action - what characters do to each other in specific circumstances, times, and places - as the engine of every play. From this foundation, readers will learn to distinguish the big picture of a script, dissect and 'score' smaller units and moment-to-moment action, and create individualized blueprints from which to collaborate on shaping the action in production from their perspectives as actors, directors, and designers.
Script Analysis for Theatre offers a practical approach to script analysis for theatre production and is grounded in case studies of a range of the most studied plays, including Sophocles' Oedipus the King, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, and Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive, among others. Readers will develop the real-life skills professional theatre artists use to design, rehearse, and produce plays.
Reviews
“Script Analysis for Theatre provides excellent techniques developed over a lifetime of work with actors, directors, designers, in the classroom and on stage. The book is seasoned, smart and practical, equipping students with an essential toolbox for engaging with scripts.” –Jim Volz, Professor of Theatre History at California State University at Fullerton, USA
“I am deeply impressed by the precise way in which it fuses a broad theoretical understanding of drama with the practical analysis of texts, and have little but praise for it. I am very familiar with the range of existing script analysis texts, and this is one of the few I would consider assigning in full to an undergraduate script analysis class.” –Art Borreca, Iowa Playwrights Workshop, Department of Theatre Arts, University of Iowa, USA
The Director as Collaborator teaches essential directing skills while emphasizing how directors a... more The Director as Collaborator teaches essential directing skills while emphasizing how directors and theater productions benefit from collaboration. Good collaboration occurs when the director shares responsibility for the artistic creation with the entire production team, including actors, designers, stage managers, and technical staff. Leadership does not preclude collaboration; in theater, these concepts can and should be complementary. Students will develop their abilities by directing short scenes and plays and by participating in group exercises.
New to the second edition:
updated interviews, exercises, forms, and appendices new chapter on technology including digital research, previsualization and drafting programs, and web-sharing sites new chapter on devised and ensemble-based works new chapter on immersive theater, including material and exercises on environmental staging and audience–performer interaction
Script Analysis for Theatre: Tools for Interpretation, Collaboration and Production provides thea... more Script Analysis for Theatre: Tools for Interpretation, Collaboration and Production provides theatre students and emerging theatre artists with the tools, skills and a shared language to analyze play scripts, communicate about them, and collaborate with others on stage productions. Based largely on concepts derived from Stanislavski's system of acting and method acting, the book focuses on action - what characters do to each other in specific circumstances, times, and places - as the engine of every play. From this foundation, readers will learn to distinguish the big picture of a script, dissect and 'score' smaller units and moment-to-moment action, and create individualized blueprints from which to collaborate on shaping the action in production from their perspectives as actors, directors, and designers.
Script Analysis for Theatre offers a practical approach to script analysis for theatre production and is grounded in case studies of a range of the most studied plays, including Sophocles' Oedipus the King, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, and Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive, among others. Readers will develop the real-life skills professional theatre artists use to design, rehearse, and produce plays.
Reviews
“Script Analysis for Theatre provides excellent techniques developed over a lifetime of work with actors, directors, designers, in the classroom and on stage. The book is seasoned, smart and practical, equipping students with an essential toolbox for engaging with scripts.” –Jim Volz, Professor of Theatre History at California State University at Fullerton, USA
“I am deeply impressed by the precise way in which it fuses a broad theoretical understanding of drama with the practical analysis of texts, and have little but praise for it. I am very familiar with the range of existing script analysis texts, and this is one of the few I would consider assigning in full to an undergraduate script analysis class.” –Art Borreca, Iowa Playwrights Workshop, Department of Theatre Arts, University of Iowa, USA
The Director as Collaborator teaches essential directing skills while emphasizing how directors a... more The Director as Collaborator teaches essential directing skills while emphasizing how directors and theater productions benefit from collaboration. Good collaboration occurs when the director shares responsibility for the artistic creation with the entire production team, including actors, designers, stage managers, and technical staff. Leadership does not preclude collaboration; in theater, these concepts can and should be complementary. Students will develop their abilities by directing short scenes and plays and by participating in group exercises.
New to the second edition:
updated interviews, exercises, forms, and appendices new chapter on technology including digital research, previsualization and drafting programs, and web-sharing sites new chapter on devised and ensemble-based works new chapter on immersive theater, including material and exercises on environmental staging and audience–performer interaction
Uploads
Script Analysis for Theatre offers a practical approach to script analysis for theatre production and is grounded in case studies of a range of the most studied plays, including Sophocles' Oedipus the King, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, and Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive, among others. Readers will develop the real-life skills professional theatre artists use to design, rehearse, and produce plays.
Reviews
“Script Analysis for Theatre provides excellent techniques developed over a lifetime of work with actors, directors, designers, in the classroom and on stage. The book is seasoned, smart and practical, equipping students with an essential toolbox for engaging with scripts.” –Jim Volz, Professor of Theatre History at California State University at Fullerton, USA
“I am deeply impressed by the precise way in which it fuses a broad theoretical understanding of drama with the practical analysis of texts, and have little but praise for it. I am very familiar with the range of existing script analysis texts, and this is one of the few I would consider assigning in full to an undergraduate script analysis class.” –Art Borreca, Iowa Playwrights Workshop, Department of Theatre Arts, University of Iowa, USA
New to the second edition:
updated interviews, exercises, forms, and appendices
new chapter on technology including digital research, previsualization and drafting programs, and web-sharing sites
new chapter on devised and ensemble-based works
new chapter on immersive theater, including material and exercises on environmental staging and audience–performer interaction
Pre-order at: https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Knopf/e/B001ITYLEI/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1
Script Analysis for Theatre offers a practical approach to script analysis for theatre production and is grounded in case studies of a range of the most studied plays, including Sophocles' Oedipus the King, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, and Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive, among others. Readers will develop the real-life skills professional theatre artists use to design, rehearse, and produce plays.
Reviews
“Script Analysis for Theatre provides excellent techniques developed over a lifetime of work with actors, directors, designers, in the classroom and on stage. The book is seasoned, smart and practical, equipping students with an essential toolbox for engaging with scripts.” –Jim Volz, Professor of Theatre History at California State University at Fullerton, USA
“I am deeply impressed by the precise way in which it fuses a broad theoretical understanding of drama with the practical analysis of texts, and have little but praise for it. I am very familiar with the range of existing script analysis texts, and this is one of the few I would consider assigning in full to an undergraduate script analysis class.” –Art Borreca, Iowa Playwrights Workshop, Department of Theatre Arts, University of Iowa, USA
New to the second edition:
updated interviews, exercises, forms, and appendices
new chapter on technology including digital research, previsualization and drafting programs, and web-sharing sites
new chapter on devised and ensemble-based works
new chapter on immersive theater, including material and exercises on environmental staging and audience–performer interaction
Pre-order at: https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Knopf/e/B001ITYLEI/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1