- 1). Complete your table work before you start trying to block the play. Include establishing the primary beats in the play and talking about objectives, tactics and other work that you do on character before you put the actors on their feet.
- 2). Obtain a copy of the set design before you start to block. Map out the entrances and exits using tape on the floor. Also mark out the major set pieces so that the actors know what they will have to work with once they are actually on stage.
- 3). Work through the play in order. Instruct the actors where to come in from and exit when indicated in the script. Consider the theatrical elements when considering where actors should come in and leave from, such as when you have established off-stage locations for certain entrances.
- 4). Allow the actors to find most of their own movements independently as they work through the scenes, if you are working with professional actors. Professionals understand how to sense an impulse and follow it and the result is typically naturalistic blocking that is motivated and interesting. If working with amateurs, you may need to guide actors through the movements on stage throughout the course of a scene.
- 5). Refine the blocking on a second run through the play. Tweak things like the actors' initial choices when they create boring visual pictures for the audience or when moving actors to different locations can increase the tension, drama or comedy in a scene. Experiment with different options if a scene appears to not be working.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -