Writing Guidelines for Critiques in TH 141
Introduction to Theatre
Format Criteria: The WORD document should be double-spaced and typed in a 12-point font, preferably Times New Roman or Calibri, with standard one-inch margins at the top, bottom and on the sides of each page.
- Minimum Length Required: 2 full pages of text
- Maximum Length Allowed: 4 full pages of text
- You do not need a title page or a bibliography.
- You may include images or links to referenced online material to support your written arguments and opinions.
Content Organization: Answer in-depth each of the three questions asked of a theatre critic, demonstrating your understanding of the theatre artists’ purposes, the effectiveness of their talents and abilities to accomplish their purposes, and the ultimate worth of the production in your personal opinion, rating your recommendation to others with a letter grade.
Part I: Introduction/Statement of Purposes (20/100 points)
- Critical Question #1: What were the theatre artists (producer/director, actors, designers, etc.) trying to do?
In general, these theatre artists presumably chose a good story and then tried to tell it well: either to entertain the audience, or to create a work of theatrical art, or BOTH. In the first paragraph or two, describe your understanding of what they were trying to do when making their staging, acting, design, or structural choices in the process of bringing the play to life.
- Important WARNING! You are not analyzing or critiquing the PLAYWRIGHT’s contribution to the process. In other words, you are not writing a literary essay. You do not need to summarize or discuss the plot, character objectives, or language the playwright used. This is NOT a book report. The story is a given.
- Your task is to describe, analyze and evaluate how well the theatre artists told the story, rather than dissect the story itself. Therefore, in answering Critical Question #1, you first need to consider why this production ensemble/group of artists chose to realize this story as a piece of theatre. Why go through the time, effort and expense to stage this work here and now for you?
Part II: Body of the Paper/Analysis of Effectiveness (50/100 points)
- Critical Question #2: How well did they accomplish what they were trying to do?
This section will comprise the majority of your paper’s content. Having established the criteria for your judgments in Part I, Part II will allow you to substantiate your reactions by providing evidence of the production’s quality (or lack thereof) using at least five (5) specific examples.
- In separate paragraphs, describe and evaluate the effectiveness of the contributions to the success (or failure) of the production. Check the rubric to see if specific contributions MUST be considered. Potential contributors are as follows:
- Producer/Director(s) – Example: Judgment calls on the producer(s)’ choice of venue and audience configuration and/or the director’s use of the stage space or theatrical concept.
- Actors – Who were your favorite performers? How did they effectively/believably portray their characters? In what areas were they uniquely talented? Which actors were less impressive? Why were they ineffective? Describe moments when you were totally engaged vs. clearly distanced.
- **Hint: this is NOT a critique of character. This is the actor’s performance of the character.
- Actors can take up only 2 of the required 5 specific examples needed in each critique
- Designers – At least one paragraph should cite specific examples of the success or failure of design elements. There are several to choose from:
- Scenery
- Lighting
- Music and/or Sound
- Costume and Makeup
- Special Effects (SFX)
Part III: Conclusion/Ultimate Value (15/100 points)
Critical Question #3: Was the production worth doing?
In the concluding paragraphs of your paper, you need to state your personal opinion regarding the overall value of the theatre experience. Was it worth your time and money? Would you recommend this production to others? Would you see it again?
- Assign the production a quantitative rating in the form of a letter grade, summarizing your rationale for why you think the production deserves that grade.
- You do not need to use phrases such as, “I think…” or “In my opinion…” or “It seemed to me…” The reader knows that these are your thoughts and opinions based on your own assumptions.
Part IV: Grammar, Spelling, Word Choice, and Style (15/100)
The final portion of grading for this assignment will consider academic standards in writing. Papers should be devoid of errors in grammar, including punctuation and capitalization, which distract from the content. Word choices should be appropriate and thoughtfully applied. Progression of thought should be easy to follow and examples should be clear and articulated. Titles of plays should be in italics.