When Michael Paller served as dramaturge for American Conservatory Theater's production of Tom Stoppard's "Rock 'n' Roll"—set in 20th-century Czechoslovakia and Cambridge, England—he prepared a packet for the cast that included information about communism, fascism, and the Velvet Revolution; a timeline of musical and world events from 1965 to 1969; an explanation of how Cambridge University differs from American universities; definitions of unfamiliar words in the script; and even a few evocative Brecht poems."The point," says Paller, resident dramaturge with the San Francisco company, "is to help actors make appropriate choices." Later this year, when he works on Harold Pinter's "The Homecoming," he'll probably include photos of homes in London's East End in the mid-20th century. Many actors respond more intuitively to pictures than text, he says.To actors, the function of a dramaturge can be somewhat mysterious. Paller, originally a playwright, was himself initially suspicious of their usefulness,...
- 1/13/2011
- backstage.com
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