THTR 176
Dr. Susan Kattwinkel
Review/Response Paper Guide

Responding in essay form to a play that you see or read should help you to think about the play more deeply than you would just to answer quiz questions. No matter what play you are writing about, keep in mind the following:
1) What is the style of the play? Is it a realistic play that presents a real-life kind of situation? Is it a docudrama type of play, dramatizing a real-life incident? Is it expressionistic or symbolistic, presenting large ideas that we are meant to relate to our own lives? How well did the style work for you? Were you able to understand the manner in which the playwright was trying to communicate?
2) What about the theme of the play? Is it clear? How hard did you have to work to follow what the play was about? Was it worth the work? Just because you have to spend some time thinking about it to understand it doesn’t mean it’s not well written. Was it a theme you could relate to?
3) How engaging were the characters (and actors, if you saw the play rather than read it)? Were they meant to represent real kinds of people, or were they more allegorical? Did they help the author to get his/her point across?
4) If you’re reviewing a play you saw, make sure you look at elements of the production other than the acting. Did the set help to communicate the message of the play? How about the costumes, lighting, sound? Did the production run well or were there technical problems? How did the rest of the audience seem to feel about it?

Format for Play Reviews
o Introductory paragraph - includes the basic information (play title [underlined] and author’s name, where and when you saw the play) and covers briefly what you will discuss in the paper. Probably also a sentence or two about what the play is about - a Restoration comedy about . . . Don’t give me a whole plot synopsis.
o General reaction. Your own and the audience’s. An overview of what worked for you and what didn’t. What message you got from the play.
o A response to one or two actors (or more, if more than two really stuck out to you for some reason) - what they did well or poorly and why they stood out for you. Think about the acting skills we have discussed. Do they seem to be exhibiting them? Use specific examples.
o Pick a design element to respond to. Costumes or scenery will probably be easiest. How did it affect the style of the play? The message? The performers? What was communicated through this design element. Use specific examples.
o Conclusion. Analyze what you’ve discussed. Because of the things you’ve mentioned, was the message or point communicated? Does this seem to be an appropriate play for this audience? Do these performers seem to be up to the task? (Remember, it’s a learning experience for them.) You’re giving your general reaction again, but in relation to the specifics you’ve discussed, and coming up with a concluding idea about the style of the play, or the performance in general, or the audience, or something. These are just suggestions of concluding ideas, you may come up with completely different one.

More specific writing issues to remember are the following:
1) Your paper should be 3 - 5 pages long. It should begin with an introductory paragraph that includes the basic information (play title [underlined] and author’s name) and covers briefly what you will discuss in the paper. The body of the paper should progress logically from one paragraph to the next with smooth transitions. Wording should be neither too complex or too stilted. The concluding paragraph should tie things together, refer back to your original theme, and avoid unsupported, judgmental opinions.
2) These papers are about your own opinions. As far as that goes, there is no wrong answer. But statements such as "I thought this play was boring" don’t tell me very much and are very frustrating to read. Use specifics from the script to explain your opinions.
3) PROOFREAD YOUR PAPERS! There’s nothing that brings down a grade faster than obvious spelling errors. This doesn’t just mean running your computer’s SpellCheck over it. Those programs miss mistakes such as substituting "wear" for "where" and don’t find grammatical errors. The other big problem tends to be incomplete sentences. I suggest that you read your paper out loud (or at least ‘out loud in your head’) and listen for sentences that another person wouldn’t be able to follow.
4) Staple your papers, make sure your name, my name, class (incl. section), and the date are on the top. Please no cover sheets or folders. And this may seem obvious, but please spell my name correctly. It’s on your syllabus and all over your packet, so there’s no excuse for getting it wrong.
5) Papers are due in class. Each extra day knocks the grade down 5 points. No late papers will be accepted after the next class period. On off-class days, leave late papers in my box in the Theatre office.

Here is my guide for the quality of writing found in the different grade levels.
A - An A paper packs a lot of information into a small space without being hard to follow. The writing is orderly and effective but not dry. The theme or purpose of the paper is clear early on, and the body of the paper doesn’t stray into tangents. The logical progression of the paper is easy to follow; the wording is clear; the syntax is not too simplistic, but also doesn’t attempt to be too complex or use unnecessarily large words. The tone of the writing enhances the purpose of the paper. Needless to say, there are no typos, misspellings, or grammatical errors.
B - A B paper is also free of mechanical errors and stilted syntax. The writing is concise, precise and logically ordered. The points of the paper are well developed and unified around a clear organizing principle which is apparent early in the paper. Transitions are smooth and the paper is easy to read.
C - The C paper meets the requirements of the assignment, answers all the relevant questions, and has few mechanical errors. The content may be thin, however, and the argument sometimes difficult to follow. There may be generalities that frustrate the reader. Verb tenses may not agree, sentences are choppy, and often there is repetition. The C paper has lack of effort written all over it, even while it basically completes the assignment.
D - The D paper barely meets the minimum standards for college writing. Unsupported opinions abound, as do mechanical errors. Logical progression is lacking and sentences are frequently awkward. Often it is self-contradictory. Despite these failings, however, the paper more or less addresses the required issues.