"Unconventional" A Play in One Act

Open Access
- Author:
- Welsh, Bridget Anne
- Area of Honors:
- Letters, Arts, and Sciences (Abington)
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Humanities
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Martha Lee Kemper, Thesis Supervisor
Dr. David E Ruth, Thesis Honors Advisor
Thomas Heise, Faculty Reader - Keywords:
- Theatre
Performance
Narrative - Abstract:
- Unconventional, A Play in One Act is a full script that explores identity, agency, and expectation. I have worked closely with Dr. Martha Kemper to gain a clearer understanding of the nuances and creative process behind playwriting and working with this medium to create a full story. Many psychological and nuanced factors of one’s life can be uniquely expressed through theatre due to the aspect of performing in front of an audience and removing the separation between actors and the audience. The process of creating this script and understanding the ways in which these factors come into play on the stage has changed dramatically, as I have worked to restructure the plot to be more conducive to these factors. This thesis does not extend to any plans to perform this show, as it is solely a completed draft of a full script. The medium of theatre is one that allows each performance to be unique, as each performance will be done for a different audience and elicit different reactions from each of them. Sharing the same physical space and having a nonverbal exchange of understanding with one’s audience are experiences that can give way to introspection for an actor. The ability for the actors to break the fourth wall to directly address the audience can help them bring the characters of their story closer to the audience in a way that is realistic, comedic, and genuinely surprising during each new show. This script was written to emphasize these intrinsic qualities of theatre and to explore the ways in which the central characters work against their guilt and self-doubt over the course of their first meeting each other at the Atlantic City Convention Center.