Elements of Drama

Elements of Drama * Characters: Characters are the people (sometimes animals or ideas) portrayed by the actors in the play. It is the characters who move the action, or plot, of the play forward. * Plot: This is what happens in the play. Plot refers to the action; the basic storyline of the play. * Theme: While plot refers to the action of the play, theme refers to the meaning of the play. Theme is the main idea or lesson to be learned from the play. In some cases, the theme of a play is obvious; other times it is quite subtle. * Dialogue: This refers to the words written by the playwright and spoken by the characters in the play. The dialogue helps move the action of the play along. * Convention: These are the techniques and methods used by the playwright and director to create the desired stylistic effect. * Genre: Genre refers to the type of play. Some examples of different genres include, comedy, tragedy, mystery and historical play. * Audience: This is the group of people who watch the play. Many playwrights and actors consider the audience to be the most important element of drama, as all of the effort put in to writing and producing a play is for the enjoyment of the audience. * Music/Rhythm: While music is often featured in drama, in this case Aristotle was referring to the rhythm of the actors' voices as they speak. * Spectacle: This refers to the visual elements of a play: sets, costumes, special effects, etc. Spectacle is everything that the audience sees as they watch the play.

Features of Drama
1. Characterization
2. Chronology and time
3. Dialog
4. Role
5. Stage Direction
6. Title
7. Acts
8. Production

Ways on How to Read a Drama 1. Content
We can use the same criteria of content with drama as we used with novels and stories: character, action, and setting. With dramatic performance, however, we must add several additional elements. Putting on a play involves not only actors, but also a set