BLOCKING (STAGE DIRECTIONS)

Blocking is…

The precise movement and positioning of actors on stage in order to help a performance maintain its greater meaning and the audience’s attention.

The Term Came from…

Playwright Sir W.S. Gilbert

Sir Gilbert used to work out the staging of his scenes using a miniature stage on which blocks were placed to represent each of the actors in his plays.

Who keeps up with blocking?

Directors come up with blocking and keep up with it as a play progresses and change it when necessary.

Actors write down blocking in the margins of scripts and memorize the blocking and make changes according to the directors.

Stage Managers write down all actor’s blocking and have the script at all times to help with cues during rehearsals and performances alike.

Stage Areas (Experienced from Actor’s Point of View) Center stage Center right Center left Down stage center Down right Down left Up stage center Up stage right Up stage left

Full front Full back Half right Half left Quarter right Quarter left Three Quarters right Three Quarters left

Basic Stage Areas Chart

Intermediate Stage Chart

Advanced Stage Chart

Turns on Stage

Why is it so important?

Blocking and stage directions help to complete the story of a play/film by allowing us to see how people respond to each other and to other things.

Blocking and stage directions help us see what is REALLY going on in a scene. A character may say one thing, but their actions tell us another.

For Instance…

Boy: “Don’t you like me?”Girl: “Of course I do!”

Vs.

Boy: (putting arm around girl) “Don’t you like me?”Girl: “Of course I do!” (Smiling, but taking his arm off her shoulders and stepping a foot stage right)

Existing Blocking and Added Blocking

Existing blocking is what the writer of a show already has written in for the actors to do. These can be done exactly as written or modified/changed in order to help the director’s own wish for how the scene should look.

Added blocking is what is not already written into the play. Directors give their own blocking to help scenes look as realistic as possible.

How Blocking is Planned

Blocking is usually done scene by scene. Actors will practice blocking for one scene until deemed “acceptable” and then move onto another scene.

Directors usually start planning blocking by reading a scene and then visualizing where they would like actors to be on stage and what they would like the actors to do.

Directors then write down blocking and tell it to actors and stage managers.

Once actors have written their blocking, they practice it until they know it well enough to start changing it if the director sees fit.

Actors can sometimes suggest their own blocking if they feel it will fit the situation.

In Short Write your blocking and stage directions

because they are very important to other people’s understanding of the show, and you don’t want to let them down.

Be willing to go over blocking again and again, even changing it a little sometimes in order to perfect the meaning of the blocking along with the words being spoken (and those not being spoken) so that you may give your audiences the most completely constructed picture possible of what is going on in the play.

SceneSally: Good morning, teacher.

Teacher: Good morning, Sally.

Sally: What do you want us to do this morning?

Teacher: I want you to get out your homework.

Sally: Great.

Scene with BlockingSally: (loudly) Good morning, teacher.

Teacher: (jumping stage left and sighing) Good morning, Sally.

Sally: (slaps knee and laughs) What do you want us to do this morning?

Teacher: (crosses arms) I want you to get out your homework.

Sally: (rolling her eyes) Great.