Elements of Drama

Drama Story written to be acted for an audience

Scenes- settings for the events, the environment of the characters Elements in Drama Scenes- settings for the events, the environment of the characters Acts- a major formal division of a play which marks a clear, unified portion of the total action

Plot- series of related events that make up a drama/story

Plot Structure for Five Act Play

ACT I 1. Exposition: establishes the setting, introduces some of the main characters, explains background, and introduces the characters’ main conflict.

Act II 2. The rising action consists of a series of complications. These occur as the main characters take action to resolve their problems.

ACT III 3. The crisis, or turning point, is the moment when a choice made by the main characters determines the direction of the action: downward to tragedy.

Act IV 4. The falling action presents events that result from the action taken at the turning point. These events usually lock the characters deeper and deeper into disaster; with each event we see the characters falling straight into tragedy.

Act V 5. The final and greatest climax occurs at the end of the play—usually, in tragedy, with the deaths of the main characters. In the resolution (or denouement) all the loose parts of the plot are tied up. The play is over.

Five-Part Dramatic Structure COPY THIS ON YOUR PAPER Five-Part Dramatic Structure Act III Crisis or Turning Point Act II Rising Action/ Complications Act IV Falling Action Act V Climactic Moment/ Resolution Act I Exposition/ Introduction