The Glass Menagerie… From Script to Play Written by Tennessee Williams Presented by Kayla S., Hannah K., Dakotah M., and Rachel D.

Thesis of Article “From Story to Play” by Lester A. Beaurline “But the later revisions show Williams’ real talents as a playwright, none of which he inherits from Lawrence; his breadth of sympathy, his sense of humor, his brilliant dialogue, and his talent for building highly charged dramatic scenes.

Central Questions: Is it necessary to have the legends from the script included in the actual production? Do these legends enhance or hinder the plot in the written version?

Purpose of the Legends The legends are a way to show the character’s emotions and inner monologue usually in a written story. They also can help set the tone for the setting, an example is on page The words “Ou Sont Les Neiges” meaning “Where it Snows” appears on the screen. This is purely to set the attitude of the stage and introduce the characters.

Legends in Acting In a dramatic production legends aren’t used as much for several key reasons: –Distract from the audience, example page 1638 the legend says “After the Fiasco”. This is unnecessary because the audience can follow the actors to understand the scene is now moving on in another direction. –In the article “From Story to Play” by Beaurline it is described as “if the screen device has ever been tried, it distracted the audience from the actors”.

Legends in Acting Cont. –The legends show inner emotions, but it is an actors job to portray these feeling through their acting and monologues. –Example in the play is “Laura”, this simple phrase on the legend on page This is expressing Tom’s thoughts. This is unnessary in a play because the audience should be able to depict Tom’s feelings through his tone, speech, and movements.

The Disadvantages In the article “From Story to Play” the authors share that “at any rate, Williams says he does not regret the omission of the screen device”. As mentioned before, they can be distracting, confusing, and it takes away part of the actors job.

Examples of Disadvantages In the story… Page 1646, “plans and provisions”. This statement just distracts the reader from the scene, and doesn’t draw an emotional connection to the audience. In the play… Page 1649, “Image on scene: Caller With Bouquet”. This is already know because of the acting, and would hinder the relationship between the characters and spectators.

Practical Uses for Legends There are some practical uses for legends in both stories and plays though. In a story it can… Portray an emotional appeal to the reader Show inner feelings of the characters Adds content to the script In a play it can… Clarify scenes and add dramatic flare Help separate past from presence

Examples for Practical Uses Story: Page 1637: “Blue Roses” this adds to the emotional appeal of the scene by having Laura remember her high school nickname. Play: Page 1641: “The Glass Menagerie” in the music legend. This serves as symbol of Tom breaking away from Laura allow with the glass.

Video Page 1639, “Legend on Screen: ‘You think I’m in Love with Continential Shoemakers?’”. Represents actors depicting emotions that the legend covered in the script. ch?v=GFeQbEUjHVk&featur e=relatedhttp:// ch?v=GFeQbEUjHVk&featur e=related

Conclusion Are the legends necessary to the play? –We think they hinder the performance and should not be added. –The actors can handle the emotional appeal, and if left in the screen would distract the audience. –There are positive and negative aspects to this question, but we agree with the two authors of “From Story to Play”, as well as William’s himself that the play can be adequately presented without the legends.