Show How I Write a Play Famous Dramatists Tell for the F First rt Time The Methods by Which They Rave have Won Success I w 5 51 1 Copyright hl 1 IDi 1512 12 by lf The Ile Pro Po Pros s Co The New cw York YorI World I These are aro tho lie first of oC a series o of ar tides to appear In The The- can prepared b by the tho foremost In America Thousands of oC people are trying to write plays pas and do llo not k now wh why the they fall al The Tho experiences described In those these articles will wi appeal not on only to such uchi aspirants but to all al tho the pla public I I-By I By DAVID DAVD BELASCO BELASC A Author of The Return of Peter Grimm etc mo most t difficult ta task k anyone anone could T THE set et for Cor me Is to ask me mo lo to describe how I 1 write a n pla play 1131 As a matter mater of oC fact It 1 Is Ig almost a as easy for me mo to write a pia play as to tell tel how to do o It it I. I The first essential Is the realization on onn ona onny n a ny part of that sense of oC pr preparedness without which er effective te creation of ot nn any sort Is Impossible In other words I must feel tee I the time has lias arrived when that particular play piny calls to be written Fur ur years perhaps the lie germ or Initial Idea has been ben In m my mind an and through all fl those years el I have ha slowly and more or less subconsciously h been beau absorbing the thousand and Jn ono one elements which are now to lo be bo fused together In th tho ho creation creaton of at divers characters of or plot pot of scene o of atmosphere etc These elements tire are ur the fruit of ot countless countless count count- less experiences observations concu shuns alons Everything g In life ICo Interests me and most of all al men nien an and women and the lie motives that move mo them to acton action To me human life Is one endless absorbing ab ab- ab I drama and antl tho the writing o OL a play represents no more nor less Jess than pv I T T'S S I I I- I VI D lifting out of ot this life drama a certain section cross of oC It i. i To o do this successfully successfully success success- Cul fully and effectively 1 one ono must select and reject with wih infinite euro care from the almost Insuperable blo mass of ot ma materials that present themselves t Ai-t Ills Ils Characters As s to what 1 may term the ph physical writing of m my pla plays this process I Ican Ican Ican can best describe b by thi th statement that 1 my character elc write or lather lath lath- er dictate their r respective o dialogue It H has ban hal for or years been 1 my habit to work with wih t two o expert c. stenographers at t. 1 my elbow before whom I 1 myself act out omit each tu coots he character I If H t that character char clar acter Is a maln I am for the thc time be being heing he- he ing that villain If it J a Doling oung girl Irl 1 1 am 1 that 11 young girl If a bootblack a L merchant mom mer chant prince u ii woman c cf the streets a a i I Ia gay young oun adventurer a aman aman man returned from the thc dead ead I 1 am tint that hint pcr- pcr person herson n for Cor th the thu nonce and n out of t that II persons person's rons ron's heart and anel brain and antl from that thai I persons person's mouth I speak And nd as I 1 sP speak lk I I portray each character with wIh all al the thc necessary al' al a action or Ot business s just as consciously as though I r were treading the lie stage be before Core one of or m my r own audiences audi audi- In one of 1 my own theatres After I 1 get the germ er the time Idea of a ph play I 1 think out the principal character charac charac- tar ter tel to mui malta make e It suit sui the tIme star tar If th the lie play In Jn mind Is to be he written for a a astar star This Is ha a n much more simple task than writing writ writ- ing lug for a stock toek company compan as I did when whon associated with wIh the Madison Square Wai lacks lack's I and Lyceum theatres The Theauthor Theauthor Theauthor author of or a 1 pia play for a n stock company compan must lust consider a si number of or actors ac nc- ac- ac tors tons and m invent situations that not only suit th tIme the different characters but give gl each ench member of ot the cast an opportunity to stand stanl out whereas In a pla play for Cor a a. astar astar star It Is n necessary ce saty only to consider a single personality In Iii writing for tor a astar astar t star tar the author Is obliged to make lie tho subordinate characters feeders This rulo rule however howe has modified In re re- re I cent years In recognition of or the growIng growing growing grow grow- ing Intelligence of ot theatregoers wh wh-j no longer are art satisfied with a play la constructed con con- solely to display the abilities of or a star sial As 9 a n matter mater of or tact fact act the formula of oC play writing chanS changes s evor every season Year Yearby Yearby 1 by year the dramatist t is allowed less license Ills Ils skill ski must be bo greater than that of ot the tho veteran dramatist for we have une A advanced with the years ears and no accept that which once seemed plausible Ible The Tho new dramatist Is forced to move mO e far tar In advance of the tho old to toot got ot nearer to the time truth to tho time facts of ot life I am nm always trying to 10 Improve c upon Ulon myself I 1 never ne allow alow m myself elt to become ol old I 1 tr try to keep ahead of ot the times As s to m my methods of or work I be begin ln b by devoting dc an hour and anla a half naif hal every e mornIng morn morn- Ing lug to reading the 1 newspapers In or order er erto to know what l Is going on to keep In touch louch with the world I read also the Important magazines and boons novels booms no cs novels history y hr c everything that may hn a bearing bearing on my mr work In other wor words s m my gC general rl reading Is my ny first step toward writing a pia play ln HI Having uJ n made mado up my mind as to th the subject ot U my play I 1 spend weeks months noontime In fact In rending leading er e everything I 1 can find on that subject I then try tn to evolve f the thc main Idea of or the lie play par the lie pivot phot upon which th time the plot turns This Tins ma may bo something that occurs In the time first act something that lint happens In iii th the second act or It I may not take nIce place until the time third act I Ilien Ithen Ithen then lien decide upon the locale after which I rn find the characters that are to tell tel the time stor story 1 then make up a n rough scenario of tho the st stOry ry that servos serves as a guide though I seldom follow Colo It H very far Having arrived at this point I begin Ito to construct t m my pia play The war work be becomes becomes be be- comes largely a question of ot patience One On experiment follows another all nl leading to tho the climax I am seeking If I the pIa play is historical In character 1 take tako the lie facts acts at hand and nd embody them In Ina a speech designed lnell to be explanatory If It I heals deals with wih a n legal question I consult consulta a law lawyer er It If It takes a medical turn I Iso so a doctor an and so o on But Dut when It I comes to emotional work I am nr obliged to a act t tho the scene myself to speak as I Irol I tech rol people would woul speak peak un under er similar circumstances In real life Je Afterward I revive rc the lie utterances as the they have been caught b by my 10 stenographers I cannot sit st Iowa down and write an emotional scene In cold blood bood While hlo I have no fixed hours of ot work I do most o of m my reading after aler midnight ht It I Is usually 3 or orI I 1 1 o'clock In the mornIn mornIng morning morn- morn In Ing when I get et to bed writing a apia pia play I sometimes sj work as ag man many as fourteen four tour t teen n or fifteen hours a tn day for or Once I begin a n scene I cant can't stop until It I Is fin nu- If I I stopped for or Cr rc rest t. t I ml might ht lose loso los the tempo At the end I am ama ph physically exhausted but this cr very ery exhaustion works to iii advantage thou then I my us m my head 11 is cl clear ar and n ny mind open to 10 new flew lew ideas which usual usually come core with u ii 1 rush I go o to m ls when writing a pia play To do so o would be to get out of ot the mood upon which tho thin PS of m mv iii work Wont Ou- Ou pend A glass of ot milk mik is 11 all al I need to mo inc mC up lip impi t. t to i writing pitch pich Details Incidents dialogue come to tome tome 10 me easily I have IHle learned d above everything very every thing lse the tho value alue of ot the lie process o of elimination This is iser er very necessary ary In iii I pla When hen I reach the final curtain th there re In hardly a 8 shadow of or time tho the ol original fc scenario narlo left lel I usually lal give hl a year r c to lo the tin writing writinG of o a n pin play My I to th the beginner Is to do ho everything c In his lila power to make mako his play pia real real simple and direct to her ber all al the thic time tinie that ho lie Is dealing with wih life and that ho may mM find Cind It I 0 all Lii about him First and amid last he must bo ho honest with himself for or only onh b by convincing himself will wil ill he lie be able to convince an an audience that what he lie has written nitten Is true to If life 2 By 2 By GEORGE BROADHURST Author of Bought and For etc Port IN the time doing of ot m my work I ha have neither I IN rucH rules regulations nor nOt system I write when hen I feul like it I and stop the minute I become Ure tired Each Ech fresh Idea for Cor or a play pay Is an an entirely new prop prop- differing In some essential f o everything that hint has hug gone ono be before Core must therefore bo be attacked In a n nei ne wa way ar y Tho The germinal Id idea Is It tho the first and tH main thing In a pla play Thc These ideas hl hat ha come to me In many different ways i WIl Wh Why Smith Loft Lef Home Homo tho germ rm w wj the cook Ial cook lady which dear old od i M Mr Yeamans played so wonderfully Hai ha Ia Ing Inc obtained the tIme Idea lea of or the I 1 built hul the pin play around It It I The Thc Mills o of lh the th-j Go Gods s. s which Js Is ath il one o of I my favorites fa despite the fa Ca a that tho the critics rt cs and nd tho tIm public una unan mousy rejected It It was sug suggested by a a incident I 1 saw while passing a PeW school Some boys were teasing smaller one ono and calling him him a The little fellow elow was crying Finally ir ono one of ot the lie bigger r boys hos said git It his sister and show h her what what coward her brother Is and rather th thi havo have his sister sec see him under such c coi the smaller ammiller boy turned on on t U bigger fought him tle desperately a ai finally beat t him S Gets Get lilen IlleR of ot Play Immediately there camo canio to my r rail ml the tho HH thesis of or a play the thio tho weakest b comes bravo e once the Incentive Is fou ou and ant and looking for tho the incentive to m ma maa mal ma mala a fl fighting man of ot ono coo who instinctive shrinks from combat quito quite CUlo natura naturally found the tho reputation of or tIme the woman woman- J loved There Thero WAS the tho play ready ready- hand Some years earM n ago go I wen went vent t. t tl to see the n state building at nt HarrIsburg Pa Il was a magnificent pl pile but In tho w was a I gaping space e on either olther side sido Ide of t til door I asked what wo was to t placed there and tho the caretaker inform m ma me that two bronze tablets with wih u names o of the architect tho the and so o forth were to be put there H volunteered the Information that tha t tt tablets were already finished and we lying In the tho basement I asked naked w V. V wn they were not placed In position and ad t informed that those in mo me 00 were sero afraid to have ha them erected i everybody connected with wh the build buildwas buld was likely to bo be indicted for fol or Since then some of ot the file men who vh names wera on bronze brone tablets li Ii 1 been een Indicted and imprisoned and TT w wI I do not know whether or not the tab lab were over pu put l in lit position I do km that the Incident started the train thought which resulted In The Manthe Man Main ar the Hour 4 Having secured the lie germinal idea Idi do not ru rush h to the writing of ot the p pi Instead I let ct the idea shape Itself Iset w was as ns little lite conscious effort cHort on my part part w possible This always takes monand monand mon and sometimes it takes much longer longor t tha ha had the center idea idea o of Bought and For for seven years ear before I actual actus started to write it hut but all nl that time t pia play was developing developinG and nd maturing result resul wits was Wl that w when hen I i really eally Jey got ot do doto doto doto to war work I wrote rote the first three acts te ten days das and the last act In a 1 sin sin day cay I very quickly because wi wf me the process of ot writing Is m merely merely- rely t physical act of or transferring the though lo to the paper WrItes Write rte In Longhand I write everything r. In longhand an pIn play each character as I write speak aloud aoud ever every sentence before I put put It t paper I try tr to project myself Into t tp tl p personality of each characters character r. r and I Ican if Ie can speak a sentence naturally while that character I 1 know that I can cnn ma mathe mathe mal malthe the actor speak it naturally also A A. thousand copies o of a a book may sold In New York another thousand Chicago five hundred In San l Francl Franci four tour hundred in St. St Louis Luis and so on the towns ar are reached T sales keep the book booc alive e al and give gh-c publisher a c chance chanco an o to I work It Into a a. s 8 cess With a a. play It I Is entirely diff ent eat A pa play must Interest and unc com attention Immediately h Any drama t appealed to on only a thousand people New Now York would be bc playing to crp Its third and benches on Is night would woud r 55 I 11 5 I I I 4 In tho th storehouse at the end of ot the tho te week weck Nothing in the lie world is 80 so d das das das as a dead play Having tried to re rei some of ot them kent I know whereof I IThe i iThe The best workmanship In tho the world not savo sava a play lay which does docs os not tat the public Consequently as I do dowl dol wl wish h my work to bo be waste wasted I 1 am it Ie lew lewIng Ing to say to o myself What will bo be I appeal In th thin t play pay Why rhy should public wish to see sea i It If U I 1 can can P myself what appear to be B answers rs I wilts wilt the tho play giving t always the best that I have and flop hop that It will wIl be a for tor the sake sak l the lie players the manager and rayed myself And at least out ot of every times Umes I 1 am wrong S Special 2 25 cents rate rato to Lagoon return via 13 Bamber Bamberger er ElectrIc J from both Salt Sail Lako Lake and Ogden Ogdon C CO 7 j p. p m. m week days and 1 p p. p P Sundays Effective e July 5 |