They are all trapped in their small shuttered worlds Nobody truly communicates with anyone or understands anyone else. Analyse some of the dramatic devices used by Ayckbourn to explore this central social concern in Absu
"They are all trapped in their small shuttered worlds... Nobody truly communicates with anyone or understands anyone else." Analyse some of the dramatic devices used by Ayckbourn to explore this central social concern in Absurd Person Singular I am going to analyse how Alan Ayckbourn uses dramatic devices to show his concerns about modern society and communication. He principally expresses these concerns through the main six characters and reveals some of the flaws in modern culture, although the actors and producer may enhance certain parts of the play with specific emphasis and contribute some personal interpretations. I am also going to argue that true communication is existent in society, although most communication is deceitful, mainly when things are too difficult to admit. Dramatic devices are used throughout Absurd Person Singular, primarily in the form of off-stage action- generally using Dick and Lottie Potter, George the dog and, in the third act, Marion. Off-stage action is first created through Dick and Lottie in Act one. They are fun-loving, boisterous characters who can be a bit much to handle, "Is there a chance of sanctuary here?", and may be one of the reasons characters are constantly retreating to the kitchen. The Potters are naturally at ease when socializing and their ability to enjoy themselves makes the other, at first awkward with each other,
How does Ayckbourn present the contrast between Susan's fantasy family and her real family in 'Woman in Mind'. Explore the importance of this contrast to the play's central theme.
How does Ayckbourn present the contrast between Susan's fantasy family and her real family in 'Woman in Mind'. Explore the importance of this contrast to the play's central theme. In 'Woman in Mind' Ayckbourn uses Susan's creation of an idealistic fantasy family and more importantly the contrast of this 'perfection' with her reality to help portray Susan's emotional breakdown to the audience. The role of the fantasy family in this play is to emphasise the unhappiness and emotional turmoil in Susan'' real world as they generally appear at a point where Susan is in a particularly distressing situation with her real family. One of the ways in which Ayckbourn presents the contrast between the two families is with the use of the differing appearances. For example when the audience meets the fantasy family for the first time they are presented as "(tall, good - looking, athletic)", and Lucy's clothing is "(fresh, summery, rather timeless)". This is a complete contrast to the way in which the real family is presented "(an unattractive picture, entirely lacking the lightness and ease of her earlier family)". Immediately Ayckbourn has shown the fantasy family to be more ideal and suitable for Susan which hints that Susan is not at ease in reality , even though there has not yet been much insight into the causes of Susan's breakdown. The setting of 'Woman in Mind' is also essential
Alan Ayckbourn's concerns in "Gosforth'sFete" and how he achieves them.
Alan Ayckbourn's concerns in "Gosforth's Fete" and how he achieves them. "Gosforth's Fete" is the fourth play in a collection called "Confusions". The collection consists of five plays which are loosely linked and bring out various issues and concerns. All five of the plays share a common concern: relationship breakdown. The plays were set and written in 1977 by Alan Ayckbourn, one of the most creative and productive writers in England at the time, having written on average, one full-length play or comedy since 1965 up until 1986 where he took a two year break to direct and run a company at the National Theatre in London, returning to work in 1988. Alan Ayckbourn's technique is to usually take an ordinary situation and setting and play with it for entertainment, while drawing his attention to his serious concerns and heightening the awfulness of the concerns through comedy. I chose to write about "Gosforth's Fete" because Alan Ayckbourn shows his technique well in this play. Anything that can go wrong in the preparations for the fete does so, the same occurs between the people who try to put on the fete. This method of writing is called parallel structure. The play, which takes place in a marquee, has five characters: Mrs Pearce, the councillor; who is doing a talk at the fete. Milly, who helps organize the fete; Gosforth, who is responsible for the whole fete; the vicar,
'Ayckbourn is at his most serious when he is at his funniest'. For my coursework I am to provide information to support this statement, from the two plays 'Drinking Companion' and 'A Talk in the Park', both by Alan Ayckbourn.
Confusions Coursework Nick Jones 'Ayckbourn is at his most serious when he is at his funniest'. (Michael Billington) For my coursework I am to provide information to support this statement, from the two plays 'Drinking Companion' and 'A Talk in the Park', both by Alan Ayckbourn. * The main qualities that each character has is a sense of reality- these are the type of people that you might find anywhere you go, there is nothing unusual of special about any of them, so perhaps this makes it easy for the audience to relate to them. * The most comical parts of the plays are where the characters are in common situations and are encountering common problems, such as Beryl in 'A talk in the Park'. Beryl wants other people to listen to her problems but does not want to listen to other peoples, so an element of hypocrisy enters the play. * What people find funny is the way that Ayckbourn shows what people are really like, by showing their flaws in each play where as most play writes do not write so realistically. It is these flaws that Ayckbourn has highlighted and they are the main storyline in each of the plays. Basically, Ayckbourn is taking average style characters putting them in a situation where they will behave normally. From the outside people may not always be, as
Form and structure of Absurd Person Singular
Form and structure of Absurd Person Singular Plays are usually divided into acts and scenes. However in Absurd Person Singular we can clearly see three acts although there is evidently one scene in each act which in itself is a continuous sequence of events. Playwrights often have parallel scenes at different points in a play, or juxtapose two very different scenes to make a point. However Alan Ayckbourn juxtaposes the acts by having each act as the consecutive year therefore highlighting the change that we see. I find that Alan Ayckbourn has two or three plot lines going at once, and he uses the sub-plots to illuminate the main plot. The play is a farce with comical acts however he maintains to incorporate the serious undertones. The structure of the play is distinctively unique; it is not a one way play as each act is a story in its own right linked by past, present and future. The play also doesn't have a conclusion which illustrates Ayckbourns suggestion that comedy doesn't need a happy ending, just like real life doesn't. The form and structure of the play is the way in which Ayckbourn has decided to put across his intentions to the audience. Everything he does in the play has an intended reason and is for a specific meaning. Form and structure and normally generalized depending on the certain genre however I find Absurd Person Singular individual in its own right.