Clearly I’m not as disciplined as Julie Powell or my job is simply swallowing me up these past few days. I’ve got Michael Wright’s book Playwriting in Process, and I’m working on his exercises or “etudes.” The first one I did was very helpful in showing me how dialogue can say much more than just the words on the paper. My 6-line improv was of an older couple playing chess in a contemporary home, filled with artwork and eclectic furnishings:

***

She makes a final decisive move and seems satisfied that she has won–yet again.

He: (tired and not at all angry) I hate this game. (Beat) I don’t know why I let you talk me into playing again.
…
She: (good-naturedly) Of course, you hate it, you always lose. But, it’s good for the memory… like visits…from Harry (she trails off).

He: I promise he won’t stay very long this time (Beat) (She rolls her eyes) Really… he sounded so desperate when he called–his apartment flooded, his sister’s traveling, his brother won’t take his calls. He’s got just enough gas in the trashmobile to get over here. He’s storing his guitar collection in the car–if you can imagine! At least he doesn’t have a dog.

She: If I know Harry, he’ll show up with a bottle of…

He: (interrupting her and laughing) a lovely bottle of Sticks Yarra Valley Pinot Noir..

She: And a new tin of Earl Grey tea.( She shakes her head.) Don’t forget to tell him I’m fatally allergic to his favorite incense. I sneezed for two weeks after he left the last time.

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Tonight my inspiration for studying Arthur Miller is on TV. The main character is more disciplined than I am. Buckle down.

I completed my first 6 line exercise today!

While traveling to New York and Adrian, Michigan, it occured to me that I could create a three-dimensional model of the process of writing a play. Besides this blog, I could shoot photographs that would serve as a storyboard for the scenes in the play. I just have to figure out the perfect platform that would house the script draft, the photos and a link to the music and this blog, too.

Happened to sit at the same table as Kerry Graves who teaches play writing at Siena. She brought two books for me !

Took almost a week off from Miller. Busy with family trip to Mackinac Island where the pace is slow and the water was warm. Almost finished with the biography. Miller got off track marrying MM and trying to write while involved with her. The Misfits was somewhat of a disaster and she died shortly thereafter. I think my next step is getting “Write that Play” from the UM library. Then, I’ll study Ibsen’s “Enemy of the People.” Miller often did extensive research. He visited Salem, Massachusettes for several weeks before he wrote “The Crucilbe.” So, I think I’ll study the garage band phenomenon as background–more specifically Iggy Pop, The Rationals, etc. A recent fundraiser for the lead singer–whose name escapes me now–would be a good scene. I have already written Ronnie Ashton’s funeral scene. I imagined a screen with slide show and video running above the casket.

Not much Miller work today–100 degrees out and I worked on an essay with Sue. We brainstormed about our article for the Journal of Catholic Education. We are going to begin by shaping our own narratives, sharing them, then we’ll synthesize.

Interesting to be reading about the HUAC and McCarthy on the same day that Michele Bachman declares we have “card-carrying” Muslim extremists in the government. What an idiot. I taught The Crucible for years and it’s hard to imagine that anyone would go down this road again.

Went through a dusty box of books from our move 5 years ago and found a copy of Ibsen’s Enemy of the People. When I finish Miller’s biography, I’ll work on that. Not that a play about a garage band’s lead guitar player could possibly be as lofty as Ibsen’s–it’s just taking your inspiration from good places. Why not be inspired by the best?

Kazan, the director, of Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” used lighting and the two valises to show how Willie Lowman was weighed down by life. Got me thinking about posters. It seems if I can visualize the poster, I can write the play. Maybe a guy carrying a guitar and a backpack?