A good director

[jvoom]

Posted: 4/10/18 at 5:28pm

Hey everyone! I was watching some old theatre talk episodes and came across one where Terry Teachout mentioned Kenny Leon as an underrated director because he's not flashy or conceptual. Conceptual and flashy aside, what do you think makes a good director, especially in plays?

I've given it some thought though most of what I come up with refers to musicals - usually far more flashy than a play and where the direction is perhaps easier to spot.

Druid recently toured a production of Sive in Ireland and the final scene is one moment I can think of where I really appreciated the direction/staging - a giant mirror that hung above the stage slowly tilts downwards to reveal Sive's body floating in the a bog hole. Audible gasps all round.

As mentioned, it's really only moments of quite impressive theatrical effects or whimsically staged numbers in a musical I really notice direction so I'm genuinely interested to hear peoples thoughts. Thanks everyone, looking forward to reading some responses!

[JBroadway]

Posted: 4/10/18 at 6:12pm

A bold, creative spirit, and intelligent imagination can make good director in a flashy or unconventional productions.

But when it comes to the more standard, nitty-gritty makings of a good director, I think it has a lot to do with their ability to collaborate and communicate with all artists involved (especially the actors). They must be intelligent and detail-oriented. They have to have a good sense of pacing and physical space, and an understanding of each moment in the play, and how it fits once with the whole. They need to act as a translator from words on a page, to real-life, human action happening in front of the audience

[Loopin’theloop]

Posted: 4/11/18 at 7:55am

JBroadway said: "A bold, creative spirit, and intelligent imagination can make good director in a flashy or unconventional productions.

But when it comes to the more standard, nitty-gritty makings of a good director, I think it has a lot to do with their ability to collaborate and communicate with all artists involved (especially the actors). They must be intelligent and detail-oriented. They have to have a good sense of pacing and physical space, and an understanding of each moment in the play, and how it fits once with the whole. They need to act as a translator from words on a page, to real-life, human action happening in front of the audience"

This is worded beautifully!

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 4/11/18 at 8:30am

Different directors have different abilities and prioritize different aspects of the process. For me, as a producer, what I look for in a director is someone with range -- here meaning "the ability to work on productions of all sizes in all styles keeps one employed."  One may be better at, say, intimate musicals than multi-million dollar spectaculars, or they may be able to handle musicals in general, but can't go anywhere near straight plays. That's perfectly fine, as long as they are capable of making the attempt, even if what they are attempting is not within their comfort zone. What they do outside their comfort zone may suck, but at least they attempted to expand the horizons of their versatility.

Aside from that, regardless of personal idiosyncrasies or different approaches to the process, directing is pretty much the same whether you're great at it or you stink on ice. As the late Tom O'Horgan once said, "If you think that when I direct a show I get some sort of divine inspiration... well, that's not the way it works. You try something because you've done everything else and it didn't work out. Directing is no haphazard thing; rather, it is a complex series of challenges and compromises." 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/11/18 at 9:32am

It's all about creating a world and telling a story.  How one goes about that varies greatly.  It all takes GADS of communication.