THEATRE JOURNAL Review

INTRODUCTION > REVIEW

'For those who aspire to write plays, an excellent site is Richard Toscan's The Playwriting Seminars: An Opinionated Web Companion on the Art & Craft of Playwriting. This site is updated regularly and has been around since 1995. The Playwriting Seminars is a treasure-trove of information, philosophy, and inspiration as well as the nuts-and-bolts of structure and analysis.

'On the surface, The Playwriting Seminars seems to have been written for the novice who is considering writing a play, or possibly as an aid to a beginning playwriting course -- there is much here that seems obvious to the well-seasoned playwright. Still, there are surprises: Toscan has compiled an impressive collection of quotations from playwrights, and he very effectively cites examples from films and plays to explain theoretical points -- transcripts from Woody Allen's Annie Hall and Marsha Norman's 'night, Mother to illustrate subtext, for example. He is able, moreover, to make his points accessible without degenerating into that familiar "cheery" tone so common on the Internet. Toscan's treatment of the subject is excellent, and his Playwright on the Job areas (manuscript formatting, working as a playwright, the business of playwriting) are very useful for giving students a clear plan of action and idea of what to expect after graduation. Finally, and most importantly, the site is extremely well-organized and presented: specific information is easy to access. One may choose to be led through the site and "instructed," or access specific topics using a hierarchically organized table of contents.'

-- THEATRE JOURNAL The journal of the U.S. Association for Theatre in Higher Education [December 1999]