How to Organize a Dramatic Play

Choose a play. You may already have a play chosen for you, but if not, pick something you feel would work well with the people you will be working with. For example, a school play cannot have adult themes, and school children need to be able to understand and convincingly act it.

Have auditions. This will involve interested people coming in and reading a few lines of the script in front of you. Choose the people who fit best in the roles of the play. For example, having an old, frail lady cast as an energetic young boy will not work.

Give the cast their scripts, and hold a read-through. A read-through involves the entire cast being present and reading the play aloud. This lets the entire cast familiarize themselves with the play, and ask questions about anything they are confused or concerned about. The actors have to learn their lines within a limited time, usually a couple of weeks.

Organize rehearsals. Give a copy of the rehearsal schedule to the entire cast. If possible, rehearse in the space you know the play will be performed in, so the actors can familiarize themselves with where they'll be acting. If the play chosen is a musical, you will need to organize additional rehearsals for singing and dancing practice.

Choose their costumes and set. Choose costumes that fit the character and time period the play is set in. For example, an aristocrat from the Victorian era would not be wearing 70's disco pants. It is also important to do this for the set - a Medieval princess would be in a castle, not a modern hairdressing salon, unless specifically stated otherwise. Some plays require a lot of set and others don't - if the set needed isn't specified in the script, read through the play for cues about what set is needed. For example, if you notice at one point a character sits down and pours a cup of tea, you need a chair, a teapot, a tea cup, and a table to put the teapot on.

Advertise your show and sell tickets. This can involve putting up posters, advertising online, and using your community newsletter, among other methods. You can choose to charge for tickets, or let people in free of charge, but make sure you state which one you're advertising, and whether people can buy tickets in advance or whether tickets will only be sold at the show.

Sit back and enjoy the show! You have completed the guide book.