So, you’ve found the perfect text to adapt into a play. Now you’ve reached the real challenge – how to go about the actual adaptation. There are a few things you should keep in mind as you get started on moving from the page to the stage.
Text Length Vs. Script Length
It’s an unavoidable fact that prose is much denser than drama. If you try to tackle a 200-page novel without paring it down significantly, your script will probably turn into an epic, never-ending play. It is commonly acknowledged that the ideal length of prose text to develop into a 2-hour feature film is about 10-15 pages (i.e. a short story), and the same goes for theatre.
If you are embarking on your first stage adaptation, then, you may want to make your attempt with a shorter work than a full-length novel. And keep in mind that you may not get to address every character, setting, or plot point from the original text.
Narration to Stage Direction
Much of the exposition of a text often becomes a part of the stage direction in a script, but again, this is something you need to watch for. One of the most important parts of a stage play is the interaction that occurs between characters, and while stage directions may pertain to character interactions, it is easy to go too far with them.
You also need to remember that once a play is written, it will be interpreted differently by each and every director who works with it. It’s fantastic to have a specific vision of your play as the playwright, but it is also important to allow the people who choose to produce your play the freedom to, well, “play” with it, approach it from different angles, and put their own spin on it.
If you are overly specific with stage directions in a script, one of two things is likely to happen. Either the producing company will throw all of your stage directions out the window (including the important ones you always want to be a part of the show), or the company will hesitate, and possibly decide not to produce your script at all if they do not feel they have the resources to do so.
Staying True to Your Interpretation
In order to avoid any of the above issues, the best thing that you can do before starting an adaptation is decide what you want to say to your audiences with this particular slant on the story. This will probably mean paring down the original text significantly, but in the end, if your message is strong and clear, it will still be an accurate representation of the original text because it will give to the audiences what you found to be the strongest part of the text.
For a couple of quick tips on selecting a text that is stage appropriate, see Selecting a Source for Stage Adaptation.
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