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Writing Dialogue That Speaks

© Dave Brandl

What is theater without dialogue? Can a play exist without the accompanying words? Of course not. But just writing a bunch of words into sentences and paragraphs guarantees nothing. It is the crafting of the words that helps determine success or failure.

True, pantomime is frequently a major part of theatrical scenes. Action is important, too. But it is dialogue, especially sparkling dialogue, that separates average plays from extraordinary plays.

Many people can string words together to create sentences and paragraphs, and many writers create works of literature that last years and years. Writing dialogue in plays that not only propels the story, but sings into the ears of the audience, requires significant work and skill.

For example, in the world of English literature, Charles Dickens is among the giants, with works that have transcended classes and genres. Many of his works have been transcribed into plays, movies, and musicals. Obviously, writing talent is there.

However, to look at the novels as a source of raw material, generally requires a keen eye that can also look at what raw material can be kept and what must be modified for the stage.

For example, it is generally known that the beginning of A Tale of Two Cities begins, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," which actually covers a lot of imagery. However, that is only part of the opening sentence, which continues for a total of 119 words and is also the opening paragraph. Clearly, this is not ready to be called dialogue for a stage production. The opening sentence/paragraph of Oliver Twist is nearly 100 words long.

On the other hand, the opening sentence of David Copperfield is a mere, "Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show." The beginning of Great Expectations is about as long. And A Christmas Carol, probably the most adapted work of Dickens, begins simply with "Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that."

In fairness, Dickens was not writing plays. Also, these examples were not actual dialogue from the manuscripts. The point is that there exist vast examples of flowery, complex, and intricate language that, while powerful, full of imagery, and easy on the eyes, simply do not work as dialogue for a stage play.

Dialogue written for the stage needs to be concise, clean, and above all, comprehensible. The audience does not get the opportunity to go back and reread a passage. If they miss what is said, or are busy trying to decipher a previous speech, it is lost. Period.