NEW & AGAIN . . . The Character Generated Plot On-line writing course offering for Prose Fiction  and  Drama writers* “EVERY QUESTION WILL BE ANSWERED EVERY PROJECT WILL ADVANCE EVERY VOICE WILL BE HEARD” Discover the difference between Story and Plot. nine weeks/eighteen hours, beginning January 19, 2008 All you need is a high-speed connection . . . *A special rate applies for senior artists and past workshop participants. Horse High, Bull Strong, Pig Tight   in France! Patrick Verschueren's production of Isabelle Famchon's translation of HH, BS, PT Trop haut pour le cheval starring Serge Turpin opened November 15, '07, at  La Fabrique Ephéméride Val De Reuil, Normandy. Plays the Canadian Cultural Centre in Paris January 17, 2008. Montreal Gazette,  July 21, '07 "The supremely creative Kent Stetson doesn't lack for praise, but his work's too rarely seen." What is a Canadian...? McLelland & Stewart Ltd. publishes 43 answers. Atelier la Roque Alric Writers' workshop Provence, France   Spring, 2008 The 2006 Bermuda Lecture Famous for Fifteen Minutes

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THE HARPS OF GOD

Winner;
The Governor General's Literary Award,
English Drama.

<> Jury Citation: "In The Harps of God, Kent Stetson creates a new theatrical language -- both authentic to the Newfoundland idiom and as powerful and economic as poetry. An epic tragedy in three acts, the play explores faith and meaning and pays tribute to the survival of a people and a nation. With this masterful work, Kent Stetson has raised the bar to a new level in Canadian playwrighting. "

The Governor General of Canada

 presents Drama Laureate

KENT STETSON

with the Governor General's Literary Award for

The Harps of God

Myth, poetry and dramatic metaphor are the base elements of theatre. Myths are the stories we tell ourselves when we seek to understand our individual and collective purpose; poetry is the language with which we address our higher selves, our gods. Dramatic metaphor arises from an intuitive perception of the similarities in dissimilars.  For a moment, as an audience member I am not simply like the person on stage, or screen; he or she knows what I know, sees what I see and, most importantly, feels what I feel precisely as I feel it. I am the person on stage, and that character is me.
 

E. M. FORSTER tells us the function of all art, particularly writing, is simply expressed with these two words: "Only connect."

We uncover the stories contemporary audiences tell themselves, as they go about the business of being alive. We craft, polish then hold a 3d mirror to reflect contemporary life; we connect physically, spiritually, intellectually and, most importantly, emotionally with live audiences in the living theatre and cinema.

This might be the playwright/screenwriter's job description: connect the major characters in your work to the narrative, each other and to every member of your audience. Connect the images, symbols and urges of the collective unconscious to the living, spoken word. Connect the word to the action on the stage, and the image on the screen. Connect the central theme of your work of dramatic fiction to its dramatic action; in the process, create theatrical/cinematic metaphor.

In short, connect your's with the head, heart and soul of every member of your audience.

<>We have reached the highest level of our art when theatrical and cinematic metaphor — the truths for which all audiences yearn — emerge.

I work as a story editor/playwright/screenwriter, have writen one and two act plays, (comedies, dramas and several hybrids), a classically structured three act tragedy, several feature screenplays (available on request) and short form pieces for the large and small screens.  Resume

Here are some examples of my work for the theatre;

Comedy: Click   Playwright's Workshop Montreal to read the complete text  of my first comedy, Queen of the Cadillac, "An important play by an outstanding playwright..." Ray Conlogue, The Globe and Mail.   

Read excerpts from two recent comedies:  Just Plain Murder  and  Horse High, Bull Strong, Pig Tight.

"Through his character and kindred devices, Stetson makes his play  as thoughtful and intelligent as it is amusing. Stetson's dialogue is sharp, his descriptive imagery is painterly in its artfulness whether he's evoking the fiery demise of a tarpaper shack or the sparkling ascent of partridges emerging from a snow bank."     Sean McQuaid, The Buzz: Feb/2001 Horse High, Bull Strong, Pig Tight Citation, and Photos form the Premiere

I enjoy a rewarding life in film and the theatre as playwright, screenwriter, director, and dramaturg/story editor.

I strive to expand an intuitive sensibility with meticulous attention to craft.

Currently, I have work in various phases of development, headed for production in several Canadian theatres; and I'm working as script consultant on a major motion picture here in Montreal, while developing new works for the big screen, the contemporary urban comedies Ringfinger and Worry: The Movie.

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Theatre and Cinema:
First Cousins or Fraternal Twins

We sense transformation in contemporary theatre and cinema. The myth and metaphor diminished social realism and psychological naturalism prevalent in the 20th century no longer fully satisfy audiences, or many of the writers who serve them. Now a deeper human yearning, expressed in the realm of the mytho-poetic, engages and intrigues — pulls us forward. No art form is better equipped to handle this deep urge for intellectual and spiritual exploration of humankind's higher self than drama.

Theatre emerged from human consciousness with profound expressive force. Drama's exact purpose is to blend myth, poetry and narrative in one vessel, then elevate the potion to the gods. 

Whether you write for the theatre, the cinema, radio or television (or, like me, all four) the dramatic forms, story telling technique and the manner of presentation change, but the basic principles of dramatic narrative structure apply. Inspiration and intuition supported by craft lead to enlightenment.

Kent Stetson

Photo by Copthorne MacDonald

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