This abstract offers a brief description of the creative process behind “Coffee Brake”,including motivation, source of inspiration and creative methods. The main topic this play seeks to present and call to attention is “Café Culture”, a unique mode of interaction involving estranged intimacy in modern city life within a specific area: cafés. The script was completed with the help of field observation, interviews, and the consultation of existing research in the area of social psychology.
There are two main parts in this dissertation: the methods and resources in the first half, and the script in the second half. Part one includes the following three chapters:
Chapter 1 introduces the background of this scriptwriting endeavor. ''The Motivation'' explains the title of this play and “Café Culture”. The story was inspired by field research in “Café Culture” and by the playwright's life observation and personal experience.
Chapter 2 addresses the writing methodology, which includes two sections: (1) Script Analysis; and (2) Character design. In Section (1), “Script Analysis”, four methods are used and introduced as follows: a general outline of the story; the structure of the story; an analysis of the plot; and an analysis of specific plot points. The analysis mostly follows the scene order, explaining writing techniques and plot settings. Section (2), “Character Design”, is also based on scene order; which includes: the appearance of the characters; a description of their personalities; and a chart of their relationships.
Chapter 3 deals with creative concepts. It details the writing process, the writing experience and my way of formulating the ideas behind the writing, offering a detailed description of the difficulties that arose during the writing process and how they were resolved.
Part two consists of the script of “Coffee Brake”.
The script is written as an environmental theater production with the intention of tearing down the fourth wall that separates the stage and the audience, using a real-life coffee shop to create a more intimate experience for both audience and performers. The play consists of nine scenes with an estimated running time of 70 minutes.
