Good practice guidelines for dramatic works

Plays and other dramatic works
mightyfelix
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Post by mightyfelix »

JayKitty76 wrote: February 4th, 2019, 12:19 pm Hmm. Okay, I'll wait till I have more experience, then. I'm BCing 2 group projects currently and I do have a Solo going right now, so it is a lot of work :)
Thanks, Devorah, Anne, and Monika :thumbs:
I'm not sure if you saw it, but the new One Act Play Collection is started up now. Still in the Launch Pad, as I type this, but it may be finding its way over here soon.
ToddHW
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Post by ToddHW »

Moved One Act Play Collection 12 over here into Dramatic Works now.

viewtopic.php?p=1556640#p1556640

Thanks, Todd
sadclown
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Post by sadclown »

Looking forward to starting up a DR soon here! Glad to see that there are more defined 'rules' now. Back in the day, we were quite rogue little cowboys with our DRs! I BC'd Wizard of Oz way back, and it was so much fun! I'd love to see DRs of the rest of the Oz books that haven't had one done yet. Planning to record some various chapters etc. to remember how editing is done before I jump back into a DR, but I can't wait!
Jennifer
ToddHW
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Post by ToddHW »

I was asked about the editing I do to bring plays to life today and I provided the following response which I thought I should post here in case anyone else wants some thoughts on editing:

I love the editing process of bringing disparate reader files to life, and I work very hard to make them come out right.

I first off adjust the volumes of all files using the volume checker in Audacity, and then I cut and paste everything together non-critically, listening only to first/last words to make sure I have all the parts in order. That is just work.

Next the fun part: I very slowly go through the master file, first time I have heard all the words, and I picture actors on stage. Or even better, real people living the life occurring in the play. I speak the transition of lines from reader to reader to myself as they go by, adjusting the volumes and tempos to suit the ocassion. Regular size gaps and uniform volumes to handle natural conversation: my turn, your turn. I get the tempo from each speaker - leave enough gap that I can tell they are done speaking at the tempo they were talking (some of our readers have their characters speak fast, others very slowly so the gap is different length after each) and it is appropriate for the next speaker to politely assume it is their turn. Much of a play is like this.

Longer gaps when some question had been asked and the next speaker should be thinking about what to say, maybe drawing a breath, and then softly starting up (deamplified if necessary) with a confession or apology or thoughtful rumination. A bit of compromise required sometimes since our listeners can't see the visual expressions or shrugs that I am imagining taking place.

And for excitement or arguments, short gaps, barely visible in Audacity, particularly if the voices are distinct enough that I know a listener will be able to tell that a new speaker is taking over with no dead space in between. I often also amplify the beginning of the new speaker so it is really obvious that they are cutting off the other. I think ping-pong: bat, volley, volley, smash, return, backhand, wap!

And each time I back up and listen through the section, often with my eyes closed so I listen rather than read. It takes a long time, and the Undo key is my best friend. Actually my second best friend: a critical and highly engaged DPL listening with fresh ears is most important.

I have done a couple hundred plays at this point. My first 50 should probably be redone; I know my current ones are much better. But that is what makes it so much fun.

I'll be glad to help if you want to try some editing.

Thanks, Todd
ToddHW
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Post by ToddHW »

I had a question about how to edit. Here is what I do.

* Download everything from the MW.

* Open narrator file in Audacity and do a Save As to make it the master file with the correct final file name

* Open all the other reader files in separate Audacity windows. I have a double width display so I can have lottsa things open and still see them and the script at the same time. I adjust all of them so their volumes are compatible

* I then CUT snippets out of each file as appropriate and PASTE them into the master file, starting from the beginning of the script. I only listen to the beginning and ending of each snippet to make sure I have the right piece - I don't listen to everything yet. So it is critical that everything already be PL'd well.

NOTE: I say CUT, not COPY, so you don't lose your place in the reader files - the next bit in the file is always the next thing you see becuz you have removed stuff that you already pasted. (Just don't press Save and overwrite the original reader file - but if you do, just download the file again from the MW. By the way, an advantage of having separate windows rather than separate tracks in one big file is that you can use EDIT/UNDO if you need to in the separate files. (Wonder how he knows that? And that you can't do it with a big multi-track file?))

* I complete the rough assembly this way. Then I make a final pass adjusting the gaps between snippets and the volumes as I listen for the first time. (See posting above this one.) And I am done.

Glad to answer questions.

Thanks, Todd
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Post by thestorygirl »

ToddHW wrote: December 4th, 2019, 5:03 pm
I love the editing process of bringing disparate reader files to life, and I work very hard to make them come out right.
...
I first off adjust the volumes of all files using the volume checker in Audacity, and then I cut and paste everything together non-critically, listening only to first/last words to make sure I have all the parts in order. That is just work.

Next the fun part: I very slowly go through the master file, first time I have heard all the words, and I picture actors on stage. Or even better, real people living the life occurring in the play. I speak the transition of lines from reader to reader to myself as they go by, adjusting the volumes and tempos to suit the ocassion. Regular size gaps and uniform volumes to handle natural conversation: my turn, your turn. I get the tempo from each speaker - leave enough gap that I can tell they are done speaking at the tempo they were talking (some of our readers have their characters speak fast, others very slowly so the gap is different length after each) and it is appropriate for the next speaker to politely assume it is their turn. Much of a play is like this.

Longer gaps when some question had been asked and the next speaker should be thinking about what to say, maybe drawing a breath, and then softly starting up (deamplified if necessary) with a confession or apology or thoughtful rumination. A bit of compromise required sometimes since our listeners can't see the visual expressions or shrugs that I am imagining taking place.

And for excitement or arguments, short gaps, barely visible in Audacity, particularly if the voices are distinct enough that I know a listener will be able to tell that a new speaker is taking over with no dead space in between. I often also amplify the beginning of the new speaker so it is really obvious that they are cutting off the other. I think ping-pong: bat, volley, volley, smash, return, backhand, wap!

And each time I back up and listen through the section, often with my eyes closed so I listen rather than read. It takes a long time, and the Undo key is my best friend. Actually my second best friend: a critical and highly engaged DPL listening with fresh ears is most important.

I have done a couple hundred plays at this point. My first 50 should probably be redone; I know my current ones are much better. But that is what makes it so much fun.
OH, WOW! I did not realize the amount of work and love you put into these DR, Todd! Thank you for making them available! :clap: (I happen to think "Broken Hearts" was one of our recent best!)
realisticspeakers
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Post by realisticspeakers »

ToddHW wrote: June 25th, 2020, 7:23 am I then CUT snippets out of each file as appropriate and PASTE them into the master file...
Is it easier for you to have the lines from the individual character files separated by approximate play/real time, or does it not matter and one line after another with some spacing is just as easy to work with?
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ToddHW
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Post by ToddHW »

It is easiest for me just to have line after line with similar sized gaps between the lines in a reader file rather than them trying to guess how long the gaps will end up in the final file and leave that amount of space. (Note that if everyone guessed correctly and left the right size gaps, each reader file would be as long as the completed act - at least until that character was done for that act. Big waste of our database server space.)

Two reasons:

1) The guesses about how long the gaps between your lines in the final act file will end up being don't matter. Audacity does a great job of effortlessly expanding or shrinking space in a file when you paste in a new selection.

2) I like being able to see multiple lines, see how many lines are left to do for each character when I am assembling the master file and have all the reader files open. Having the open files show me long gaps without lines that I'd have to scroll past to find the next line in the file would be a nuisance.

Thanks, Todd
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Post by Salvationist »

I have been preparing to solo BC my first dramatic reading on LibriVox, which I am planning to be a small collection of four noncanonical Sherlock Holmes short stories. I have already contacted Peter Why, and he has agreed to reprise the role of Holmes from the dramatic reading of "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" that was completed last year. Thus far, he is the only person I have discussed my proposed project with on LibriVox.

I have been recording parts for dramatic readings and other projects on LibriVox for a while now, and I recently finished BCing my first one-act play in the one-act play collection that is currently nearing completion. I have also edited brief dramatic readings on two occasions, one of them being the one-act play I BC'd. I am even co-BCing a dramatic reading ("The Life and Death of Mr. Badman") with Larry Wilson right now, although he is doing the heavy lifting.

I would like to launch the short story collection soon. However, I just read the BC Readiness Quiz, and I don't know all the answers. Am I not ready yet? Is there an answer sheet I can consult?
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ToddHW
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Post by ToddHW »

I thought I'd take a look at the average times to complete Plays and DRs over the years at Librivox. This could be useful for folks thinking of starting a project and wondering how long it might take.

NOTE: The average times are NOT the same as the worst case times to date, which are 363 weeks for the longest Play and 408 weeks for the longest DR. These projects are not fondly remembered. (In case you are interested, the shortest Play and the shortest DR each took less than a week.)

Here are the averages weeks to complete using data collected by dlolso21. The year is the year that the project started - not the ending date. That puts the hit for a long running project back to the year when it started.

Start/ Plays/ DRs
Year /(wks) /(wks)
2006 / 98 / 142
2007 / 160 / 91
2008 / 116 / 57
2009 / 23 / 212
2010 / 32 / 44
2011 / 20 / 40
2012 / 19 / 45
2013 / 33 / 62
2014 / 53 / 79
2015 / 52 / 60
2016 / 34 / 62
2017 / 23 / 48
2018 / 32 / 49
2019 / 24 / 49
2020 / 22 / 33
2021 / 17 / 22

Looking at this, I'd plan on 6 months for Play and a year for a DR.

Thanks, Todd
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Post by hmpecker »

What's a BC?
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Post by annise »

A Book Coordinator - the person who sets up and does the day-to-day running of a particular project.

Anne
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Post by redrun »

I'm just starting out with DRs for The Hardy Boys (tracking thread here), and it looks like this is the place I should address some of my questions on protocol.

I see that there's precedent for asking folks to reprise roles in series or a re-make. In this series, nearly all of the major, and several of the largest supporting parts, are recurring characters between books. So each new book will have a few large supporting characters that are new, and many small roles, but the primary roles will likely all be filled with returning readers.
This is a great problem to have! I'm glad folks would want to return, I think it's fun for me and will be pleasant for the readers, but I want to see if someone has advice for this.

Would it be best to use the first-plus-one post to list recurring roles that are being held in reserve for a certain time? What do folks consider a reasonable period for this - a couple weeks, a month?
Or should I PM anyone who's expressly stated they'd like to return, and wait for confirmation (or non-response) of each part before launching the project and confidently stating that they're claimed?

I know LV generally avoids casting things too much in advance, so that everyone gets a chance to participate. So, that's why I ask.
In present case, I'm effectively accepting claims for both of the first two books at once (where people expressly say they'd like to return), since I plan to start them both very closely together. Any advice for future handling is welcome.
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Post by Salvationist »

I am very excited about these Hardy Boys DRs! I don’t know what the standard duration is for reserving roles for reprisals, but as one of the prospective readers, I would greatly appreciate a PM to ping me when a sequel launches.

As Todd mentions in a post above, DRs generally take a year to BC. Considering this length of the project overall, a month seems reasonable to me to wait for a claim by a returning reader.
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TriciaG
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Post by TriciaG »

My opinion, not policy:

I personally don't care, when listening to a dramatic reading, whether or not the characters are read in the same voice between different books. And it does seem a bit unfair to a newer-but-great reader to not be able to read a more major character because all the plum roles are taken... and doubly so if the reader of a plum role has either disappeared or isn't interested in continuing the role, leading to a delay in the project while the role confirmation is pending.

To expedite projects, I don't think waiting a month for a reader to confirm their claim is reasonable. Yes, a project may take a year. But if you wait a month for confirmation, that's one less month for the reader to turn in their sections. :P If you want, I'd say you could either PM the readers to let them know the new project is launched, or simply post the new link in the old thread to direct readers to the next volume.

My two cents, which isn't worth much nowadays. We don't even have pennies here, so I guess I have to contribute 'em by debit card. :roll:
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