BUSINESS STAGE
One of the problems in any categorization is the overlapping between and among various divisions. Many bits of business are representative of more than one type. The purpose of the list is not to provoke arguments about classification but to point out the principle jobs stage business can perform.
Storytelling Business
Storytelling business, sometimes called integral business, is usually provided by the playwright, for it is essential to the advancement of the plot or conflict of the play. Puck must cast his spell in Midsummer Night’s Dream if the play is to proceed. The stabbing of Caesar is basic to the conflict in Julius Caesar.
Integral business is usually the easiest to conceive and perform, for the playwright has provided the motivation and made a place in the script for the action.
Character Business
Well-written characters fit within the background of experience of the audience. There must be some link of understanding that makes the character comprehensible. Sometimes the character evokes sympathy, sometimes antagonism; but the character must be recognizable and conceivable. The characteristics differentiating one character from another usually involve business. The selection of business to elucidate the character may be trite and hackneyed, or it may be fresh and exciting, an artistic elaboration which increases the meaning and power of the role. Often by providing specific activity, the playwright helps to delineate the character, but usually the careful addition of business to fill out the character is the responsibility of the actor and the director.
