“There is nothing new under the sun” – Ecclesiastes 1:9, New International Version


One can often stumble across one or several of these words in a discussion relating to a theatrical work while doing research: “Inspiration, “Imitation“, “Influence” and “Interpretation”.
As an IB Theatre Student, you’ll frequently have the word “Adaptation“ thrown at you as well.

Take a moment to think. You’ve seen theater performances, plays and films – read scripts, probably participated in a few workshops and do some acting yourself. When you’re asked to stage something, or to play a certain role, or given vague directions, the first thing your brain does is to jump to other productions you’ve seen/ read for ideas. Right?

Everything we’ve seen, read, and heard of influences the choices we make everyday. The theatrical world is no exception to this rule – past experience is the foundation on which you build up new ideas. Other’s works are the building blocks for your own ideas, so in that sense, there never is anything truly ‘new’. It’s simply a snowball effect, every person adding their personal 2 cents to the ever-growing pile J

“Art is not created in a vacuum – the idea, the form, the content, the technique, etc. can usually be traced to something or someone else.” – Mr. Lawrence Espinosa, my drama teacher

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