Sorry Wrong Number ANALYSIS Radio and the Imagination

Sorry, Wrong Number ANALYSIS

Radio and the Imagination �The radio play relies on its audience’s imagination. �Each radio listener is wholly dependent on what he or she can hear.

Radio and the Imagination �Therefore sound effects- the sounds called for in the script of a play, radio or television program, or motion picture-have an enormous impact.

Radio and the Imagination �In addition to sound effects, the tone of voice of each actor expresses a range of feelings and evokes an immediate response in the listener.

Creating Suspense �In Sorry, Wrong Number Lucille Fletcher creates a suspenseful drama by communicating the growing fear and sudden terror of a nervous invalid. Suspense is the interest, excitement, and anticipation you feel about what will happen in the play.

Creating Suspense �During the action of the play, Mrs. Stevenson is apparently alone and friendless. �Her husband is supposed to be at his office and her maid has the night off. �The telephone is Mrs. Stevenson’s only connection with the outside world. The telephone, therefore, is the focus of the play’s suspense.

Creating Suspense �A major element of the play’s suspense is Mrs. Stevenson’s frustration at not being able to communicate, either because she cannot get her calls through or because she cannot get other people to believe her story.

Creating Suspense �Finally, in desperation at the prospect of being alone all night, Mrs. Stevenson calls a local hospital to hire a night nurse. �Once again, her efforts to communicate her distress are frustrated.

Creating Suspense �The supervisor, Miss Phillips, who must approve the assignment, has gone to dinner. During the conversation, Mrs. Stevenson hears someone pick up the receiver of her downstairs telephone. Up to this point, you cannot be sure if Mrs. Stevenson’s fears are valid or the result of a nervous, hysterical mind.

Creating Suspense �The presence of a stranger in the house confirms her fears and lets you know that those fears are valid.

Creating Suspense �The tension reaches a climax as Mrs. Stevenson desperately turns again to the phone, dials an operator, and asks for the police. By the time the operator puts her call through, it’s too late.

Tempo and Pace �The tempo of a play is the overall rate of speed at which the speeches and actions are performed. �Pace is the rate at which one particular speech is given.

Tempo and Pace �Tempo and pace are especially important in a radio play because all the information in the play is communicated to the audience through sound. �Tempo affects the suspense.

Tempo and Pace �The director of Sorry, Wrong Number must decide, for example, how long it will take Mrs. Stevenson to dial a number, how long to let the phone ring, and at what speed the actors should speak.

Acting for Radio �When preparing for any role, actors study the dialogue closely in order to understand the characters. �They then try to “become” the characters they are portraying.

Acting for Radio �For stage plays, that means an actor tries to make each onstage sound and movement suit the character that he or she is playing and communicate something about the character to the audience.

Acting for Radio �In a radio play, only the actor’s voice can bring the dialogue to life and communicate the personality or other features of the character to the listening audience.