DNA’ Essay Plan:
Explore the ways Kelly creates differences between characters and write about the importance of these differences.
DNA is a contemporary play written by Kelly, and the key characters include Jan, Mark, Phil, Richard, Leah and Adam. It sets out with Jan and Mark on the street at an unspecified time, discussing a mysterious death and finishes with Phil and Richard in the fields some weeks later, after Leah has left and most of the issues surrounding Adam’s death have been broken up. It is split up into Sections One to four and within each division there are separate scenes, although they are not split up by numbers.The play is full of confrontational situations; often focussing on one character addressing another with no response, and at times this creates scenes constructed of a series of monologues. This desire of communication builds powerful dramatic tension. This play has provoked intense discussion about right and wrong and our responsibilities towards each other.The core ideas of self and group identity, bullying, cruelty and responsibility should enable young people to develop opinions about the issues faced by the characters in this play. There are not many characters in ‘DNA’, but they are vital. Each one can be seen as representative of the types of people within ‘teenage’ society in the modern day. No adults appear in the play and ages of the character are not given either, although it can be assumed that they are all of a similar age in the same year at school together, and probably around 14-16 years old.
In this essay I am looking at various characters, stage management, language techniques and other aspects to explore the ways in which Dennis Kelly creates the difference between references and also explores the importance of differences.Kelly has created a variety of characters in DNA, and he presents these characters in a gang culture where he shows the hierarchy of the characters as follows: leaders, followers, bullies,...