Yesterday I talked about how much the opening of the pilot of FOSSE/VERDON focuses on Gwen, the character we are less likely to know and also our way into the series, really. The show is clearly a two-hander, but the internal life of Bob Fosse is rarely to be found anywhere near the surface.
The show tells us who he is and what he's dealing with it in part via flashbacks, some of them just a moment that create a sense of the character's internal tension; and a few of them are much longer, more involved.
In large part, though, we learn who Fosse is from his choices, like his constant philandering with the women of his casts, without ever really showing any remorse for any of it. Or calling on Gwen time and again to help save his projects while not coming through for hers.
It's a great technique. There's no better way to reveal character than through the character's actions. Choices propel story, create complications, and demonstrate wants or priorities. At the same time, in the case of a character like Fosse--who so rarely offers any kind of introspection or self-sharing--actions give the audience room to interpret for themselves, which can make for a much more satisfying experience. It feels like we're building the story with the actors and creators.
But in FOSSE/VERDON, we do get a couple moments where Fosse reveals himself. And they're worth considering for anyone trying to work out how to allow your character to be self-revelatory without it seeming artificial, convenient or momentum-killing.
Here's one such moment, from the second episode. Fosse is trying to find a way to end Act One of SWEET CHARITY. And he's just been played the song we hear ongoing in the background.
We can talk about how short the scene is--limiting its ability to kill momentum or turn into some kind of monologue--or how it's a scene with some conflict--always a good place to hide any kind of exposition. But to my mind the key to the success of this scene as self-revelation is that Fosse's goal here is not self-revelation. This is a scene about finding the right number. Everything he says is at the service of that goal.
In 107 Fosse is watching the cast do "All that Jazz" and it's driving him nuts. Eventually he figures out the problem, and once again we get a mini-monologue focused on the scene, who these characters are what they're doing up here. And yet what allows him to speak with such insight is that the whole time he's really talking about himself.
NOW YOU TRY!
So, how can you use this? Let's apply author Steven Levenson's technique.
Think about a character you're writing, and a reveal you need them to offer at some point. I'm writing Spider-Man, and I need to reveal that he's afraid of having his heart broken by Mary Jane.
Now, turn your eyes away from that self-disclosure for a moment and consider your character's talents and passions. For Fosse, everything is about the theater. What is your character "all about"? Spidey is all about saving lives. Being a super hero. Making cool science gadgets. Soaring through the air.
Now, can you come up with a problem related to that "all about" that you can use as a way of delivering the reveal or self-disclosure you need? Spidey has to rescue a kid who is thrown from a plane. It seems impossible, but he accomplishes it. And when MJ asks how he did that, he explains it's all science. Velocity, acceleration, wind speed, torque--you put those things together correctly, and you will succeed, no matter how crazy it seems on the surface. And it's the area where he's happiest for precisely that reason. He'd rather save 100 babies thrown out of planes than...and MJ fills in the rest.
(Then Spidey asks Dr. Strange to make everyone forget he's Peter Parker, and Dr. Strange is like, Dude, We are not doing One More Day. And comic fanboys breathe a sigh of relief while everyone else is like, BRING US TOBEY.
Really not sure about that new trailer...)
Don't make the scene about the reveal. Make the reveal organic to the story and the character's talents/desires. Maybe also consider flipping the tone--Fosse bares his soul in the scene above while talking about a happy dance number. And keep it tight--in my experience anyway, the longer my characters talk the more pedantic and OTN they're going to get.
