Character Worksheet

Before completing this questionnaire, you must do the following:

Read the whole play.

● Write down everything other characters in the play say about your character.
● Write down everything your character says about themselves.

These are the things that you know.

● Write down all the things you want to know that the play doesn’t tell you (i.e.,
how old are they? When did they meet this person they are in love with?).

These are the things you want to know.

Then do the questionnaire below and plug in your answers based on what you know
and what you must decide that the script doesn’t tell you.

1. What is the character’s full name?

2. How old are they?

3. What is their gender? What is their gender identity? How has this shaped their
life? What have they been given or not given based on their gender? Has their
gender limited or helped their goals in life?

4. What are some exceptional or important physical characteristics they have (i.e.,
they’re blind or deaf, they’re differently abled, they have scars, they have tattoos,
they have exceptional beauty that everyone talks about)? Have they been
discriminated against based on their appearance in any way? Have they been
treated better because of their appearance? How has all of this affected them?
4a) What is their image of themselves? Is it accurate?

5. Where did they grow up (town, city, state, country, kind of home)? How did this
environment – or place – affect them? What does the word “home” mean to
them? Did they grow up with money – or in poverty? Are they wealthy –
aristocracy? What’s their status or class? How did this affect them?
5a) If they grew up with money, how has this privilege affected them? Are they
aware of their privilege? How? What role do they believe their wealth and
 privilege should take in their life, and in the lives of others?

6. Did they grow up with both parents? One parent? Are they an orphan – are they
adopted? Are they a legitimate or illegitimate child? Are they acknowledged and
loved by their parents? Ignored? The favorite? The black sheep?
6a) If they are adopted, how has that impacted their life? Their perception of
themselves? Their perception of their family? Their perception of the world?

7. Did they/Do they have siblings? Are they close to those siblings? Mortal
enemies with their siblings? Where do they fall in the line (i.e., youngest, oldest,
middle, part of a huge family)?

8. Were they brought up religiously?

9. Do they still observe that religion?

10. Do they believe in a god or gods or goddesses of some sort? Are they spiritual?
What do they believe in, on a spiritual level? How does that belief or lack of
belief shape their life? How does that belief or lack of belief change as the play
progresses?

11. Did they receive an education? Go to school? Study a trade or a craft? For how
long? How smart are they? What do they excel at?
11a) If they have had access to a good education, are they aware of that
privilege? What role do they believe education should take in their life – and in
the lives of others?

12. What is their work experience? How long have they had to work a job? What
kind of jobs have they worked? What is their work ethic like?

13. What do they believe in? What core beliefs do they live their life by? What core
experiences shaped their beliefs? What person or event shaped the path they
are on right now? (How are these beliefs different than question #11 – or are
they?)

14. What are their moral values? Do they drink? Smoke? Do drugs? Steal? Kill?
Are they loyal? Are they trustworthy? Do they lie? What situation might force
them to lie? What situation might force them to do something immoral?
 15. What is their experience (either direct or indirect) with mental illness? Are they
aware of the illness? Fighting it? Succumbing to it? Treating it? How much
denial do they have around it?
15a) What is their experience with addiction (And that means addiction of
any kind: alcohol, drugs, food, sex, love, approval… whatever)? Are they
aware of the addiction? Fighting it? Succumbing to it? Treating it? How
much denial do they have around it?

16) Have they ever been in love? Are they in love now? Are they monogamous or a
player? What are their ideas and ideals about love and romance?

17) What is their experience with and ideas about sex? Did they have a lot of partners
in their life? One? None?
17a) How do they see themselves sexually? Do they let themselves be a
sexual being? Is their sexuality frightening to them? Repressed?
Expressed? How?

18) If they have been married, what are they like in a marriage? What role do they
play? What dynamics do they have with their spouse? Is/was the marriage happy?

19) Do they have children? What are they like as a parent? How did parenthood come
about? Was it planned or a surprise? Wanted? Feared? What mistakes are they
afraid of making as a parent? What mistakes have they made? What are their
successes as a parent?

20) Have they ever fought in a war? Have they ever fought another person? How did
that experience shape them? When they do fight, how do they fight? What are their
weapons of choice (it could be words)? What is the impact of war and/or violence on
their lives?

22) Have they ever lost someone close to them? What is their experience with death?
Have they seen it? Are they close to it? Are they scared of it? Ready for it? Asking for
it? If they have lost someone, how did that experience affect them?

23) What are their flaws? What mistakes have they made? What bad decisions have
they acted out on?

24) Do they have regrets? Things they wanted to do or achieve that they didn’t? What
happened? What do they regret and why?
25) What makes them angry? How do they express that anger? Or do they?

26) What are they attracted to? How do they express that attraction? Or do they?

27) What gives them joy? How do they express that joy? Or do they?

28) Who is the most important person in their life? Why? How long have they known
this person? Can they tell this person everything? Who do they confide in? Is there no
one? Is it us?

29) What are their secrets? How long have they had them? Do any of them get
revealed in the course of the play? How fiercely do they protect their secrets? Do
these secrets become an obstacle?

30) Are they an introvert or an extrovert? Shy? Outgoing? Funny? Serious? A flirt? A
prude? Are they open or closed off? Are they able to show vulnerability? When was
the last time they cried?

31) What masks do they wear? What don’t they show to the world? What do they use
to hide – humor? Anger? Toughness? Meanness? Silence? Their brain or their
brawn?

32) Do they lead from their heart or their head or their muscle?

33) Are they impetuous? Practical? Do they go for the spontaneous moment or do they
plan it all out?

34) What are their prized possessions – what would they take with them if their home
was on fire?

35) What would you find in their pockets or purse – or on their person – each day?

36) What is their greatest fear?

37) What is their biggest wish?

38) What desire or want or goal drives them through the whole play?

39) If this character were a...

What would they be? And WHY?

40) And finally, the most fun question: If this character had a theme song, what song
would it be and WHY?