Free Write 10/24

Last Thursday, after sitting in a dental office for over an hour getting a root canal, I attended Miami Children's Theatre's production of Fame. It was incredible!!! While watching the show, I thought about everything the actors must have done to prepare for their roles. Did they have their own 1-3 steps to analyze and correctly portray their characters? How did they know exactly how to act out their characters, while putting a little bit of themselves into it aswell? 
The role of Carmen Diaz, played by Ana Campos, was done very well. Ana played the character just how she was meant, while adding a bit of her own personality and touch in there too. The show was so well put on; the same line is still ringing through my head-- "Fame- I'm gonna live forever." I feel such a longing to be at PA, to be a part of it, to attain the Fame. 

Agreed?

Although A Practical Handbook for the Actor is one of the best, most spot-on handbooks I have ever read, the authors are very demanding and straightforward. When it comes to acting, the actor must have some room to play with their character/scene. Acting is never just black and white, there is so much more to it. 

It seems that it would be very tough to make a numbered list of how to act; even if it were possible, it mustn't be very accurate.

I do not agree with the authors' "1,2,3" steps of how to analyze a scene. They state that by following the three steps, the same way each time, they will lead to a performance that follows the playwright's intentions. However, would that not be boring for the actor? Following the same steps every time before performing a scene. A bored actor leads to a boring scene. 

One of the best parts of acting is the creativity-- the chance to make a character grow and develop because of the actor's choices-- choices that are not always the same.

Although the "1,2,3" list is a great outline for performing a scene, it would not be detrimental to a scene if it is not followed the same way each time.

10.10.10...... Do something my book recommends

1. What is the character literally doing?
2. What is the essential action of what the character is doing in this scene?
3. What is that action like to me? It's as if...


According to A Practical Handbook for the Actor, this is the key to analyzing a scene. If always employed correctly, it will lead to an excellent performance to the playwright's and the actor's liking.
As the authors recommend, I took one of the scenes I am currently working on and thoroughly analyzed it, following the guidelines they mentioned. It is an ensemble scene entitled "In Facebook Wii Trust" from the play of the same name. 

In this scene, I play the mother of 2 boys and a girl, sometime in the future, where technology has taken over, and books and other simple things have become obsolete.
I asked, what is my character literally doing? and found that "Mom" is trying to keep the family intact through texting and facebook.
As an answer to the second question, I decided that, she is literally just trying to live life as normally as possible as her eldest son is being taken to "The Facility".
Finally, responding to the final question, it's as if I've been placed in a school in a different country where I do not speak the language, and I am trying to get by, as normally as possible, without attracting too much attention to myself, while still attempting to get back home.
From throughly analyzing this scene, I feel much more in tune with the character.

Free Write- To Act or Not to Act? That is Not a Question.

"To act means to do."

         This week, A Practical Handbook for the Actor has taught me all about physical action onstage. According to the preceding quote, for acting to be successful, one must always have something specific to do, or else you stop acting.

          Actions must be: physically capable of being done, fun, specific, tested in the scene partner, have a "cap" (or end goal), and be in line with the intentions of the playwright. They should not be: errands, manipulative, or presuppose a physical or emotional state.
          I found this interesting because, before, I did not know how much specificity it took to make an action plausible and mean something. Looking back at scenes I have seen or been in, I agree that, yes, they were all very specific and very purposeful. I guess I just did not realize this before because it had always been a given.
          Also, I used to think acting was just something you did onstage-- you could just get up and pretend something and there you were, acting. However, this is not true at all. Acting is an art that takes years to master. There is so much thought and work that goes into it; it would be next to impossible to do it flawlessly your first time.
         All these years I thought it was so simple.
         Knowing that there is actually much more to it than meets the eye makes acting even more appealing to me.