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Getting in character

Question:

Well, I think maybe people like myself confuse their passions with emotions in acting. This may be an irrelative parallel, but when I play my guitar…it comes with feeling, and passion. After years of playing it’s something that’s not soo technical as it is human. Any feedback on this ? Maybe when I understand this concept …my guitar playing will get better..he ehe he! — David Gizzi Web Site Address: ICQ #: 14385037 Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – You can’t act a feeling anyway, David. Feelings are results. You can’t act results. The idea is to figure out what you want in a scene or monologue. Who are you talking to? Why are you telling him this? What is the negotiation? Ed Hooks Go Ed!!! So much rhetoric nowadays centers around emotions (listen to practically any interview with any working actor, not to mention discussions in rehearsal), and they are, for the most part, useless as acting tools. (I recently gave a workshop in which, for two and a half hours, I constantly referred to the uselessness of emotion as an acting tool, and afterwards, when I opened the floor for questions, the questions were all about emotion!?!) I rarely run into anyone who feels this way — and suddenly there’s Ed. (Of course, you seem to have been here the whole time. I’ve only recently arrived.) For a long time I’ve been saying if you want to change the way you act, change the way you talk about acting — and if I were a young actor, I’d start by trying, as much as possible, never to mention emotions, feelings, attitudes, or anything having to do with anything like them. They only lead to ineffective acting.

Response:

For a long time I’ve been saying if you want to change the way you act, change the way you talk about acting — and if I were a young actor, I’d start by trying, as much as possible, never to mention emotions, feelings, attitudes, or anything having to do with anything like them. They only lead to ineffective acting.

My perspective on emotions is this, Barry: Audiences empathize with emotions. They want to know how the characters feel about things. But emotions are, by definition, "automatic value judgements". They are results. And actors learn early not to try to act results. Stanislavski himself came to this same conclusion later in his life. Now it is true that emotions can color the way we think. If you are in a panic, or perhaps gleefully happy, that will cause you to think in a different way than if you are depressed. So it is a two-way street, psychologically speaking. But, again, you can’t act emotions. When you try to do it, in invariably comes off as "indication." I think your approach makes sense, but you run the risk you’ll be misunderstood by asking for a total exclusion of references to emotion. Ed Hooks

Response:

…. when I play my guitar…it comes with feeling, and passion. After years of playing it’s something that’s not soo technical as it is human. Any feedback on this ?

You bring your passion to the instrument. And the playing of the instrument stimulates you emotionally. Emotion is part of the equation. But actors learn that emotions are "results". If I pinch you on the ass, you’ll have an emotion. If you come across a car wreck with bloody bodies lying around, you’ll have an emotion. Play your action, and the appropriate emotion will be there. Ed Hooks

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I’ve always referred to this as "playying the mood" instead of "playing the part". PLay the part, and the emotions will come of their own accord. Geez, wait till you get a load of Jeremy Whelan, who actually goes to the opposite extreme. Fortunately, he’s been scarce, of late. — ** NOTE: address is spamblocked – }:-) Christopher Jahn

{:-( Dionysian Reveler "Why, you’re more than realistic – you’re nearly grotesque!!" Charles Busch, ‘Vampire Lesbians of Sodom’

Response:

"…simple, honest, true…saying it like it’s for the first time… ….I don’t act…I react…." Jimmy Stewart

Response:

Yes I have feedback, I believe a guy by the name of David Mamet wrote book called "Heresey and Common Sense for the Actor, True and False" (I think that was the title, good book) In it he said that any emotions and actor feels while performing is simply a by-product.

Ain’t it the truth? Actually, I don’t think there’s any question about it. You can’t control emotion. It isn’t a tool, like gesture, for example, is. Control what you can control, and if you can’t control it, forget it. You can’t control emotion. So forget it. If you know what I mean.

Response:

You should not be wasting your precious time thinking these useless questions. That night I nearly missed my cues and drop lines several times because my head wasn’t in the right place. Luckly no one noticed and every one like my performance, but it almost wasn’t so.

You sound like a good actor, Damien. Very astute.<g Ed Hooks

Response:

I believe that that is the name of Mamet’s book. A friend of mine just purchased it and it is a valuable investment/aid to the aspiring actor. Actors that have had a chance to work w/ Mamet praised the book deeply, including Alec Baldwin, William H. Macy, and Joe Mantegna. Thanks, Mike *Theatre is Life* *Film is Art* *Television is Furniture**

Response:

Emotion is part of the equation. But actors learn that emotions are "results". If I pinch you on the ass, you’ll have an emotion. If you come across a car wreck with bloody bodies lying around, you’ll have an emotion. Play your action, and the appropriate emotion will be there. Ed Hooks

You’re absolutely right Ed! I am only 16 and when I was 14 i took this acting workshop offered by my school district in the summer. The teachers were big fans of ‘Method Acting’. We did this show about the Holocoust and I was cast as one of the leads. Before hand I "Got into Character" Onstage all I was worried about was "Am I feeling the right emotions?" "Am I in Character?" Time passes quite fast on stage. You should not be wasting your precious time thinking these useless questions. That night I nearly missed my cues and drop lines several times because my head wasn’t in the right place. Luckly no one noticed and every one like my performance, but it almost wasn’t so. — Damien

Response:

I am confused on something. I read in a book-David Black’s book on auditioning,that when you audition you should bow your head or turn your back for a couple seconds to get into character. He stated that this adds the majic to being an actor…. A monologue is actually a duologue. It’s a scene, a negotiation of some kind. Therefore, it seems logical to me to begin by connecting with your intention in the scene/monologue. Ed Hooks

Ed I think your absolutly correct. A monologue should begin with where have I been, where am I going, what are the circumstantces just before I speak and to whom am I speaking to. Regards Jose

Response:

For all the Shoulds in the world there are a lot of Should Nots.(this is not mine, I just happend to agree with it) What works for one may not work for another. For me Intentions or objectives are the most important part of my acting. I trust the rest will fallow. But that’s me.

Response:

Ed I think your absolutly correct. A monologue should begin with where have I been, where am I going, what are the circumstantces just before I speak and to whom am I speaking to.

Yup. Same as if it were a scene. Ed

Response:

Dive, thoughts, down to my soul — here "thebarry" -Begin your first piece and DO NOT STOP AND ASK IF YOU CAN START AGAIN. I’ve seen that happen more times than I care to remember. If you lose a line, make it up. If you don’t know the through-line of the pieces well enough to do that, you shouldn’t be auditioning in the first place. If you can’t get your through-line back, then stop the piece, take another moment, and begin the next piece, if there is a second one.

Let me offer a different perspective. I recently had an audition with an Equity theater in Chicago. I was doing a piece from "Richard III," and, for some reason (perhaps nerves), I blanked about 1/3 of the way into it. I stopped, informed the auditor that I would be starting again (I didn’t ask for permission), took a moment, and began again. I got the part. I’m going on tour after the initial run ends, and I’m getting my Equity card. Your mileage may vary. — [Exit pursued by a Bear] Dennis McLaughlin

Response:

I read Micheal Shurtleff’s book "Audition" lately and I agree with him. He says all the waiting to transform yourself is crap only used in High School drama. You should be going in there ready to do your part, your shouldn’t be preparing yourself for something you’ve worked on for months. My 2 cents, Jazmin I am confused on something. I read in a book-David Black’s book on auditioning,that when you audition you should bow your head or turn your back for a couple seconds to get into character. He stated that this adds the majic to being an actor-the ability to show your audience that you can transform yourself. However, I have heard objections. Others say that’s silly, and that you should be in character from the moment you walk in, that you shouldn’t turn your back on your "employers". Any comments or opinions on this?

Response:

I haven’t read Mr. Shurtleff’s book recently, and I don’t remember him saying that, but if he did, he can eat my shorts. I think you should always take a moment before you begin any audition piece, if for nothing else than to let your "audience" adjust to the fact that you’re about to begin. (It’s really a beat change, after all, and pausing is a time-honored way of changing a beat.) If it’s high school, then practically every actor I’ve ever seen is the worst kind of high school. Of course, in any audition, you should go with the flow, but as far as I’m concerned, every audition should take something like the following form: -You arrange the space to suit your needs. -You CLEARLY state your name and the audition pieces that you are going to perform. (If the play is obscure, make sure you state the title, author, and the name of the character. If the play is well-known, use your own judgment.) -Take a moment before you begin. (Put your head down. Turn your back. Whatever. Do not under any circumstances take too much of a moment — in other words, a long pause, or God forbid, just stand there for fifteen or twenty seconds. Just take a MOMENT.) -Begin your first piece and DO NOT STOP AND ASK IF YOU CAN START AGAIN. I’ve seen that happen more times than I care to remember. If you lose a line, make it up. If you don’t know the through-line of the pieces well enough to do that, you shouldn’t be auditioning in the first place. If you can’t get your through-line back, then stop the piece, take another moment, and begin the next piece, if there is a second one. -When you are finished (either because you are actually finished or because you are lost), take a slight pause and say "Thank you." -Always assume that whoever you’re auditioning for doesn’t need to see you once you have finished. Prepare to leave. If they want to talk with you or would like you to do something else, they’ll tell you. -As much as possible, smile. -But the number one rule: GO WITH THE FLOW. All directors, casting agents, etc., have different ways of doing things. Cater to them.

Response:

"…simple, honest, true…saying it like it’s for the first time… ….I don’t act…I react…." Jimmy Stewart

Hey, don’t get me wrong, I love Jimmy Stewart. But believe it or not, I take exception with everything he says above (except for "I don’t act"), but especially with "I react." I prefer "interaction" to "reaction". And yes, I know, you could say that I’m just arguing semantics, but I don’t think so. You are what comes out of your mouth. I’m looking for actors who are with each other up there, not people "acting" and "reacting" all by their lonesomes. And a note to Ed: Yes, I agree, but where I come from, there’s too much of that emotion stuff going around, so I encourage people to just drop it. I do make reference to emotions, but I’m with you — emotions are a product. Whatever happens for you emotionally happens for you emotionally. Emotions are not a tool, like rhythm, tempo, action, objective, pitch, etc. Emotions are a product. They are most specifically a product that we are looking for in the audience, not in the actors. If you want to change the way you act, change the way you TALK about acting.

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – You can’t act a feeling anyway, David. Feelings are results. You can’t act results. The idea is to figure out what you want in a scene or monologue. Who are you talking to? Why are you telling him this? What is the negotiation? Ed Hooks Go Ed!!! So much rhetoric nowadays centers around emotions (listen to practically any interview with any working actor, not to mention discussions in rehearsal), and they are, for the most part, useless as acting tools. (I recently gave a workshop in which, for two and a half hours, I constantly referred to the uselessness of emotion as an acting tool, and afterwards, when I opened the floor for questions, the questions were all about emotion!?!) I rarely run into anyone who feels this way — and suddenly there’s Ed. (Of course, you seem to have been here the whole time. I’ve only recently arrived.) For a long time I’ve been saying if you want to change the way you act, change the way you talk about acting — and if I were a young actor, I’d start by trying, as much as possible, never to mention emotions, feelings, attitudes, or anything having to do with anything like them. They only lead to ineffective acting. "…simple, honest, true…saying it like it’s for the first time… ….I don’t act…I react…." Jimmy Stewart

Or as my one of my acting coaches at the National Shakespeare Conservatory, one Jimmy Tripp, always admonished: MOOD IS DOOM SPELLED BACKWARD.If you understand what the character int he play is saying, so will your auditors/audience. It doesn’t matter if it’ Shepard,Shakespeare, or Henley, you have to understand what is being said. In an audition, always take a moment for yourself – Not for the character. In my experience, they want to see what you can do with a piece, not how complete a character you can create. You may have rehearsed a monologue in one particular manner, yet when you are up on the stage, an impulse to do something different occurs. Do you follow it thereby allowing the character to appear? or do you censor the impulse, because it isn’t what you planned?

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Response:

You can’t act a feeling anyway, David. Feelings are results. You can’t act results. The idea is to figure out what you want in a scene or monologue. Who are you talking to? Why are you telling him this? What is the negotiation? Ed Hooks

Go Ed!!! So much rhetoric nowadays centers around emotions (listen to practically any interview with any working actor, not to mention discussions in rehearsal), and they are, for the most part, useless as acting tools. (I recently gave a workshop in which, for two and a half hours, I constantly referred to the uselessness of emotion as an acting tool, and afterwards, when I opened the floor for questions, the questions were all about emotion!?!) I rarely run into anyone who feels this way — and suddenly there’s Ed. (Of course, you seem to have been here the whole time. I’ve only recently arrived.) For a long time I’ve been saying if you want to change the way you act, change the way you talk about acting — and if I were a young actor, I’d start by trying, as much as possible, never to mention emotions, feelings, attitudes, or anything having to do with anything like them. They only lead to ineffective acting.

Response:

I am confused on something. I read in a book-David Black’s book on auditioning,that when you audition you should bow your head or turn your back for a couple seconds to get into character. He stated that this adds the majic to being an actor-the ability to show your audience that you can transform yourself. However, I have heard objections. Others say that’s silly, and that you should be in character from the moment you walk in, that you shouldn’t turn your back on your "employers". Any comments or opinions on this?

Response:

A monologue is actually a duologue. It’s a scene, a negotiation of some kind. Therefore, it seems logical to me to begin by connecting with your intention in the scene/monologue. I watch a LOT of monologues in my acting classes. The worst error I see is that a lot of actors get themselves worked up into this high-emotional state and then want to "present" their monologue. When they go at it this way, they frequently go up on their lines or get nervous. Invariably, the correction to the problem is to remind them that a monologue is a duologue. Ed Hooks

Response:

k-David Black’s book on auditioning,that when you audition you should bow your head or turn your back for a couple seconds to get into character. He stated that this adds the majic to being an actor-the ability to show your audience that you can transform yourself. However, I have heard objections.

I would seriously question anyone trying to sell me "magic to being an actor" trip, but it is true that during an audition, between the two pieces, there should be a natural break, and many actors accomplish this smoothly with a slight bowed head to clear themselves and move on to the next piece. Done without affectation or grandeur, it works. For actors it’s a neccessary moment of change, and for auditors, it allows a moment to collect themselves before the next piece (which they don’t really need to see anyway as they usually already have made a decision by then.) <g

Response:

For the most part, I agree with the responses above. However, I disagree with the idea of "getting into character", mostly because it separates the character from the actor. The character and the actor are not two separate things. You are the character in the same way you are yourself. Now, we could go on and on about the paradox of acting — that it is "real" — moving through time and space — but it isn’t "real" — e.g., Willie Loman doesn’t "really" die — but the paradox does us no good. We recognize it and then it just sits there, useless. There is no "character" that is separate from the actor that is "playing" it. So ultimately, there is no "getting in character". There is just the actor and the choices that the actor makes. As far as taking a pause, yes, absolutely, it’s standard and accepted practice and it works. Use the moment to help you get off on the right foot. Concentrate on your desired tempo or rhythm or need or action. Have a goal, a "key", that will help unlock the monologue for you, and concentrate on that in the moment you take before you begin. Don’t just stand there and think, "My God, I’m nervous." That will do you no good. And you shouldn’t be auditioning for anyone but yourself anyway, really. And I don’t mean that you should’t go to auditions, but when you do, you shouldn’t be trying to please the people you’re auditioning for. You’ve got no control over that. Please yourself. Which means, of course, that you need to have goals for yourself. But enough from me. Good luck.

Response:

I admit, I make that exact same error. I work my self up into this emotional hysteria …trying to "pyche" myself out …pouring lots of emotions and energy …and trying to find the right "feel". maybe this is an error, but I know when it comes to playing my guitar…"Feel" is everything. — David Gizzi Web Site Address: ICQ #: 14385037 Music in the soul can be heard by the universe. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I am confused on something. I read in a book-David Black’s book on auditioning,that when you audition you should bow your head or turn your back for a couple seconds to get into character. He stated that this adds the majic to being an actor…. A monologue is actually a duologue. It’s a scene, a negotiation of some kind. Therefore, it seems logical to me to begin by connecting with your intention in the scene/monologue. I watch a LOT of monologues in my acting classes. The worst error I see is that a lot of actors get themselves worked up into this high-emotional state and then want to "present" their monologue. When they go at it this way, they frequently go up on their lines or get nervous. Invariably, the correction to the problem is to remind them that a monologue is a duologue. Ed Hooks

Response:

I admit, I make that exact same error. I work my self up into this emotional hysteria …trying to "pyche" myself out …pouring lots of emotions and energy …and trying to find the right "feel".

I jokingly refer to this in my classes as "the high board syndrome" because the actor on stage reminds me of a nervous diver getting ready to do a triple flip with a twist.<g You can’t act a feeling anyway, David. Feelings are results. You can’t act results. The idea is to figure out what you want in a scene or monologue. Who are you talking to? Why are you telling him this? What is the negotiation? Ed Hooks

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