"Something Old and Something New ..."

IS THAT ALL THERE IS TO ACTING!!

REHEARSAL ROOM actors agree that being able to find a simple core issue to listen to during a scene makes it MUCH easier to listen and respond.  Once an actor is listening and responding then the whole acting process suddenly becomes a lot easier.  Every Rehearsal Room actor eventually has a moment of epiphany – “Is that all I have to do!!!  That’s easy!!!”   Making it easy brings confidence; confidence brings bolder choices and successful bold choices, in time, builds trust.  ‘Confidence’ and ‘trust’ are the key ingredients that ultimately make an actor stand out.

A KEY TO SUCCESS

On many levels, the chance of success hangs on discovering that core issue which clearly defines the most important element in the conversation (for your character).  There has been an ongoing Rehearsal Room quest to make this decision as easy as possible.  Every actor who has done the classes is aware of the value of …

1. identifying the instigator of the conversation (because the instigator behaves differently to the responder)
2. then deciding whether the conversation is a ‘battle for control’, a ‘test’ or a ‘challenge.

(There are other choices to be made regarding the responder but lets leave it at that for the moment to keep it simple.)

THE CORNERSTONE OF REALISM

The other element that every Rehearsal Room actor is aware of is the value of labeling, with a verb, the characters ‘unconscious psychological desire’ – the character’s ‘need’.  The advantage of defining these two elements comes from the fact that this enables the actor to appear to be functioning on two levels simultaneously.  The actor/character therefore appears to functioning both consciously and unconsciously and that in itself is a pretty consistent way of appearing complex and real.  That simple task is the cornerstone of ‘realism’ in performance.

To assist in simplifying the process of choosing a ‘need’ there is The Rehearsal Room’s verbs list – a short list of verbs for the actor to choose from.  This list is aimed at making clear and active choices.  It is a VERY effective tool. (You can view the verbs list here.) 

SOMETHING NEW...

But now Emily Coupe has experimented with using that simple list of verbs to not only choose her character’s unconscious psychological desire BUT she has also tried using it to determine the nature of the conversation – two tasks in one.  It’s getting simpler and simpler.

If Emily has worked out that her character is instigating the conversation she first decides –

1. whether the conversation is a ‘battle for control’, a ‘test’ or a ‘challenge’
2. and then she goes to the verbs list to pick the element that will determine the detail of that conversation.

For example if the first choice determines that the conversation is a ‘challenge’ then Emily looks for an option in the verbs list that will determine what the challenge is over.  She might decide that –

“I am ‘challenging’ you to trust me”

OR

“I am ‘challenging’ you to respect my rights”

OR

“I am ‘challenging’ you to love me unconditionally”

However, if the conversation is a ‘test’ …

“I am ‘testing’ to see if you can be trusted”

OR, if the conversation is a ‘battle for control’ …

 “I am ‘battling for control’ to get you to trust me”

HOW ACTIVE AND SIMPLE IS THAT!!!!

WHAT A CLEAR WAY OF ARTICULATING A REASON FOR THE CONVERSATION!!

There are of course many many options.  Have a look at The Rehearsal Room verbs list and see what you think. 

The test for the effectiveness of any choice is to ask the simple question, “Can I actually do that?”  The resounding answer to that question in the above examples is surely, “Yes.  I CAN do that easily.”    

It's fantastically simple.

IT'S JUST SIMPLE LOGIC Emily Coupe is 16 years old and is in her 3rd term of Rehearsal Room classes.  She has been slowly working out the practicalities of this approach.  She has discovered that if she can put simple clear choices in place then she can implement them much more easily.  But Emily has taken the next step.  She has started to wonder it there was anything else she could do to simplify Rehearsal Room process to make it even more foolproof.    Over the years that’s how the majority of changes have occurred - actors thinking outside the square to resolve problems.   Emily has focused on elements that will help her to think in the same way the character does.  That’s the key to successful process.  Acting isn’t about imitating the way the actor thinks the character will behave.  That requires imagination and it’s in our imaginings that most of the problems reside.  The acting process is much more logical than vague creative imaginings.  It’s about understanding the issues that drive the characters choices.   During a scene the actor must listen to the circumstances as they unfold and once they understand the nature of the circumstances that are confronting them it is then possible to assess ‘how good or bad’ those circumstances are.   The next step is to then make the decision.  That’s the decision your character must make to continue to pursue their conversation goal.   Knowing what the conversation goal is obviously a huge help.  It enables the actor to listen, assess and then decide what to do next.  That’s what acting is all about.   Well done, Emily.

August 2010

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