Chapter Four-ActingChapter Summary

Subjective/Emotional Acting

Actor tries to really live the part and feel the emotions of the character internally as much as possible.

The Actor works for emotional honesty for every moment of the play

Objective/Technical Acting

Actor uses his learned technique and great attention to the text to create a character that appears to be as real as possible, but does not really emotionally try to recreate the character internally

Constantine Stanislavski

Russian theatre director and innovator who developed a new style of approaching acting by creating a “method” approach to playing a character. This involved “emotional memory” recalling emotions you have felt and applying them to a moment and “the magic if” – How would you react if this happended to you

Questions and actor should Ask

What is the immediate environment/ What are my objectives/ What are my relationships and how do others

relate to me? What are the emotional signposts for my

character? How smart is my character What is my character’s origins geographically What are my character’s problems, strengths,

weaknesses and strategies

The Sixteen Keys to Characterization

1. Internalizing- a deep personal understanding of character

2. Externalizing- Making that visible to audience3. Concentration- focusing on the moment in the play4. Observing- watching others to learn character traits5. Emotional memory- using past experience to find

emotion in play6. Projecting- Not only volume but your character’s life

projected7. Motivating- the why of characterization

16 keys continued8. Stretching a character- making a character unique and interesting9.Consistant inconsistancy – a trait that identifies you character10. Playing the conditions- focusing on the environmental and

psychological elements of the play11.Playing the objectives- Playing your character’s goals and ways

and means of getting what they want12. Playing the obstacles- Playing with the things that prevent the

character from getting what they want13. Playing the object- Using props or stage objects to identify

character moments

Keys continued14. Energy – the fuel that drives the

character. 15. Focus – the ability to direct your

energy to specific targes16. Uniqueness - Making the part an

original and not copying or imitatin other interpretations of the role

Some Terms Master Gesture – a signature gesture a character

does that helps identify them. Leading Center- the part of you body that leads

and demonstrates physical characterization Cross and counter-cross- a cross is an actor

moving in front of another…a counter cross is the other actor adjusting to the cross of the first actor

Stage business- the way you deal with props on stage

Subtext- The meaning behind what you say

Do’s of Stage Movement

Use hand nearest hinges to open a door Enter the stage with upstage foot and and stand with

upstage foot ahead of downstage foot, Move forward on upstage foot

Cross upstage of seated characters Make gestures with upstage hand Sit with feet and knees together Stay in character before and after entrance until out of

view of all of the audience

Don’t of stage movement

Stand in an exit or in front of lighting Don’t move during another’s lines unless directed to

do so Don’t cover you face with you hands or a prop Don’t stand with your legs crossed or knees together

unless your character would do that Don’t grab to arms of a chair to rise unless you are old

or you character would do that

Stage Positions Cheat out- Turning you body ¾ to audience to

share the scene Giving the scene – Crossing downstage to

give focus to someone else. Turning the scene in- a group of actors

turning bodies to a focused player or moment Taking yourself out of a scene- Turning you

back to the audience

Stage Combat/Kiss Should be rehearsed constantly and frequently The three stages of most combat are

The preparation The Blow The reaction

The Stage Kiss stages Foot position Correct body position Exact time count A smooth break

Inflection Rising inflection- shows questioning,

surprise and shock Falling inflection- end of statement,

depression, finality, firmness Sustained inflection – command,

calmness, decisiveness Circumflex inflection- emphasizing

vowels to give a special or double meaning or subtextrual meaning to the expression

Memorization Whole/part – An actor becomes very

familiar with the play and its meaning and learns lines by analying why he says what he says and focusing on the word to word accuracy later.

Part/whole- Learning lines by memorizing little segments at a time by rote memorization.

Playing Comedy Comedy relies on timing and physical detail Some techniques include

Lift end of punch line, Clutch the punchline with a facial or

physical marker Play off the lead of your partners

Don’t cut off the audience laughter..use the laugh curve to know when to come in with the next line

Accents Learning a regional accent is a

challenge that you can accomplish by ear training or by phonetically breaking down your lines

Phonetics is a way of defining pronunciation with markers

It is useful to get recordings of the accent you need to use

Stages Proscenium- The picture window with the

stage behind the “fourth wall” Thrust – Audience is on three sides of stage Arena and Round- Audience is on all sides

of the stageNon-conventional- Stage is placed in unusual

areas so audience may have to turn look in corners for the action.