Tag Archives: Acting

Theater Again

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This evening I begin my first acting class. What is odd about this is that I’ve been in 17 productions already since about 2011 and, oh yes, retired from acting about 5 years ago. But, on a lark, I’ve decided to heed the advice of a director years ago and take a class out of curiosity. Our text is by Stanislavski.

Scene from the play Harvey. I won’t say who I am but this was a memorable scene.

I’ve been on the community theater stage enough to have lost most of my fear of it. I’ve played a drunken Scotsman, several British detectives, sheriff Tate in To Kill a Mockingbird, a mute king in Once Upon a Mattress, a bishop and a cardinal in A Man for All Seasons, and someone in Harvey, among other plays.

Acting is quite a bit more involved than one might think. Obviously, you must memorize your own lines, but you must also know many of the lines of others in order to recognize your cues. The goal is to suspend disbelief and give a convincing portrayal of your character and contribute to the overall emotion of the scene.

One of the most difficult situations to come along on stage is when you or another actor forgets their lines. Unless somebody says something quick, a dark and silent pause washes over the audience, damaging the 4th wall. The other actor may cover for you by continuing with the dialog hoping you can pick up on it. Sometimes the other actor may skip a whole page of dialog leaving you to recognize the unexpected gap and carry on.

The best actors I’ve been around are able to fill a lapse with improvised language that covers the slip up long enough for the other actor to catch up. I’m taking the class because I was never good at improvising to cover a memory lapse. But no matter how good the other actor is, you still must slip back into dialog as seamlessly as possible. Inconceivably, audiences don’t always notice slip ups.

Improvising lines as opposed to sticking with the playwright’s text is very unappreciated and frowned upon. On a fundamental level, the playwright owns the content and every word is put there on purpose by the writer. On a practical level, other actors depend on you to say their cue lines properly. It is a good way to become unwelcome.

Another difficulty for me were the rapid back and forth dialogs with the other actor as would happen an argument. The scene is very satisfying when done fast and with verve, but a total loss of dramatic effect when done slowly.

Theater is a blast and theater people are fun to hang out with.

It’s Show Time!

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I sit in solitude in the lower dressing room, below the stage, at the Rialto Theatre in Loveland, CO, waiting for my cue to go on. The rest of the cast are upstairs in the new green room dressing and applying makeup. My preference is to get some self time before I go on. I have a bit part in our production of Father of the Bride.

The stage is set and the popcorn machines in the lobby are popping away, blowing a magical waft of diacetyl and hot corn into the dimmed auditorium. The curtain is closed and the blue low-wattage lights backstage are shining on the floor and black curtains in the wings. The stage crew are making last minute adjustments to the set dressings. Background music is playing and a few patrons are shuffling to their seats.

In a minute I’ll apply some makeup so my pasty white face topped with whitish hair will display a bit of facial expression in the bright stage lights. A bit of mascara to darken the eyebrows and some eyeliner to make the whites of the eyes pop out a bit:  All to accentuate the emotional spin I will apply to the lines. This will emphasize vocal nuances contrived to convey the emotional intent of the playwright.

One of the key ideas in acting is listening. An actor must listen to the lines being said not only for the cues they may contain, but for pacing and to convey a realistic sense of the interplay. For many of us in life, conversation consists of waiting for others to be silent so we can talk. The best actors sound natural in part because they are also listening.

Opening night of our 2 week run went well. We need to fill the seats with backsides to fund the next production. Snow is predicted for tomorrow, Mother’s day. Hard to tell what effect that will have on attendance.

7:30! It’s show time!