Basic acting tips
Know the script Don’t just know your lines and the words that directly precede them. Know the script in its entirety, even scenes you are not in. Yes, this will obviously help you know your character, but equally important is knowing the characters on stage around you. Wouldn’t you treat someone you know intimately different than a complete stranger on the street? The same principle applies on stage. If you know each and every character’s inner-workings long before the curtain pulls back, any interaction, even the slightest unspoken nod or gesture, will come across more naturally and with more purpose.Breathe Both on stage and off it. Not only a basic tool towards survival, inhaling and exhaling at a proper pace will help words to flow with the ease of everyday life. Many actors, even veterans, suffer from stage fright to some degree; regulated breathing helps to calm nerves. Maintaining a set breath pace will help to prevent words from being rushed, making phrases seem forced, contrived or worst of all inaudible. Consider breathing practice a normal everyday occurrence, just as you would perfect your diction prior to an important soliloquy.Lie Isn’t acting just a socially acceptable version of bending the truth? Take this approach outside the theatre. Obviously don’t intentionally deceive in ways irreparably harmful to yourself or others, but in the course of mundane chores or activities simply pretend to be someone else. There is no reason you should have to be on stage or in costume just to hone your craft. Come up with a believable back story, no matter how trivial, and go from there, interacting with unsuspecting others as if this were your true identity. And spice it up a little, go for broke, anyone can conceal a little white lie, only a true thespian can make rags and riches interchangeable, depending on the day of the week.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.