I had a talk back session today after Romeo & Juliet that had some typical questions that I felt could be answered similarly to my previous post. I don't intend to make a habit of this, but so long as we're on the topic:
Q: What is your process like?
A: This is actually a fantastic question, one that I would love to wax eloquent about, but just don't have time in a public forum. You are asking a room full of craftsmen how they do what they do having spent a lifetime honing that particular set of skills in ways that may not be expressible in words; diagrams, charts, poems, pottery, baking may be involved. We need to sit down in a quiet cafe and start some loud discussion about this one. (Idea for a post)
My initial answer is to say I start with the script; simple as that may be, it is true.
We, as actors/artists, are telling a story
Well which story?
The one we agree upon in rehearsal.
Where do we look for clues?
The script.
So that is where we start. But it is only a start:
The text is the map, not the adventure. The text/playwright is not god, it is no the adventure, it is a means to an end: the performance, which is an important distinction to make (idea for a post).
Q: What is it like to be a character?/Does your character affect you in real life?/How do you get into character?
A: Easily. Or not. I'm not sure how to answer this in all of its forms. This question (or their like) comes from what, I believe, is a very simple discrepancy between how the audience perceives character and how the actor does: We (i.e. actors) are the characters; we put ourselves (really or imaginatively) into the circumstances the characters are undergoing and say/do what we would under those circumstances. So when I walk off stage I don't maintain a Hamlet-level brood or think about murdering my boss whilst playing Macbeth. I think about murdering my boss for other, more mundane reasons. (I should iterate, since I haven't iterated as yet that these ideas come from my personal process, others will disagree with me, particularly when it comes to the craft of acting; I wholeheartedly embrace other opinions on this matter, but they're wrong (read different)).
Q: What is it like speaking/doing Shakespeare?
A: Much like doing any other play/performance. The acting process for me is always the same, which we will get into later on, but Shakespeare was writing in English (heightened), but still contemporary or Modern English rather. Performers don't think in those words or that rhythm all of the time because, wait for it, they're not our words. It is a problem with every conventional play ever; the actors are speaking words in situations they have never experienced. Those are hurdles that are difficult for any performer under any playwright. Personally I like Shakespeare because his words read like music; whereas Arthur Miller is clunky like a Michigan road. It is most often, I find, a matter of taste.
Q: Are you romantically involved with your scene partner?
A: Probably not. We may not even like one another. We all love stage romances and certainly a lot can happen backstage when adrenaline rushes, but Romeo is rarely dating Juliet "in real life". Not to say it doesn't happen, but this is our job, it would be pretty bad to start dating a boss/co worker whom you just met and don't know if you will ever see again or see every day for the rest of your lives.
Q: Is it weird to kiss other people on stage?
A: I don't have a good answer for this. Depends? You get used to it. You have to learn to trust someone isn't going to throw a backhand fist into your trachea every time you lean in. It is actually a little bit like dating: at first it is new and daring, every movement could get you killed, but then you settle in to a routine and figure out the rules. So once more life parallels art more than art parallels life (idea-post...you get it).
Yeah, these were some good patrons and a lot of fun to talk with. I always try to speak truthfully and directly when dealing with talk backs and find that I get the most rolled eyes from my fellow actors, but the most vocal reactions from the patrons. I have spent a lifetime re-cultivating the skill set to be vulnerable and sharing, giving and caring with a group of people. Alas it is getting late and that conversation belongs in its own (post).
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