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Acting Is... » Notes on Acting

Summary: The Actor's Online Resource Weekly practical and motivational podcasts of importance to actors. Supplement your acting classes, private study, or your reading with clear and concise talks about acting techniques and approaches that will make your work more interesting for you, your acting partners, and audiences. Subscribe here or via iTunes.

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 improv classes | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00:01

Students in my acting classes know that when they do scene work the expectation is that they will rehearse and plan their work carefully to demonstrate that they can make and repeat good choices and give the impression that it is all happening for the first time.  I don’t want students improvising their scene work in front of us tdespite that I thinkthat improvisation classes and workshops are good training for actors andvisation I don’t necessarily mean comic improvisation. .  If you believe as I do that acting is reacting—improvisation teaches you to listen and watch carefully so you respond and react to what your acting partners are giving .    Improvisation sharpens your mind and body.  And teaches the most important lesson , which is to say yes to whatever other actors give you. saying yes to what you are given is a great life lesson as well as a great acting lesson–  as so many actinglessons are—in life you must deal with where you are andwhat you are given.  Pretending life is different than it is does little good and it certainly doesn’t change the reality.  You are better off saying yes to what is, acknowledging it and .   onstage or on filmto be in the moment you must respond to what you acting partner is giving you.  Pretending that he or she gave you something different doesn’t eliminate what they did–  it only points up that you are ignoring them and not in the moment.  And what your acting partner gives you is going to fuel your performance.  So say yes to it and live off of it. listen to podcast

 TRUST YOURSELF | File Type: application/unknown | Duration: 0:00:01
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http://www.actingis.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Trust_Yourself.mp3I am delighted that you have chosen to listen tomy NOTES ON ACTING podcasts ng but I hope you understand that my goal in providing these thoughtss isto help you learn your craft so you can listen to  and trust your own acting instincts.  to have a career as an actor you must be ablle to work on your own and be able to handle any kind of acting challenge. It is particularly true that you must be self-reliant when working in television where there might be many different voices giving directions and in theatre with a weak director who has little to offer you, you must still create strong ,believable three dimensional characters.  That is your job regardless of the situation you find yourself in. To do this you must develop your acting instincts and  trust yourself.  The difficulty is this trust comes from working.  The more you work the stronger your acting instincts get.  Its like that old conundrum to get an agent you must be workingbut to get work you have to have an agent.  In the case of developing your acting instincts you need to be working in classes, on small projects, in student films.  It doesn’t matter what you do just get to work.  I assure you that the more you do the better you will get and the better your instincts will become and the easier it will be to trust yourself  So turn off your computer and get into an acting class and do as much work as you possibly can the more you work the more you will trust yourself.  At first you may have to actjustike you know what you are doing .  Since you are an actor that shouldn’t be too difficult.  Imagine how your favorite actor would approach the role in one of my acting classes students would say”what would Gary OLdman do?  How would he get into this character?  Then they woul try to imagine his process and do it. so use your imagination to help you. hear podcast

 Stop Thinking and Nail That Audition: Wisdom from “The Dude” | File Type: application/unknown | Duration: 0:00:01

If you have listened to my podcasts you know that I think you should be able to read a script carefully and pull out story and character clues to guide your work. You don’t have to be a scholar but you must be analytical and disciplined so you can find a doorway for yourself into the script. If a choice you make feels wrong don’t worry about it, for as jazz musician Miles Davis said, “Don’t worry about mistakes there aren’t any.” If something that feels wrong or uncomfortable see it as an opportunity to explore and find something new, at the audition. Don’t try to think your way into a character. Find the element that allows you to embody the person, some movement, posture or gesture that allows you to slip inside the character without having to think through every line reading or choice–sometimes over- thinking things only serves to paralyze you as you try to pick the right answer out of a bouquet of choices. Even if you knew everything the producer was thinking it wouldn’t help you because his or her mind is changing. Each actor he or she sees makes him or her rethink the role so there is no way you can think your way though the audition trying to guess what they are looking for, there is too much to know and it is changing all the time which is why the only thing you can do is stop thinking and play the hell out of the script. Let your Actor’s intuition guide your play and respond to the words and situations, let your own character shine through and people will cast you.   Listen to Stop Thinking and Nail That Audition     i recommend the bookthe dude and the Zen master by jeff bridges and bernie glassman for more valuable tips on acting from the heart  

 mind over what doesn’t matter | File Type: application/unknown | Duration: 0:00:01
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[inevery day in our private and professional lives we are confronted with irritants and annoyances.  The problem with these things is that they are as sticky as superglue and if you engage them foreven a moment it is hard to get unstuck from them and then they become more than annoyances. As actors We need to learn to un stick ourselves from these unimportant things before they distract us from the real business we have to attend to, mind over what doesn’t matter  is learning to disregard irrelevant things that get in the way of doing the work we need to do sometimes an actor arrives at a audition so distressed by traffic and parking they can’t really think about the audition instead during the audition, all they think about is the parking meter and that’s not going to help the audition so the goal is to  to learn how to focus on the important things and let go of the unimportant distractions that crowd the brain — maybe you show up at the audition and there is that same actor who is at all your auditions and he or she seems  get cast more often then you and that rat got the last freeparking space an d his or hert car is nicer than yours,  thinking about this actor all during the audition and how much you hate them is not going to help your audition so you have to learn to let go of your resentment and focus on s giving the best audition you can.   Sometimes an actor shows up at a rehearsal and is so distressed by a by a costume or a prop that whe or she can’t rconcentrate on the rehearsal and what is going on withwhat other actors are doing they givecan’teven pay attention to or think about think about the character o rtheir ines or they are so focused o n inot liking the costume or prop that they give and get nothing from the rehearsal sowe can’t work until weare are  able to disengage from these distractions so we can focus on the things that matter.surprisingly something as ordinary and gentle as breathing can break the bonds of these distractions.  So as an annoyance keeps repeating itself over an over in your head ifocus on your breathing and inale for 2 counts hold your breath for 2 beats and then exhale for 2 beats .  inhale ,2 and notice the air as it hits the inside of your nose(by paying attention to specific elements of your breathing the distraction will begin to loosen its grip.  When the distraction has let go then bchange your focus to some specific area of the work at hand again focusing on specific elements will enable you to get to work and it will improve your work for generality, as Stanislavski said , is the death of art.It is best to practice mindful breathing regularly so youcando it when you need it.  if you only practice when you asredistracted it will be hard to overcome the distractions, they’ll win every time.  for more on this idea reviewthe earlier podcasts on meditation and mindfullness.      

 Experience the Script, Not Yourself | File Type: application/unknown | Duration: 0:00:01
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Stella Adler said, “You have to get beyond your own precious inner experiences. I want you to be able to see and share what you see with an audience, not just get wrapped up in yourself. The actor cannot afford to look only to his own life for all his material nor pull strictly from his own experience to find his acting choices and feelings. A great disservice was done to American actors when they were persuaded that they had to experience themselves on the stage instead of experiencing the play.” Link:  Stella Adler The Art of Acting   ©  Eric Barr.  All rights reserved. 2013.

 Stay Strong | File Type: application/unknown | Duration: 0:00:01
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If you listen to my Notes on Acting regularly you know that I haven’t added a new podcast in several months.  What you don’t know is that in April I developed an infection in my heart that caused several strokes. I was in a fight for my life and the strokes made it impossible for me to speak and paralyzed my left side.  I am now well enough to write and produce a podcast and get it on the website and I am more than anxious to talk to actors and those who visited the website in the past 6 months  I have been forced to learn some important life lessons that I think apply to acting. First no matter how long it takes for your career to take off don’t give up. Re-learning to talk and walk again have been the hardest things I have ever done and my success depends on me showing up at rehab every day mentally and physically and persevering and working regardless of how tired or frustrated I am.  I cannot give up on myself, that’s a lesson I learned as an actor, and you can’t give up on yourself.  Patience and perseverance are muscles that can be trained so we learn to carry on even whe we don’t think we can. You are much stronger than you think you are… I have learned that I am much stronger than I thought I was. You have to believe  that quitting is not an option. Just because you don’t get cast from time to time is no reflection on you or your talent so don’t let it get inside your head and undermine you.  Stay strong, show up physically and mentally for every audition and performance and be true to yourself   Thanks for listening and thanks to those of you you who wrote to me here and on Facebook to see if I was alive and well.  Your interest, concern, and support got me back in front of the microphone faster than I would have on my own. Thanks for listening I hope you’ll join me next week at actingis.com for my Notes on Acting ©  Eric Barr.  All rights reserved. 2013 listento podcast For podcasts and more follow on Twitter @NotesOnActing. Listen to podcasts on iTunes or Stitcher On Demand Radio  

 Acting Classes with Guest Victor Chi | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:04:44

Victor Chi, this week’s Notes on Acting guest, is an actor based in Los Angeles, California. In this podcast, Victor shares his thoughts on taking acting classes once you arrive in Los Angeles or New York.  He looks at the different types of classes, explains why you should take them, and how to find the best ones for you. Victor works in theatre, film, and television and recently did a show with the Young Vic in London, which also played at A.R.T. at Harvard. Listen to full podcast. For podcasts and more follow on Twitter @NotesOnActing. Listen to podcasts on iTunes or Stitcher On Demand Radio   Links:  Victor Chi IMDB                    Victor Chi website

 Character is Behavior | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:05:27

You can create a character by building it from the ‘outside in’ by finding your walk, posture, and rhythms.  Or you can build it from the ‘inside out’ by determining how the character thinks and responds to people, places, and things. Or you can figure out what your character wants and carefully determine how he or she goes about getting it.  By knowing your character’s objectives, actions, and adjustments you will end up defining your character. Remember, the objective is what the character needs.  The actions are what the character does to get what he wants.  And the adjustments are how the character does the things he does to get what he wants.  And it is in the “how” that characterization resides. Clearly, the distinction between two characters that have similar objectives and actions is in how they approach their actions.  So thinking about characterization in this way should help you to play any character. As you get ready to take on a new role, think carefully about how your character pursues their objectives.  You may know what they want…but it is the “how” they behave that defines their personality.  By discovering interesting approaches to how they do things, you’ll be able to play any type of character. For more on this, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. You can also follow the podcasts on iTunes or Stitcher on Demand Radio.   © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013.  

 More on Actor’s Research | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:06:07

To get inside a script, you need to read, brainstorm, research, and visualize. But sometimes you need more.  Since professions define who we are, you need to understand your character’s profession and learn as much about it as you can.  The best way to do that is to watch people doing that job and interview them about their work and careers. People love talking to actors; so don’t hesitate to talk to people about their work and how they do it. Show them your script and ask if they have any suggestions for activities or behavior for you While you might not be able to duplicate every experience your character has, try to experience as many as you can so you can do them honestly.  If you can’t experience them because they are dangerous or illegal go back to Google and YouTube and watch interviews and clips of people doing those things. With a little effort, you can find almost anything you are looking for online. So read the script carefully, brainstorm, do your research, and use your imagination to make the information your own.  Then, meet people who do the same kind of work as your character and explore the activities that your character does in the course of the story.  This research approach, which uses every part of you, will blend your intellect, imagination, and experiences to help you get inside the script and to help get the script inside of you. For more listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. You can access the podcasts at Stitcher on Demand Radio and on iTunes.   © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013

 Acting in the Age of Google | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:07:32

Before the internet existed, actors actually had to go to the library to do research.  They had to stand in line for the reference librarian and wait to make copies of articles and essays. As valuable as it was, just getting access to information put a lot of actors off the important task of doing their creative research. But that has all changed.  With Google, other search engines and online information sites, actors can now do most of their research from home or from a coffee shop. Despite that many actors still don’t do research because they don’t recognize its value or don’t know how to do it. In this first podcast on acting in the age of Google, you’ll be introduced to some easy guidelines on how to do creative research that will help your next performance soar.  We’ll look at making notes, searching for clues, and using your imagination. Great scripts and great acting demand that you get inside the world of a script and live there comfortably–and the only way to do that is to understand the world of the script by digging into it and discovering the elements that make it function. For more information on this, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter@NotesOnActing. You can listen to the podcasts on iTunes or at Stitcher on Demand Radio. © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013  

 The Unbroken Line | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:05:27

Music is composed of notes and rests and has a clear beginning, middle, and end.  During the rests there is no sound but the piece doesn’t stop. The music unspools a beat at a time and the silences compliment the sounds and make them all the more effective by creating rhythmic shifts and contrasts. Speech is composed of sounds and silences and the silences are required to make the words understandable. There is an unbroken line that holds an idea together and the silences don’t end the idea, in fact they make it comprehensible. When you perform in a play or movie you speak and you pause, you enter and exit.  The material has a clear beginning, middle, and end and none of your silences or exits should stop the flow of the story or the life of your character.  It is your job to insure that throughout the performance, both unspool like continuous threads even when your character is not speaking or not in a scene.  This way, as Stanislavski says, your character “flows from the past, through the present, into the future.” So make sure that your performance unspools and never comes to a stop.  On stage, listening and responding will keep that unbroken line going for you.  When you are off stage you must have a clear understanding of where your character has gone, what they are doing, and how they feel about things.  This way, like a living person, they will continue to exist even when they are not seen or heard. For more on this topic, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more, please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing You can listen to podcasts at Stitcher On Demand Radio   © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013.    

 You Can’t Become Someone Else | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:06:09

Watching Daniel Day-Lewis play Abraham Lincoln, audiences felt like they were seeing the real man.  They felt that the actor had somehow turned the monument into flesh and blood. But the truth is that we don’t really know what Lincoln was like.  There are many books that describe him, his relationships, and his presidency but we still don’t know the man.  So what did Day-Lewis do?  He captured the spirit of Lincoln and his sensitivities.  He played the actions that Lincoln might have used in the situations presented and pursued his goals through many means.  He played the inner life of a man, a husband, a father, a president, and a politician.  And he created a physicality and voice that seemed to evoke the man. The acting lesson to take from Daniel Day-Lewis’ performance is not how to become an exact replica of a person but rather how to combine research with imagination, analysis, and intuition to create an honest, living character who is appropriate for the story. Remember, you can never really be someone else.  You can only be a different you.  So to build a character, whether it is based on a real person or not, you have to shape it out of your flesh and bone, out of your mind and imagination, and out of your heart and soul. For more on this topic, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. You can also hear the Notes On Acting podcasts on Stitcher On Demand Radio. © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013.    

 Everyone Gives A Bad Performance Sometime | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:06:09

If you act for any length of time you will give a bad performance.  Since even the very best actors do this, don’t let it destroy your ability to work. The trick is to learn from your mistakes.  Get over your ego so you can look carefully at your work and figure out where the problems were.  Did you misinterpret the script or miss information about the character?  Did you do all the work you could have?  Did you do your research and imaginative work or did you sit back and count on luck and old habits?  Once in rehearsals, did you pay attention to your fellow actors or were you so caught up in your own work that you didn’t notice them? Examine your work in small units.  Look at each scene and each interaction.  Examine your preparation and rehearsal techniques.  Talk to trusted colleagues for advice.  Listen to these podcasts and take a class or work with an acting coach.  These are not signs of weakness but rather signals that you want to elevate your work. Whatever you do, don’t let a bad performance drive you into hiding.  Instead, work hard on your technique and your mind.  It will reinforce your acting, rebuild your confidence, and get you back in the game.  And if you work hard enough, you might just come back from a bad performance a better actor than you were before. For more on this topic, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. Listen to the podcasts on Stitcher on Demand Radio. © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013.    

 Life Spills In | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:05:28

When you make an entrance in the theatre, you are just walking from off-stage to on-stage.  But that reality is not the character’s reality and it is the character’s reality that you need to communicate. So when your character enters a scene, he or she is coming from somewhere specific with particular attitudes and feelings.  The way you communicate these things is by letting life spill in with you. As you sit in a coffee shop, an office, or a classroom watch as people come through the door.  You will know almost immediately who is in a rush and who is relaxed.  You’ll see who is happy and who is troubled.  You’ll recognize who is healthy and who is sick.  All of this information spills into the room with the person. This is what you must do every time you enter the stage or enter the camera frame.  You must come from somewhere with attitudes, feelings, and an activity.   This will make every entrance interesting and since you’ll be acting as you enter, you won’t have to worry about how to get into the scene or dialogue. Remember, every entrance is an exit from somewhere else and your life spills in with you. For more on this topic listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. You can also hear the Notes On Acting podcasts on Stitcher On Demand Radio.   © Eric Barr.  All rights reserved.  2013.  

 Personalizing the Set | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:06:15

A set in a theatre generally has three walls and just offstage you can see actors and crew people. In a film shot in a studio, rooms are constructed with only two or three walls and those can be removed so the cameras can shoot from multiple angles. When you’re shooting on location, you are generally confined to a restricted acting space and right beyond the edge there are people and equipment. Despite the lack of reality, it is your job to make a set, which is really just a small area defined by walls and set pieces, into a real place that has meaning to your character. It is your job to personalize the room, furniture and props, so that when an audience watches you, they understand where you are and what your relationship to the space is. Personalizing a set is about engaging your imagination. You make the unreal real by using your imagination and your senses to fill in the details. Think about the smells and the temperature. Consider what you might hear or see. Fill in as many details as possible to make the set as textured and alive as a real room. Your goal as an actor is to live honestly in imaginary circumstances and to do that you must personalize the set and make it real for your character. For more on this topic, listen to the full podcast. For podcasts and more please follow me on Twitter @NotesOnActing. You can also hear the Notes On Acting podcasts on Stitcher On Demand Radio.   © Eric Barr. All rights reserved. 2013.

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