Summary: Crying on cue is a problem that every actor will face at some time. But if you resort to fake crying, your audience will know it is not real and it will make it hard for them to believe anything else you do in your performance. The most important thing to remember is that you shouldn’t play the emotion; that is emoting not acting. The problem, of course, is that writers give us very specific instructions as to when our characters laugh or cry. Wanting to serve the script, we struggle to make those moments come to life. So as tempting as it is, don’t start by trying to figure out how to play your character’s emotional states. Begin with the given circumstances and determine how they impact what you do and how you do it. Having done that, work out what your character is trying to achieve moment to moment. Ask yourself, for every line you speak and every action you do, what do I want? Now determine the obstacles are that are blocking you from reaching those goals and what you are doing to overcome them. All of the answers to these questions are action-based and give you things to do and ways to do them. Once you have worked through these moments, you have to forget your preparation and just live in the moment and off of your acting partner. Acting is like sports in that you can no more think about your batting swing as a pitch comes toward you than you can think about your intentions as you listen to your acting partner. You must simply look, listen, and respond. I’m not saying that you will always cry because you do these things. You might discover that tears are not even needed to create an intense interaction. But you will be playing honestly in the imaginary circumstances and living in the moment and off your partner. That will create a compelling performance that will work for you, your acting partner, and the audience. Links: I Want She Wants
