This semester, I am taking a class called Acting 1. Upon signing up for the class, I anticipated working on scenes, learning stage cues, and reading through play scripts from the get-go.
In reality, our acting class is more varied and works to prepare actors with skills to help them better approach their work. One of the most important things my professor has stressed is performing every action for a reason. In order to do this, each actor must complete each action based on Given Circumstances.
In order to achieve this, each member of the class was paired with a partner and each pair was given a few sentences on a piece of paper with a description of who we were acting as and the circumstances surrounding the scene we would perform.
My partner and I were supposed to assume the role of two sisters that did not get along too well but had to come together after losing their mother.
While each pair had to use a chair according to the stage directions we were given, Given Circumstances allowed for us to visualize the chair’s role in our specific scene. For example, we viewed the chair as an object that was precious to our characters’ mother, and this influenced how we sat in the chair.
In other words, we did not sit in the chair just because the stage directions told us to. Instead, we had to reflect on the higher purpose the stage directions called for and perform it when the time came.
An improve game we played in class further expressed the role Given Circumstances can play in acting. A partner and I had to create a conflict between two characters. Both our characters had to want something (an object, etc) very badly throughout the sense. When our characters interacted with one another, we had to bring that sense of “want” to the scene and dialogue.
Last Thursday, however, we were given a different task to do as a class. We put acting to the side for the day and began class with a warm up as usual. What differed was our focus on volume and relaxing the body. We paid particular attention to which parts of our body were tense at the start of class and worked on ways to loosen up before speaking a line of a play. The goal was to focus on the fact that acting is not just about using your hands and trying to convey an emotion, but also about the way you speak and carry yourself on the stage.
To portray a realistic character for the audience, an actor/actress must be relaxed and tuned into the circumstances surrounding a character’s story. Relaxation is key and the other actions follow.
This lesson stuck with me because in life we can get tense or worried and forget the power in relaxation, even while portraying someone else onstage.
At the root of acting lies the consciousness of one’s self. This consciousness can then help us portray a character.
