We interrupt the 3rd
installment of “Equity life versus Non-Equity life” to bring you the following
public service announcement:
Summer is over.
Stock seasons have finished. Internships have finished. The
time to lie on the beach has finished. Now it's time to get back to work. Since
school is starting, auditions are starting, and the hectic pace of life is
essentially re-starting (not to mention the fact that we’ve interrupted the conclusion
of a multi-part blog) I’ll keep this succinct.
During the hazy, hot and humid days of the season, we, as
actors, can get complacent, lazy and or develop bad habits. It’s time to get
back to the basics of being a professional actor.
Be early
It doesn’t matter if it’s for a class, an audition or a
rehearsal. Arrive early. Give yourself enough time to prepare for the task at
hand (change clothes, warm up, study music, etc.). Then, on top of that, give
yourself five minutes to sit and do nothing, to just get your head in the game.
Be dressed appropriately
If you’re auditioning you should look your best. Clean and
put together. Period.
Dancing needs dance clothes, which includes proper
undergarments (sports bra, dance belt, etc.) and the appropriate shoes.
Dressing for rehearsal not only includes clothing and shoes
that allows you freedom of movement, but sometimes clothing and shoes that
restrict your movement. It depends on the actual piece being rehearsed. If it’s
a piece that requires special garments, such as cowboy boots, corsets, hats,
long and or tight skirts, or heels for example, you should try to approximate
those things as soon as possible in rehearsal. It’ll make the transition to the
actual costume smoother and your life easier. And more importantly, it informs
the physicality of the character being portrayed.
Be prepared
In addition to the proper clothing, bring the proper
equipment with you. That includes a pencil and an eraser, water, a recording
device, scripts/librettos/sheet music, headshots, resumes.
Being prepared also means knowing your material prior to arrival. Make sure you’ve read
the play/musical prior to starting rehearsals. In the ideal world, you should
read it prior to actually auditioning for it.
This next thing should go without saying, but I’m going to
say it anyway...if you’re doing a reading of any type, be it public, private, paid or free, read the script
BEFORE you get in front of anyone, even the other actors. You'e not fooling anyone. We can all immediately tell the moment
mouths are opened who has read the script and who hasn’t.
Review your blocking, especially the exits and entrances.
There’s always a chance a costume change may have to happen in the wings.
Go over all the choreography prior to your next call. Chances are
there will be limited time for review during the actual rehearsal.
Make sure you are memorized on the date announced for the
piece to be memorized.
Be civil
It doesn’t matter what kind of mood you’re in, who you like
or dislike, or how your day is going. Be polite to everyone. Say hello. Say
good bye. Thank people for their contribution, even if you feel it was subpar. “Please”
and “thank you”, and eye contact go a long, long way in helping your career.
Be aware of your limitations
Be honest, not only to yourself but to the people behind the
table, about what you can and cannot do. If you can sing a high D sharp great,
let them know. But if you can only warm up to a high D sharp and aren’t able to
perform it 8 times a week, also let them know. It doesn’t make you less of a
performer to reveal your limitations. And yes, you may lose a job or two because
of it. But it’s better to lose a job or two now than to do damage to your
instrument doing something it wasn’t built to do. That could lead to the loss
of the ability to perform all together.
Be well
You need to take care of yourself. This means different
things to different people. It also means doing different things for different
people. Some common ways to take care of yourself are:
Drink water
Eat healthy
Get a proper amount of sleep
Exercise
Warm up and cool down
Get a hobby outside of performing
Learn a new skill or language
Meditate
Visit parks and nature
Dress for the weather outside not the season it should be
Wear sunscreen
Keep alcohol intake moderate
Avoid recreational drug use
Learn how to say “no” or how to say “yes”
Walk away from stressful situations and people
Seek out mental health professionals to help you deal with life
Find people who like you for you and challenge you to be the
best version of you there is
And smile, often and sincerely.
As you can see, making a name for yourself takes work. Being
taken seriously as a professional actor takes work. And sometimes that work has nothing to do with actually
cultivating talent or performance. Anyone can call themselves an actor. Anyone. If
you’re lucky enough to reach a certain point, everyone in the room who is
auditioning for the job has talent and performers. The things listed here are
the things that can separate you from that herd, in a good way.
I won’t lie to you. It’s gonna be hard, especially at first. I’ve been trying for a life time it seems, and I still fail at multiple things on these lists, sometimes routinely. But I keep trying. That’s all I can do. That’s all anyone can do. Because being a performer is more than just calling yourself one.
I won’t lie to you. It’s gonna be hard, especially at first. I’ve been trying for a life time it seems, and I still fail at multiple things on these lists, sometimes routinely. But I keep trying. That’s all I can do. That’s all anyone can do. Because being a performer is more than just calling yourself one.
“...If you’re gonna talk that talk that talk baby, better
walk that walk that walk.”
