I auditioned today at the Winchester Little Theater. About an hour away from me. Those who follow this blog may remember talk of the place from when I participated in a staged reading of "Dinner with Friends". Read about that here.
This was the first time I had ever auditioned there for a regular show though, and it was to say the least a unique experience, as they, (or at least this director) does things differently than anywhere else I have done shows for.
It's a rather in depth audition. Two hours. But unlike many places, all of the people trying our are present at the same time in front of the director and her staff. They do not call people in groups at a time. I think this method has its advantages, but I confess to being a bit off guard for a bit, having expected something like I might find at other theatres for whom I have auditioned in the community.
An audition that very nearly didn't happen. I walked in before it all started, and got the impression the director didn't think I was old enough to play in the show. (I later learned I am older than she thought I was.) But upon hearing that she was expecting middle age actors, I began to leave. I didn't see any reason to waste anyone's time. But a few of the other people there persisted, pleading with me to stay and read anyway. One mentioned that there was a small part in the play, (which I hadn't read) that I seemed to be suited for. After much haggling, I agreed to stay and at least read for the small part.)
The play is "Funny Money" by Ray Cooney, and the part in question as that of a Cockney Taxi-driver. I have played Cockney's before, most notably in "Scrooge" a few years ago, and it was fun to read as such tonight. It must have gone well, because I was complimented on it by several people. (Including those who had asked me to stay when I otherwise might have gone.) And the producer noted that 31 was plenty old enough to drive a cab.
At the WLT, it seems that often people come to audition both nights. I hadn't planned on coming both nights, and mentioned that, which proceeded to make things a bit more difficult for the scenes the director wanted me to read for. I remained without anything to read for 40 minutes or so, as others switched back and forth reading the various parts. Finally, I told her that I would be happy to come back tomorrow, but I could not arrive exactly on time. This arrangement worked for them, and I read no more this evening.
So it is not really a call back in the truest sense of the word, but I am going back tomorrow...I suppose to read with new people who were not there today. And some people that I have worked with before, who were there tonight, and plan to return tomorrow. Always nice when there are at least some familiar faces.
We also did a brief exercises which I think I misunderstood. We were all supposed to count off in a circle, numbers by one. Each time it seems we were supposed to use a different voice when it came round to us. I didn't catch on to this until the third cycle. I could have asked, but that isn't easy when you do not know you have not understood.
Hopefully though, I made my point, and will make my point tomorrow.
My opinion is, if I get into the play, it will in fact be as the Taxi-driver. It was all that I read for, save one scene, and I put that on my sheet on the advice of the others.
So tomorrow night, I may know already. Stay tuned for this one.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Monday, March 09, 2009
In with the Old.
Community theatres tend not to do many shows that are hot off the presses as it were. A mixture of perennial hits, (especially musicals), and easy to obtain and comfortable straight shows are the norm for most of them most of the time. This can be a problem, in my opinion, but so can the opposite problem...not doing enough older scripts.
Or perhaps it is more accurate to say that theatres do not do enough older scripts that are lesser known. When it comes to plays over 100 years old, Shakespeare, Moliere, and once in a while a few of the Greek tragedies seem to be the limit. Yet those are done with considerable regularity in spite of their age because of their over all popularity today. Their fame transcends there age.
But what of shows whose age has sort of left them in the dust or theatrical oblivion? What about shows that were written 100-200 years ago about which most of us know nothing, because they have not been performed since? Either because they were never popular, or perhaps that their popularity was very much a product of the time they were written.
It would do theatres as well as actors, good to explore such plays. Theatres benefit because to do so is both original, and free, (such plays being in the public domain by this time.) The benefits gleaned for the actor should be obvious...exposure to the unfamiliar.
There is no such thing for the actor as exposure to too many different types of plays and scripts. The classics are classics for a reason, and exist as a genre until themselves. But a New England Drama released in 1843 in the height of the transcendentalist movement? An passion play from the turn of the 19th century? Plays written in such time periods and designed to reflect such periods' themes certainly would have a different feel in words, staging and plot than a lot of their more universal, timeless brethren, but would have something to teach us.
One of my own favorite monologue pieces which I have used more than once, (much to the confused chagrin of my one time acting professor) is an opening monologue from a play called Andre by William Dunlap, that was published and first performed in 1798. Believed to be the first American based tragedy, it was not popular in it's own time, and even the notoriety it gained decades after the fact remains deeply forgotten in what is the past to us. It is of vital scholarly importance, but few theatre people know of it. Which is a shame. I would try out for it if a community theatre had the temerity to buck convention and stage it.
Why? Because it is so different, so old, so forgotten, yet so clearly not Shakespearean or Greek. (Though it is a tragedy.)
Digging up such forgotten ancient scripts and getting directors willing to direct them, let alone actors willing to perform in them is certainly a challenge. But the actor should be about challenge, and I challenge theatres to look into some of these older, less popular texts.
Or perhaps it is more accurate to say that theatres do not do enough older scripts that are lesser known. When it comes to plays over 100 years old, Shakespeare, Moliere, and once in a while a few of the Greek tragedies seem to be the limit. Yet those are done with considerable regularity in spite of their age because of their over all popularity today. Their fame transcends there age.
But what of shows whose age has sort of left them in the dust or theatrical oblivion? What about shows that were written 100-200 years ago about which most of us know nothing, because they have not been performed since? Either because they were never popular, or perhaps that their popularity was very much a product of the time they were written.
It would do theatres as well as actors, good to explore such plays. Theatres benefit because to do so is both original, and free, (such plays being in the public domain by this time.) The benefits gleaned for the actor should be obvious...exposure to the unfamiliar.
There is no such thing for the actor as exposure to too many different types of plays and scripts. The classics are classics for a reason, and exist as a genre until themselves. But a New England Drama released in 1843 in the height of the transcendentalist movement? An passion play from the turn of the 19th century? Plays written in such time periods and designed to reflect such periods' themes certainly would have a different feel in words, staging and plot than a lot of their more universal, timeless brethren, but would have something to teach us.
One of my own favorite monologue pieces which I have used more than once, (much to the confused chagrin of my one time acting professor) is an opening monologue from a play called Andre by William Dunlap, that was published and first performed in 1798. Believed to be the first American based tragedy, it was not popular in it's own time, and even the notoriety it gained decades after the fact remains deeply forgotten in what is the past to us. It is of vital scholarly importance, but few theatre people know of it. Which is a shame. I would try out for it if a community theatre had the temerity to buck convention and stage it.
Why? Because it is so different, so old, so forgotten, yet so clearly not Shakespearean or Greek. (Though it is a tragedy.)
Digging up such forgotten ancient scripts and getting directors willing to direct them, let alone actors willing to perform in them is certainly a challenge. But the actor should be about challenge, and I challenge theatres to look into some of these older, less popular texts.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
All By Myself??
Sunday has come again, loyal blog readers, and once again I write not of an opinion or advice, but of a plan percolating in my head in regards to my grasp on the ever changing craft of acting. (Why else would I be putting it here on AOB?)
To begin with, I do realize I have not been as regular as you might like in regards to the Sunday columns. Those who know me and this blog know that they tend to ebb and flow sometimes based on how busy my non-acting life becomes. I do have some ideas and columns socked away for future publication, once the times straighten themselves out a bit. So for those that crave them, just wait. The ship of weekly acting advise columns will right itself.
And you can always head over to showbizradio.net and read my regular acting columns over there. They would love your readership as well.
That is not to say that people are not reading the older posts on THIS blog. I yet again received thanks for the now famous, most widely read (that I know of) entry in the history of this blog..."A Kiss Is Just a Kiss." I once again brought solace to someone who was about to engage in their first ever stage kiss in the near future. I have not heard from them again, but hopefully what i said provided yet another person with the tools they needed to proceed with that most awkward of acting milestones. If nothing else, this blog may go down in history for that entry alone.
Yet, I digress a bit. The point of the entry is to mention some ideas that I am having in regards to acting.
To begin with, I must consider if, next week this time, I wish to return to the Old Opera House for an audition. (The place where I used to do just about all of my acting.) They are having auditions for Ken Ludwig's "Leading Ladies". I know nothing about this play safe the basics. I do know that the Opera House seems to be bent on performing every single Ken Ludwig play currently in publication. The have done I believe three of them in the last 4 or 5 years. (I was in Moon Over Buffalo myself.) Not that there is anything wrong with that per se. I just think that Ludwig tends to repeat himself, and write basically the same type of play every time, just changing the setting and the characters. This one in particular deals with down on their luck actors...just as Moon Over Buffalo did. It may be fantastic, I have not read it. But I cannot help thinking that Ludwig has been here before.
Yet that is not to say I will not audition. I have not done anything at the Old Opera House for a few years. Though this particular director has never cast me in anything, and the Opera House itself has not been able to secure a role for me in any of it's shows for years, it may be worth it just to be back in a larger space. I am fond of all the time and adventures I have had with the up and coming Full Circle Theater Company, as these pages oft have shown, but I think everyone wants to be in a physically spacious performing space and back stage space sometimes. I am approaching one of those times.
Plus I have not been in a total farcical comedy for quite some time. Over a year. That can be good for the soul as well. So, it remains a possibility. Any thoughts on that would be appreciated.
The other major topic of contemplation for me has no specific date, other than in the "significant future. (Say no earlier than the end of this year, I would approximate.) I have mentioned this in passing before here on the blog, but now I will say upfront that I am considering doing a one man show. Not writing one, performing one that has already been published.
You will forgive me if I do not say which one man show at this time. I am refraining from that because I am not certain if it will come to pass, and I would not want word to get out about it, via this blog until things were more solid. But suffice to say I now have the script, have been reviewing it, and am slowly making the determination as to whether or not it is something I want to take on.
I have never done it before, and I have always said here on the blog how important it is to challenge oneself without breaking one's self. I do not believe this would break me. So part of me says I must at least try it...even if the idea is not popular among others.
I would be performing it at the Full Circle Theater. Initial reactions from the higher ups in that company have been positive, so I dare not throw away the idea before I give it total consideration. It would not be a main stage production, but maybe a special showing between official shows on their docket. Again, lots of details involved in this that really can't be considered much until I make an official decision, and until I see how long it takes to feel comfortable with the idea if i do decide to go ahead with it. But I have to be true to the blog's purpose by reporting that I am giving it serious consideration.
A one person show is a whole other beast. You do not get any of the usual support mechanisms you receive from having a cast to work with. Covering each other, moral support, bonding and increased fun. But to be fair, one also does not have to deal with the draw backs of having others in a show...egos, lack of preparation, varying degrees of dedication, and traffic problems. (For some, not all shows. But the risk is there at the start of every show with more than one person.)
But more than that, it gives an actor the chance to truly hone in on story telling ability, and pulling out of the air and making real those stimuli from which to draw reactions and mood. Things that the rest of the cast is usually there to enhance.
It also requires one to be extra aware of an audience, as the actor must draw them in even further to every word and every moment, since there are fewer distractions from the character, and the words they speak.
So, I shall spend a great deal of time in the near future going over the script and considering all of these things, and more, as I make my way towards a decision. You, my loyal blog readers, will be the first one's informed in the world of my decision. (And you will sooner than that know which one man show I am contemplating."
To begin with, I do realize I have not been as regular as you might like in regards to the Sunday columns. Those who know me and this blog know that they tend to ebb and flow sometimes based on how busy my non-acting life becomes. I do have some ideas and columns socked away for future publication, once the times straighten themselves out a bit. So for those that crave them, just wait. The ship of weekly acting advise columns will right itself.
And you can always head over to showbizradio.net and read my regular acting columns over there. They would love your readership as well.
That is not to say that people are not reading the older posts on THIS blog. I yet again received thanks for the now famous, most widely read (that I know of) entry in the history of this blog..."A Kiss Is Just a Kiss." I once again brought solace to someone who was about to engage in their first ever stage kiss in the near future. I have not heard from them again, but hopefully what i said provided yet another person with the tools they needed to proceed with that most awkward of acting milestones. If nothing else, this blog may go down in history for that entry alone.
Yet, I digress a bit. The point of the entry is to mention some ideas that I am having in regards to acting.
To begin with, I must consider if, next week this time, I wish to return to the Old Opera House for an audition. (The place where I used to do just about all of my acting.) They are having auditions for Ken Ludwig's "Leading Ladies". I know nothing about this play safe the basics. I do know that the Opera House seems to be bent on performing every single Ken Ludwig play currently in publication. The have done I believe three of them in the last 4 or 5 years. (I was in Moon Over Buffalo myself.) Not that there is anything wrong with that per se. I just think that Ludwig tends to repeat himself, and write basically the same type of play every time, just changing the setting and the characters. This one in particular deals with down on their luck actors...just as Moon Over Buffalo did. It may be fantastic, I have not read it. But I cannot help thinking that Ludwig has been here before.
Yet that is not to say I will not audition. I have not done anything at the Old Opera House for a few years. Though this particular director has never cast me in anything, and the Opera House itself has not been able to secure a role for me in any of it's shows for years, it may be worth it just to be back in a larger space. I am fond of all the time and adventures I have had with the up and coming Full Circle Theater Company, as these pages oft have shown, but I think everyone wants to be in a physically spacious performing space and back stage space sometimes. I am approaching one of those times.
Plus I have not been in a total farcical comedy for quite some time. Over a year. That can be good for the soul as well. So, it remains a possibility. Any thoughts on that would be appreciated.
The other major topic of contemplation for me has no specific date, other than in the "significant future. (Say no earlier than the end of this year, I would approximate.) I have mentioned this in passing before here on the blog, but now I will say upfront that I am considering doing a one man show. Not writing one, performing one that has already been published.
You will forgive me if I do not say which one man show at this time. I am refraining from that because I am not certain if it will come to pass, and I would not want word to get out about it, via this blog until things were more solid. But suffice to say I now have the script, have been reviewing it, and am slowly making the determination as to whether or not it is something I want to take on.
I have never done it before, and I have always said here on the blog how important it is to challenge oneself without breaking one's self. I do not believe this would break me. So part of me says I must at least try it...even if the idea is not popular among others.
I would be performing it at the Full Circle Theater. Initial reactions from the higher ups in that company have been positive, so I dare not throw away the idea before I give it total consideration. It would not be a main stage production, but maybe a special showing between official shows on their docket. Again, lots of details involved in this that really can't be considered much until I make an official decision, and until I see how long it takes to feel comfortable with the idea if i do decide to go ahead with it. But I have to be true to the blog's purpose by reporting that I am giving it serious consideration.
A one person show is a whole other beast. You do not get any of the usual support mechanisms you receive from having a cast to work with. Covering each other, moral support, bonding and increased fun. But to be fair, one also does not have to deal with the draw backs of having others in a show...egos, lack of preparation, varying degrees of dedication, and traffic problems. (For some, not all shows. But the risk is there at the start of every show with more than one person.)
But more than that, it gives an actor the chance to truly hone in on story telling ability, and pulling out of the air and making real those stimuli from which to draw reactions and mood. Things that the rest of the cast is usually there to enhance.
It also requires one to be extra aware of an audience, as the actor must draw them in even further to every word and every moment, since there are fewer distractions from the character, and the words they speak.
So, I shall spend a great deal of time in the near future going over the script and considering all of these things, and more, as I make my way towards a decision. You, my loyal blog readers, will be the first one's informed in the world of my decision. (And you will sooner than that know which one man show I am contemplating."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
