Analysis and the Rusty Actor.

I think in my last post, I talked about the differences between theory and practice, and that all the theory in the world is fine, but theory lives in a wondrous place called OPTIMUMIA, which is just over there, south of Narnia, but on the same road as that Hogwarts school. Practice lives on a stage during what can be a grueling rehearsal process.

Of course, rehearsal processes can be grueling or boring, depending on the time frame, but in the professional world in which I spent a sizable portion of my adult life, your rehearsal process is usually short, and well-filled; yeah, you got eight days to put it up, but those are eight 12-14 hour days, and can go longer during those pesky tech and dress rehearsals.

(I realize that most of you know what I'm talking about; I'm being descriptive for those who wander in...)

So, here I am, in a rehearsal process that's eight weeks long, four days a week, three hours a day. I'm not quite sure where to put my hands, as they say.....

When you work quickly in those eight day rehearsal periods, you make choices very quickly, usually in your favorite chair at home. You analyze quickly, you find the hooks, you acknowledge where the humor is, where there is emphasis, where there is not....yes, as an actor, you look at it from a director's point a little, and you fine tune as much as you can in the comfort of your own home.

That way, when you hit the stage, you have some kind of road map, and the rest is just shaping, molding, playing well with others, working within your creation and at the same time adapting to THEIR creation....and going from single analysis to groupthink.

One of the specific things about Shakespeare: You cannot move and talk at the same time. Well, that's a bit of a generalization; you CAN move and talk at the same time, if you want to, but it is my belief that you either lose the line or the intention of the movement. This is the price you pay when the language is dense and lovely; you speak, and then you move. Or, you move, and then you speak.

So, now you have to add that dimension to the mix; a melodramatic movement pattern to heighten the awareness of the dialogue.

Eight weeks may not be long enough.

Stay tuned.