Lesson 10: Attitude and Mannerisms

"Use attitude and mannerisms to convey the psycho emotional state of your character without TELLING what that state is."

So last class was a lot for many people, myself included. It can be hard to get into the "Thin Thing" when someone in a position of authority goes off in front of you (Nothing against you Jon, you were right to admonish us. I know I definitely could have worked harder.) But the thing is, Jon's right, this happens ALL THE TIME. I've seen it in Community Theatre, my day job, the grocery store. Even just witnessing someone else get their ass handed to them verbally can be embarrassing and hard to process, but if we let it get to us we lose and that "yelling director" will just continue on with their day and find someone else who is willing to put up with it. I think it's important to have boundaries and one thing I learned in another class is to learn what those rules for yourself are and what you will do when someone breaks them. Be ready to walk, but understand that that is a VERY final choice that you cannot take back.

Uma, I loved your post about finding qualities you resonated with in Cher. I think it's important to understand the differences AND similarities you have with a character so that you can step into their shoes. You don't have to agree with everything, but you have to flip it and understand in what conditions you WOULD act like that yourself. This is really commonly used in villain work and I find the whole process fascinating (and a little scary).

Lauren, I love you so much and I hate to see you beating yourself up about your work. You're such an amazing actress and person. That click will come for you and god help the rest of us auditioning with you when it does! Just have patience with yourself in the meantime. You know you're doing the work you need to.

This post is a lot of feelings and comments, but overall I really enjoyed last class. I finally got my 5 minutes of one on one with The Jon and it was so worth the wait! I really felt pushed and suddenly understood what I had been doing wrong and what I have to work on to fix it. It's a slow build of merging the icon into yourself to create the character you want to portray. It's a fine line that to be honest I am a little scared to improv fully, but I'm going to bring my best to try! The tip of having a "go to" phrase is one I am super familiar with and forgot that I could use outside of voice acting.

And I'm really looking forward to trying the "male actor" persona to REALLY test my ability.

I am in a constant battle with myself, “should I care enough to push people, should I create the boundaries or allow others to define the expectations.‘ As I live and breathe, I will take the responsibility to drive the expectations and demand excellence. It causes me a lot of stress to stand for what I know is right. It would be easier to be a “fun Daddy, “ but I know the cost....mediocrity. I am too old to bend to it. My only value as a teacher is to push you to a higher level than you think you can achieve. Every day I wrestle with this, but I am a stubborn old coot. I stand for you and you reaching your potential. I am so happy that u\you understand this.