In every class I've taught, in every production I've worked on with kids and youth, there is always at least one performer who thinks they are above the rehearsal process.
Perhaps they complain that they don't need to go back over scenes.
Perhaps they feel that all of the work you ask them to do to research and prepare their character is unnecessary.
Perhaps they've decided they have nothing to learn by watching cast rehearse a scene in which their character is not required.
This type of actor will often be that one who is always talking or disruptive, mucking around and distracting. This type of actor generally puts ego before the character, scene and ensemble. This type of actor will never improve and will always be hindered by their belief that they are 'good enough'.
This type of actor is not an actor.
An actor is an artist. An actor understands that the role, the audience and the ensemble are always bigger and more important than the self. An actor understands that our craft, or understandings, our training, our character research, our talent... are never finished. Art is ever evolving. A piece of art that is considered finished, including an actor's preparation and performance in character, is a dead piece of art.
At XtrAct I try to train my actors to understand that, if they are not required on stage for a scene, they should be working on character development, memorising lines, understanding how their characters fit within a scene and the world of the play, looking for those moments where they might be a peripheral character and how they can support the leads to make a scene successful, watching others rehearse to ensure they have an understanding of the world of the play, watching others rehearse to learn from their peers...
There are so many tasks that should be covered during a rehearsal. Each one involves the actor acknowledging they must continually train and evolve, and that everything should be done for the good of the ensemble and the audience. It is an invaluable experience. For the production crew, it can also separate the wheat from the chaff. Invaluable.
Perhaps they complain that they don't need to go back over scenes.
Perhaps they feel that all of the work you ask them to do to research and prepare their character is unnecessary.
Perhaps they've decided they have nothing to learn by watching cast rehearse a scene in which their character is not required.
This type of actor will often be that one who is always talking or disruptive, mucking around and distracting. This type of actor generally puts ego before the character, scene and ensemble. This type of actor will never improve and will always be hindered by their belief that they are 'good enough'.
This type of actor is not an actor.
An actor is an artist. An actor understands that the role, the audience and the ensemble are always bigger and more important than the self. An actor understands that our craft, or understandings, our training, our character research, our talent... are never finished. Art is ever evolving. A piece of art that is considered finished, including an actor's preparation and performance in character, is a dead piece of art.
At XtrAct I try to train my actors to understand that, if they are not required on stage for a scene, they should be working on character development, memorising lines, understanding how their characters fit within a scene and the world of the play, looking for those moments where they might be a peripheral character and how they can support the leads to make a scene successful, watching others rehearse to ensure they have an understanding of the world of the play, watching others rehearse to learn from their peers...
There are so many tasks that should be covered during a rehearsal. Each one involves the actor acknowledging they must continually train and evolve, and that everything should be done for the good of the ensemble and the audience. It is an invaluable experience. For the production crew, it can also separate the wheat from the chaff. Invaluable.
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