This week I could have written about the stunning performances and atmosphere of Open Mic Night 4…the great achievements of Don’t Assume Anything……my optimism about Maybe This Time…the anticipation of Celebrity or the sheer amount of words I clocked up in the last fortnight…but I’m not going to write about any of those as it goes…(I know I know…almost as bad as sneaking in an extra best in best and worst…)
So then my theme for the week is…back stage etiquette/discipline/good practice…whatever your preferred term of reference and actually within those terms I’m concerned with all things related to the off stage world of theatre performance… which often covers a multitude of sins…
It becomes increasingly obvious to me that some of the crucial ingredients of a great performance are rooted in what actors are doing when they aren’t on stage…Don’t get me wrong…I know actors can, and frequently do, get away with passable performances when they’ve had hardly any sleep, haven’t eaten properly and they’ve been talking to their mate about trivia up until the point they made their entrance…my issue is that these actors never know the joy and fulfilment of a great performance… what they produce can not be anything other than adequate except in exceptional circumstances…
As a director I find it increasingly frustrating that I’ll ask actors to maintain their focus when they’re back stage and as soon as I’m not looking they start chattering about absolute rubbish…what compounds my irritation is that in not being focused themselves they disturb their fellow cast members focus preventing their fellow cast members from achieving greatness…my disappointment is compounded still further by the earnest nods I am treated to when I ask for cooperation regarding the way actors conduct themselves off stage…
So I’ll say this…when you are on stage the demands on you in order to tell the story of the play are enormous…in addition to the creative demands you face… you are also needed to undertake a range of awareness’s, sensitivities and sophisticated technical skills…so…the short answer is you have far too much to think about to think about anything else other than the task in hand…and if you are thinking of anything else you are undermining yourself and the production…food for thought I hope…
So then my theme for the week is…back stage etiquette/discipline/good practice…whatever your preferred term of reference and actually within those terms I’m concerned with all things related to the off stage world of theatre performance… which often covers a multitude of sins…
It becomes increasingly obvious to me that some of the crucial ingredients of a great performance are rooted in what actors are doing when they aren’t on stage…Don’t get me wrong…I know actors can, and frequently do, get away with passable performances when they’ve had hardly any sleep, haven’t eaten properly and they’ve been talking to their mate about trivia up until the point they made their entrance…my issue is that these actors never know the joy and fulfilment of a great performance… what they produce can not be anything other than adequate except in exceptional circumstances…
As a director I find it increasingly frustrating that I’ll ask actors to maintain their focus when they’re back stage and as soon as I’m not looking they start chattering about absolute rubbish…what compounds my irritation is that in not being focused themselves they disturb their fellow cast members focus preventing their fellow cast members from achieving greatness…my disappointment is compounded still further by the earnest nods I am treated to when I ask for cooperation regarding the way actors conduct themselves off stage…
So I’ll say this…when you are on stage the demands on you in order to tell the story of the play are enormous…in addition to the creative demands you face… you are also needed to undertake a range of awareness’s, sensitivities and sophisticated technical skills…so…the short answer is you have far too much to think about to think about anything else other than the task in hand…and if you are thinking of anything else you are undermining yourself and the production…food for thought I hope…
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