Act the Fool: Brian Dawkins

I've always been curious about the connection between athletics and acting. Brian Dawkins helped clarify that connection this past Sunday in the Philadelphia Eagles whooping of the Dallas Cowboys.

For those who don't know: Dawkins the most dominant defensive player in the NFL. And an inspiration to every actor out there. And here's why...

Brian Dawkins has 2 lockers in the locker room side by side. One is for himself 'Brian Dawkins #20'. The other is for his game time alter ego 'Weapon X', a character he puts on every Sunday in an elaborate ritual inspired by the XMen Superhero Wolverine. While Brian Dawkins the man is a soft spoken, calm, deeply spiritual guy, his game time alter ego 'Weapon X' is a ferocious, possessed animal. When he exits the tunnel onto the field, you can see Brian is nowhere to be found. There's only Weapon X, and it's go time.

Go time for Brian is like showtime for us. Like Brian we gear up for every performance. And we should all be inspired by him: his commitment to every game, his passion, his focus, his intensity, his emotion...

As team captain in the huddle before the kickoff, he inspires his men in a possessed scream, "ACT THE FOOL!!!" It means play loose, don't think, let yourself go, have fun! Where have we heard that in the acting world before? Professional football is about competition, it's about winning. Professional acting is too, just in a different way!

This year, 2009, let yourself be inspired by Brian Dawkins. Act the Fool, when you're in a scene--WIN it!, gear up for every performance, focus, inspire your cast mates, commit to your "alter ego"/your character on stage, and have fun! Depending on your the character you're playing, you probably won't need to do all that with as much intensity and adrenalin as Brian does to knock down a 250lb running back running at him at full speed, but you get the idea :)