re: Chinaski
Bukowski was asked "How do you create?"
He said, "You don't. You don't try. You don't try for Cadillacs, creation, or immortality. You wait. And if nothing happens you wait some more. It's like a bug high on the wall. You wait for it to come to you. When it gets close enough you reach out, slap out and kill it. Or if you like its looks you make a pet out of it."
I've heard stories of Hoffman as Willy Loman on Bway not acting until the first preview. It's said he couldn't bear the thought of acting the role/the lines until he felt like he was Willy Loman, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. So until he felt truthful, he refused to lie.
But isn't that acting--slipping in and out of connection to the material? Just like we do in real life (we're never 100% engaged all the time)?
It's been interesting being in Impressionism comparing the creative process of a play to that of a musical. In a musical there's a lot of trying. Often a lot of trying too hard, too fast, too soon. There are time constraints, very little privacy.
With this play, there was more waiting. More patience. Still not enough time, but I learned how to leave the audition prep behind and start from scratch. To wait. It's incredibly difficult work to do. Because there's less doing at first. It's dangerous, vulnerable, and more truthful.
I remember with Piazza, I had 12 days to rehearse before being put in. And I tried soooo hard. I had no choice. Circumstances were such it was be thrown to the wolves and survive--make art later. So three months in I finally started to feel like I was working from the right place. I was waiting. Not pushing so hard.
Now with the business as such, so much money on the line, productions costing so much...there's a desperation for results. Where's the line? The line between 'acting' and 'performing'? The line between 'acting' and 'being'? The line between 'waiting' and moving ahead?
The idea of not trying to create is fascinating. To ponder just waiting for it.
posted by Aaron Lazar @ 9:33 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
That is where the saying "Patience is a virtue" comes into play.
I had an acting teacher this past semester whose whole philosophy was that there is no such thing as acting, only "noticing" or "reacting." He told us that there isn't enough time to worry so much about thinking, but that you just have to be there, be present and focused, and that everything will fall into place (though not all at once). It was a bit of a confusing idea, but there is something to it.
Also, I agree with your statement that this economy is really hurting theatre as an art form. So much risk is involved in a production, and 9/10 times, a lot of it is lost. Everything has to be perfect or the show doesn't survive. Even great shows are tanking. It's really quite tragic.
Interesting thoughts on this one, looking over the blog and loving it! I will be following hope you will do the same :)
laura
http://leadingladyla.blogspot.com/
"So until he felt truthful he refused to lie..."
A beautiful statement that reflects the very nature of the artist. I believe Misner calls it living truthfully in the moment.
I think each actor has to find their own pace. If you look at Judi Dench...she never reads the script before the read through with the cast. She has the director or someone tell her what the play's about or she trusts a certain writer/director completely that she doesn't even need to know what it's about. So when the day comes for her to actually read her character, she's right there in the moment. She's going along with her character for the first time, and she's brilliant.
Then there are some actors who beat a play to death. They know every facet of their character and have researched their role completely. They give a delivered performance.
I think the key is to never show how much thought and deliberation has gone into something. If you look like you're waiting for a cue or waiting to go to your mark...you've stopped acting and are merely performing a piece. To be present, fully present in a scene, I think you have to feel what you're character does and whether you need to know everything your character is/does or whether you just get it the first time doesn't matter. It's when you fully release your character that's important, not the process.
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