REFLECTIONS
In the working world of television,
a director's contact with actors is often only for the duration
of the job and although this enables a view to be formed about
the acting process the opinions acquired are mostly based on
short-term relationships and circumstances. These circumstances
are confined by the nature of the work. One of the benefits of
running The Rehearsal Room is the opportunity to observe actors
coping with a variety of circumstances over a period of time.
Watching actors over a series of auditions with different casting
directors has provoked the following reflections about the audition
process.
Actors and
The Casting Director
PROCESSING
THE AUDITION PROCESS
Assessing the comments given
by Casting Directors to actors is a tricky business. Actors of
course wish to please and impress casting directors and therefore
listen earnestly to a casting directors advice. In fact listening
to a casting directors advice is a very sensible thing to do
for they are a very significant conduit to the working world
for the actor. It has however been interesting to watch actors
perceptions grow about the complexity of the auditioning process
when they discover that two different Casting Directors can give
them two absolutely opposing views as to what elements of their
performance they should be working on.
Rights and
Wrongs
The question that arises is, "Can a casting director be
wrong?" And the answer is that they can't be. They have
expressed their view about the ingredients of performance they
are looking for and those views are clearly going to affect the
way they judge the actors work. So, for the actor, what is important
is not whether the Casting Director is right about the advice
being offered but rather the understanding that different casting
directors have different views and those views affect the choices
that will be made about who is cast in any role. Actor's have
to live with the fact that judgments about performance are very
subjective and therefore quite diverse.
Different
Paths
For example one casting director can tell an actor that they
are too still and that they need to bring more physicality to
their process while they may well be told in another audition
that they are too active. And in fact, different directors and
producers will also have different views and offer differing
advice. How does the actor deal with this? The Rehearsal Room's
view, which like everyone else's is only an opinion that should
be heard and judged for its value, is the following. If an actor
tells the story and is believable then they are doing the job
well. In the audition room if those goals are achieved they have
a chance of being considered for the gig.
Additional
Components
There are of course other factors. Physical looks may play a
part in the choice - although it is probable that those issues
have been taken into account before the actor was invited to
audition. How the actor responds to direction will also be a
significant factor. The actor may look just right and do a very
good reading for the character but if they can't take direction
and bring clear and significant change to their performance it
is a brave director that would give them more than one scene
or a few lines to do. So, being believable and being able to
change significantly while maintaining truthfulness are very
important elements.
Making a
Choice
What of the casting directors advice
? It should definitely
be listened to. It is the key to the choices that the actor will
make for the next take - so it is very important. Those choices
will play a significant part in the successful outcome of the
audition. So dealing with the information on offer is an important
part of the audition process.
Sometimes the notes given to
the actor are extensive and complicated. Understanding the intention
of those notes can sometimes be difficult, particularly if there
are a lot of them. How can the actor assess them?
The following thoughts have
emerged as a result of The Rehearsal Room process.
A Functional
Plan
The number three seems to be a recurring factor in many Rehearsal
Room discussions. And on this occasion it seems that incorporating
three changes into an audition performance is an achievable goal
if those changes can be simply categorized.
Greater
Risk
If a significant number of suggestions are being offered by the
casting director then listening carefully and prioritizing the
requests is important, for if there are a lot of notes it may
not be possible to deliver them all in one take. The risk that
struggling to achieve something minor might distract the actor
from pursuing an issue of major significance is a very real possibility
under these circumstances.
Identifying
the Changes
One way of simplifying things is to group a number of items together
as one. For example suggestions that tension should increase
at two or three places in the scene can be collectively labeled
as one item. This means the two or three moments of realization
which provide turning points or gear changes in the scene can
be grouped together as one - "a growing tension". It
is important to note this sort of direction as it indicates that
the casting director believes there should be a distinct escalation
of the drama in the scene and this is an IMPORTANT ELEMENT of
scene/story structure that the actor should endeavour to deliver.
In addition there may be a
number of lines that the casting director is pointing out which
could be played humorously. Rather than trying to remember all
the lines and what readings are being offered this suggestion
could be grouped under the a general heading of bringing a lighter
colour to the scene.
And finally there might be
a number of suggestions relating to the beginning or the end
of the scene that could be grouped together under a heading such
as, "make the beginning really energetic".
Having arranged about 8 or
9 suggestions into three simple groups
- an energetic opening
- with lots of light, "laughingly"
colours
- and a significantly growing
tension through the scene
the actor is now organized
to venture boldly forth in an open and trusting way towards an
achievable goal.
So, prioritizing and simplifying
instructions can significantly help deliver the essential ingredients
of a complicated request.
If this is achieved then the
most essential audition goals of delivering the story while being
believable and directable have been delivered.
Letting small issues eclipse
or distract from big issues is an important trap to avoid in
the audition process.
Other traps
for general auditions are:-
- Using scenes that the actor
has previously performed so that the process lapses into imitating
an old performance rather than delivering a new one
- Failing to listen (all casting
directors can tell if an actor is not listening)
- Striving to be different or
unusual (generally means everything else goes out the window)
- Not clearly identifying the
story of the scene
- Not playing turning points.
Allison Telford, Casting Director
for the ABC in Melbourne offered the following advice to a recent
Rehearsal Room workshop -
- Always seek clarification
if you are confused about any notes
- Clearly identify and play
the 'gear changes' in a scene
- Keep the audition simple
- Understand the detail of the
scene (too many people work in broad brush strokes)
In addition she suggested that
if an actor had difficulty understanding the instructions given
by a director then this wasn't immediately seen as the actor's
deficiency but rather an indication that perhaps this director
and actor were not suited to work together. An interesting thought.
Allison it would appear not only is searching for an appropriate
actor for the role but also for an appropriate match of actor
and director.
July 2003
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Room 2003. All rights Reserved.
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