The Acting Blog

What YODA has to teach us as actors

Recently, I did a blog offering advice for actors based on the philosophy of the rapper and businessman Fiddy Cent.  This received many emails and messages and I’d like to thank you all, I’m so glad it was helpful for you.  Well, in the same spirit, this blog is inspired by the quotes of that famous acting teacher, oh okay, he’s not an acting teacher, but he may as well be, the one and only YODA:

“No! Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try.”
Meaning: ‘I’ll try’ is preparing to fail.  (Mamet) If you allow the idea of failure into your pursuits, you are already admitting defeat.  Either take action or do not.  There is no in-between.

“Named must your fear be before banish it you can.”
Meaning that you need to identify your fears, blockages, obstacles and problems, examine the problem/fear, put it into the spotlight to prevent it from quietly defeating you. For an actor, this could be fear of working on a particular kind of material say Shakespeare or Film, or hating doing monologues or cold reads.  Shine a light on your issue and go after with the same passion that you want to be the best actor.  Whatever your weaknesses are, find them out, and banish them.

“If no mistake have you made, yet losing you are … a different game you should play.”

Meaning: If you repeat the same strategy for your career over and over and it doesn’t work, you must change your strategy, for PA practitioners, this also means, CHANGE tactics!

“But when the day comes that even old Yoda does not learn something from his students-then truly, he shall be a teacher no more.”

Meaning: No matter how clever, experienced and gifted you are, you still have something to learn.  Even your acting teacher should be humble.

“Already know you that which you need.”

Meaning:  For the actor, you already have the capacity to live truthfully and the mind to do it under imaginary circumstances.  Everything you need to become a better actor is already inside you, but you might need some help in finding it and bringing it out into the open.

To You, The Best!

Looking for Acting Classes in Glasgow? Mark Westbrook is a Professional Acting Coach and runs Acting Coach Scotland, a private acting studio offering acting classes in Glasgow, masterclasses, workshops and audition coaching for actors at all levels. His acting studio is based in Glasgow, Scotland, although he teaches all across the United Kingdom. All Blog Posts © Mark Westbrook 2010

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Tags: Advice for Actors, Glasgow Acting Classes, Yoda on acting

Skill and talent and the balls to arrive at your own conclusions…

Most of the good things about theatre that I learned, I learned from David Mamet.  Most of the bad things I learned for myself through my own mistakes.  I fell into every trap, self-laid and other.  Becoming good at something requires the conviction that you will not give up until you’ve done a thing.  If you don’t have that conviction, sooner or later, you get soft, you look for something secure and safe, and soon.. oh soon, you’re no longer doing the thing any more.

If you’re a working actor, you know the feeling, you occasionally get the desire for something more secure.  You feel a little shame that you can’t always put bread on the table.  But you know that you can’t do anything else half as well as acting and you couldn’t give it up if you tried.  Because some of us are simple designer and engineered to be humanity’s storytellers, to express things for the community, you find us in all cultures throughout time, we are a necessary evil.  We are neglected, we are poorly paid, we are occasionally funded and we are visciously protective of any position that we attain.

If you desire to be a working actor, you have all of this to look forward to in the future.  But you can do it.  The trouble is that safety and security will beckon you at every stage on your journey.  Shouldn’t you just give up? Go on, give up and.. go teach high school or something, it’s certainly easier.  It’s more difficult to stand in, take the pain, put up with the rejection and face the wind and keep going, keep going until you get where you want to be.  Too many falter at this stage, when they reach what Seth Godin calls the ‘Dip’.  That time when your resolve weakens and the other thing looks easier than the doing the difficult thing.

If you are training as an actor, taking classes, or you’re thinking of becoming an actor, be sure that this is going to be a rough crossing.  At no stage will it be glamorous, even when it’s glamorous.  At every stage, it’s going to be difficult, but it’s also going to be wonderful.  But at the moment when you leave school, when you’re out there on your own, when you have educated your body and mind, it just requires the will, the guts or as the taekwondoists call it, indomitable spirit.

As David Mamet says in American Buffalo, you need “Skill and talent and the balls to arrive at your own conclusions”.

To You, The Best!

Looking for Acting Classes in Glasgow? Mark Westbrook is a Professional Acting Coach and runs Acting Coach Scotland, a private acting studio offering acting classes in Glasgow, masterclasses, workshops and audition coaching for actors at all levels. His acting studio is based in Glasgow, Scotland, although he teaches all across the United Kingdom. All Blog Posts © Mark Westbrook 2010

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Tags: Acting Coach, Advice for Actors, Becoming an Actor, David Mamet, Mark Westbrook, skills and talent and the balls

100 Tips on Acting – Part 7

61)THERE IS NO PERFECT ROLE You make the role perfect by fully living it.
62)EXPECT REJECTION But refuse to accept it
63)EMBRACE OPPORTUNITY
64)EVERYONE GETS SCARED
65)EVERYONE FAILS Fail, Fail Again, Fail Better (S.Beckett)
66)GATHER MORE STRINGS TO YOUR BOW
67)SELL YOURSELF, BUT DON’T SELL YOURSELF CHEAPLY
68)THE LITTLE VOICE IN YOUR HEAD IS USUALLY WRONG (Usually)
69)DECIDE WHERE THE LINE IS DRAWN Stick to your principles
70)SOME PEOPLE ARE JUST LUCKY, OTHERS HAVE TO GRAFT

Tags: 100 Tips on Acting, Acting Coach Scotland, Advice for Actors, Mark Westbrook

100 Tips on Acting – Part 6

51)THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH TRAINING
52)WORK SMARTER AND HARDER What can you do to go the extra mile?
53)MAKE FRIENDS WITH STAGE MANAGEMENT
54)DON’T GOSSIP ABOUT YOUR FELLOW ACTORS
55)DON’T SLEEP WITH YOUR CO-STAR
56)TOURS ARE BORING – LEARN A LANGUAGE, READ, WRITE, PRACTICE YOGA
57)ASK QUESTIONS
58)BE THE FIRST TO VOLUNTEER FOR EVERYTHING
59)LEARN TO ACT BEFORE YOU THINK
60)YOU CANNOT ACT IN-SPITE OF THE PLAY, WORK WITH WHAT YOU ARE GIVEN

Tags: Acting Advice, Acting Coach Scotland, Acting Tips, Advice for Actors, Mark Westbrook