The Acting Blog

Tackling Talent: Part 2 with ACS Assistant Coach Ian Watt

Friday’s have become special days at the ACS studio. Over the last few weeks we’ve been working through a DVD of Meisner classes. It’s a real treat to watch the man himself training actors in his own techniques. At 8 hours it’s a bit of a marathon but it always sparks off lots of discussion.

We’ve been thinking about talent. The core skills of Repetition, Script Analysis & As Iffing can all be developed through hard graft – so does the term TALENT even fit with the Practical Aesthetics ethos of acting?  Does it matter how TALENTED or UNTALENTED you are?

Talent is a difficult term to understand to begin with. One dictionary definition is – a natural ability or giftedness. So someone with talent has an aptitude for certain things or an innate ability to achieve a level of skill or competency. Now here’s a much misunderstood term.  Competency sounds like an apology for being just-about-passable but is defined as a combination of aptitude, knowledge, understanding and attitude.

Two indisputable talents sprung to my mind – Picasso and George Best. Picasso’s early works are worth a look if you ever thought he couldn’t draw and Best was such a great footballer that Pele, the Brazilian legend, signed an autograph for George with the words “from the second best footballer in the world.”

Yet Picasso said it had taken him a lifetime to learn to draw like a child and Best worked so hard in extra training to develop his weaker left foot – it became stronger than his right. Without doubt both showed signs of having great talent at an early stage in their lives but they also demonstrated they had a great work ethic – even in Best’s case.

But all of Best’s aptitude for balance and ball skills didn’t help him extend his playing career and Picasso’s understanding of form and hand to eye co-ordination wasn’t the reason he continued to produce works until he died aged 92. Maybe the difference between them was attitude.

Mamet wrote a private letter to the original students of Practical Aesthetics before their first performance – ‘A good actor trains his voice and body and analytical powers even though this training is taxing and “no one may ever notice.”

I feel talent shines out. It is obvious and noticeable – especially to those who can’t. So how does that fit with the P.A. approach? To be honest – I dunno. I like the idea of talent being a gift – something you’ve simply been given.  It’s nothing you can or should take any credit for – it’s just the way you are.  If you perceive a gift as something of value then you’re likely to take care of it – nurture it and not hide it at the back of a cupboard next to the horrendous cardigan you got from granny last Christmas.

REAL talent makes something difficult look easy to do – SO easy that everyone thinks they can do it. Ultimately I guess you can either use it or choose to waste it. My advice – which you didn’t ask for – is nurture however much talent you have whether it be great or little. Don’t worry about whether you have it or not, work hard and concentrate on developing the skills you need. If you are tenacious enough to keep on learning – you might surprise yourself and manage to be competent!

Thanks

IAN

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: Do you need talent?, Ian Watt, Practical Aesthetics, Talent

Guest Blog on Comedy Acting with Ian Watt

Today’s blog is a Guest Blog on Comedy Acting, written by our Guest Blogger Mr Ian Watt.

I noticed the subject of corpsing was raised in Mark’s blog recently. The practical solution was for the actor to focus on their essential action and it got me thinking about other banana skins which can trip up an actor in the serious matter of comedy acting.

•    Playing the lines for laughs

Laughter is a powerfully seductive sound of to a performer. It both comforts and confirms – the audience likes you! Its addictive quality, however, can tempt the actor to play the lines or action for laughs. They then find they’ve stepped beyond the imaginary circumstances of the play and turned it into a sketch show destroying the focus on the narrative or “story”.

My own experiences as a Stand Up comedian taught me to look audience members in the eye and that it was often very useful to carry a big stick! Comedians make direct contact with the audience; if and when the laughs come they can enjoy them with them. The comedian’s sole aim is to rack up the laugh count and squeeze as many as they can from their material. The actor should match their performance with the author’s intent and the overall context of the story.

An audience comment after a play I performed in recently was “It was good because the actors didn’t laugh at the same time as the audience.”

•    Anticipation and signalling

Especially on long runs, the actor runs the risk of “showing” the audience something funny is about to happen. The actor knows what is coming next, anticipates the joke and the riotous laughter to follow.  The audience picks up on the signal and the potentially side-splitting moment the writer has crafted is reduced in the process. Comedy is devious. It often depends on surprise and misleading the audience.

•    Ignoring the audience reaction

Another common pratfall for the actor is to disregard the audience’s laughter. This can result in important lines being drowned out. The actor has to pause the thought and action until the audience is ready to continue.  Laughter can break the actor’s concentration of being in the moment.

•    Summary

Mark’s solution to the corpsing problem is probably the best advice to take with you on stage – focus on the other actor and concentrate on achieving your essential action. Finally, a Polish director once commented to me “Fucking stand up comedians!” Yes – comedy is a funny thing.
Ian Watt is an experienced actor, comedian, teacher and designer.  He appeared in Mark Westbrook’s production of The Emotional Life of Furniture at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow.  He also attends Mark’s Acting Classes in Practical Aesthetics and Monologue Preparation.

Tags: Acting Comedy, Comedy Acting, Corpsing, Ian Watt, Mark Westbrook, Playing for Laughs