Acting class - Dare to be an artist

Genius is not a possession of a limited few, but exists to some degree in everyone.

– Robert Henri, American painter and author

MILTON: Actually, wait a second. Before we start the scene… We have some new people here tonight, and I wanted to greet you with a little chat. (To the actors on stage:) Sorry, good film training. Everything is ready to shoot the big scene and just before they say “action!” something comes up… The lights are not right, a costume is being questioned and we have to wait. Or the director gets a call from his ex-wife or something. I personally wouldn’t take that call.

Class laughter.

So, I was thinking of all of you today. What brought you here, to Los Angeles, to this kind of acting? I think you come with a dream. Sometimes these dreams are real, or they are fantasies, flashes of thought, a flickering image of something desired. I want the class to help focus, define and realize these dreams, to guide each of you to your own personal path, your own personal definition and expression. Being an artist is the most important contribution a human being can make. Never minimize the genius within you. Everything must be done to unleash the creative spirit in you, and thus make a life and an artist that is relevant.

So what is an acting class all about? For me, the study of acting is really the study of life. This seemingly obvious truth may be obscured by the fact that acting study has aspects of both technical work and exercise work, and this can sometimes, in my mistaken opinion, make a class too academic. But Stella Adler corroborated something she had been doing for 15 years as a teacher when she told me, “I’m not teaching acting, honey. I’m teaching actors to be people.” It is the fusion of your skill as an artist and your knowledge of life as a person that will help you truly communicate through your work.

Remember that everything you express as an artist comes from you. Cary Grant once spoke here in class and said in his delicious accent, “All you have is you, you know.” Then came the great director Martin Ritt, and in his raspy voice he said, “All you have for me is the gold within you.” Here were two quite opposite artists, both emphasizing the same point: it’s about you. Your life, your experiences, your memories, your body will affect the character you’re playing, and you need to illuminate those elements to give it that personal touch. Dare to make him your personal Hamlet, your unique Romeo, your very own Cyrano, and not only for these classic roles, but also for the new and original roles that come your way, waiting for you to mark them with your personal brand.

I don’t mean to scare any of the new students here tonight, but part of my job as a teacher is to make it clear that middle-class thinking and habits inhibit creativity. The artist is afraid to express himself for fear of being criticized or condemned. Since he was a child, the words no, be careful, don’t do that, shut up, be careful, be still, these and innumerable other expressions governed the child’s life and influenced his future. I’ve met countless actors where I can see a certain wild, risky creativity that wants to come out, but has been suppressed. Modesty and humility tend to rule the day. Do you know the derivation of humility, or humble? Humble. Submissive. The land. The dirt. These are not very useful qualities for an actor. Well, I can think of one or two who could use a little…

A wave of laughter from the class.

But as much as I’m trying to unleash this highly expressive personal artist, I’m also trying to unleash the mensch within all of the actors. Does everyone know the mensch? Show of hands? A couple of people. I thought we had more people of the Jewish persuasion in the class. Mensch is Yiddish for being a whole person, a human being who cares, who has a heart, who can communicate easily, and with whom to communicate easily. Theater and film work are group activities, so the ability to work well within a group dynamic is vital to their long-term career prospects. My goal is twofold: a highly creative individual actor who can also flourish and contribute to the growth of a strong group.

Dare to say that you have a true genius in you. Dare to believe that in your personal thoughts and feelings lives a true artist worthy of self-expression and the appreciation of the world. Dare to know that you are an artist capable of creating and revealing some aspect of life. Dare to learn, explore, participate and feel the joy of this meaningful journey. Do you all understand me?

CLASS: Yes!

MILTON: Good. Be sure to greet new people, make them feel at home. Okay. (He turns to the actors on stage:) Very nice of you to wait to do the scene. You are professionals, right? Well. Let’s rock and roll.

If you deprivation to savour the Safe Sprightliness: Making money in the affluence of your own institution activity online, then this is for YOU!: Click Here