WHAT IS ACTING?

ACTING is the work of an actor or Actress, a person in theatre, film, or any other storytelling medium who tells the story by portraying a character and, usually, speaking or singing the written text or play. From the Latin word ag?re meaning “to do”, this is precisely what acting is. In acting, an actor suppresses or augments aspects of their personality in order to reveal the actions and motivations of the character for particular moments in time. The actor is said to be “assuming the role” of another, usually for the benefit of an audience, but also because it can bring one a sense of artistic satisfaction. Actors are generally expected to possess a number of skills, including good vocal projection, clarity of speech, physical expressiveness, a good sense of perspective, emotional availability, a well developed imagination, the ability to analyze and understand dramatic text, and the ability to emulate or generate emotional and physical conditions. Well-rounded actors are often also skilled in singing, dancing, emotional expressiveness, imitating dialects and accents, improvisation, observation and emulation, mime, stage combat, and performing classical texts such as Shakespeare. Many actors train at length in special programs or colleges to develop these skills, which have a wide range of different artistic philosophies and processes. Modern pioneers in the area of acting have included, Konstantin Stanislavski, Lee Strasberg, Stella Adler, Michael Chekhov, and Sanford Meisner.

WHAT IS AN ACTOR?

An actor is a person who acts, or plays a role, in a dramatic production. The term commonly refers to someone working in movies, television, live theatre, or radio, and can occasionally denote a street entertainer. Besides playing dramatic roles, actors may also sing or dance or work only on radio or as a voice artist. An actor usually plays a fictional character. In the case of a true story (or a fictional story that portrays real people) an actor may play a real person (or a fictional version of the same).

WHAT IS AN AUDITION?

An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performing artist. It is used in the casting process to demonstrate the level and range of a performer’s talent, and functions as a job interview for the performing arts. A typical audition involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece: for example, a monologue for actors or a song for a singer. For actors, the audition piece is typically not from the show being considered; an actor wishing to be cast in Hamlet would not likely do a monologue from that play. However, most performers do have a range of audition pieces and select something appropriate; an actor auditioning for Hamlet would have a dramatic Shakespearean monologue ready, and not perform a monologue from an Oscar Wilde comedy, or a contemporary playwright. Similarly, a singer auditioning for a role in a musical theatre production would not sing opera or country music, and a musician auditioning for a seat in an orchestra wouldn’t perform rock. Some auditions involve cold reading, or performing a script that the actor is not familiar with. Likewise, musicians may be asked to sight read music at various levels of difficulty. This is similar to many dance auditions, in which the focus is on learning new choreography, rather than showcasing prepared work.

By Ruben G.