Acting:ToBeorNotToBe

DavidEmbrey

EnglishIIIperiod2
Mr.Piatak
February26,2015

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Actingisnotaboutbeingsomeonedifferent.Itsfindingthesimilarityinwhatis
apparentlydifferent,thenfindingmyselfinthere(Streep).Actinghassurvivedforthousandsof
years.Itdatesbackto700BCinGreece.Becominganactorrequiresaspecificsetofskills.
Actingdoesnotonlyrevolvearoundtheabilitytoactbuttheabilitytoworkhardataskill.
Educationalsoplaysanimportantroleinbecominganactor.Educationinactingcanstartin
yourschoolorlocaltheater.Manyuniversitiesofferprogramsforstudentstostudyactingasa
careerchoice.ViolaSpolininventedtheartofimprovisationasapracticeskillforacting
(Moffitt).StellaAdler,anactresswhocreatedaskillsharpenerknownastheMeisnerTechnique,
wroteabooktohelpactors.Manyclassroomsstillusethesetechniquestoteachfuture
actors.(Bauer)Anothertypeofacting,methodacting,requirestheactortobecomethecharacter.
Manypeopleadviseagainstthistypeofactingbecauseitcanbecomeadangerouspathforsome
roles.(Gussow)Decidingtobecomeanactorrequirescertainsteps.Itcanstartwithactingat
schooloralocaltheaterandincludesgoingtomanyauditionsandeventuallyhiringanagent
onceanactorbecomessuccessful.Actingonlyontelevisionwouldmakesomepeoplehappy.
Othershavethedreamtomakeitonthebigscreen.Startingintelevisioncangiveactorsthe
practiceandinformationtheyneedtobecomeamovieactor.Choosingactingasacareercan
presentbothprosandcons.Noteverypersonwhohassetouttoacthasstruckitrichhowever,
somehavemadeitbigandlivethehighlife.Sometimesactingcanappearasawasteoftimeor
ahobby.Actingrequireshardwork,dedicationandtime.
Whenactingfirststarteditdidnothavealloftheadvancesmoderndayactinghas.
ActinginAncientGreecewouldusuallytakeplaceatfestivalstohonormanyoftheirgods.
Theyhonoredoneofthegods,Dionysus,inafestivalcalledTheCityDionysia.Thisfestival

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consistedofdifferentgroupsofpeoplecompetinginandputtingonperformances.Thegroup
thatgavethebestperformanceprevailedasthewinner.Thesamepeopleplayedthepartof
actorsanddirectorsoftheseplays.Theycouldonlyhavethreepeopleperplay,soeachperson
wouldplaymultiplepartsusingmaskstohidetheiridentityasthesameperson.Theylateradded
inthattheycouldhavemorethanthreeactorsbuttheotherroleshadremainednonspeaking
roles.MostofthetrageiestodaycamefromAncientGreece.Tragosandodemeanstragedy
inGreekandcanliterallytranslateasgoatsongbecauseaftertheplaystheywouldallgather
aroundandperformgoatlikedancingandsacrificeagoatasaprize.ElectraandOedipus
exemplifypopulartragediesthathavesurvivedmanyyears.TheGreekswrotebothofthesevery
popularandancienttragedies.Sophocles,Euripides,andAeschyluswrotethreeofthewinning
plays.SophocleswontwentyfourcontestswithplayslikeThePersiansandOresteia.But
thebestplaywrightoutofallofthem,Euripides,wonaroundninetyofthecontestswithplays
suchasHerculesandTheTrojanWomen,whichstillexisttoday.Dramastemmedfrom
ancientGreeceintotheWesternWorld(Robinson).
Manypeoplebelievethatanactorpossestheabilitytoactatbirthhowever,the
professionofactingtakesalotofskill.Someonepursuingacareerinactingmustendurethe
hardworkandtimeittakestosharpenactingskillsinordertomakeitintheindustry.To
becomeacharacter,anactorcannotjustreadaboutthecharacter,Theactormusttryto
experiencethelifeofthecharacterandletthelinesflownaturally.Ifanactorjustrecitestheir
memorizedlinesthentheaudiencewillnotbelievewhattheysayandthiswillmaketheaudience
lessinterestedinwhattheactorportrays.Ifanactorjustlookstobypassthehardworkacting
mayendinnothingmorethanregretandsadness.(DavidReed)

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Agoodeducationbecomesveryimportantinactinganddrama.ManyHighSchoolsand
Universitiesoffersomegreatprogramstohelpimproveanactorsknowledgeandabilityin
acting.However,ifanactorjustwantstohavemoreexperience,thentheycangotothelocal
theatreintown.ManypeoplethinkthatactorshavetoliveinbigcitiessuchasLosAngelesor
NewYorkCitytogaingoodexperience,However,inrealityplacesexistalloverthathave
castingformovies,televisionshows,commercials,andevenplays.Onceanactorhasdecidedto
giveitatrytheyhavetohaveaplan.Thistakesalotofhardworkandtime.Eveniftheactor
doesnotmakeitinamainroleorevenasmallrole,theycanstillgetinvolvedwithabehindthe
scenesrole.Workingbackstagewithpropsorcostumesstillgivesgoodinsightintotheacting
worldthatanactorcandrawfromanduseforthenextaudition(Bennett).
Therearemanypeoplewhohavehelpedactingevolvethroughtheyears.ViolaSpolin
becameaveryimportantpersonintheworldofacting.Spolinbecameknownworldwideforher
useofgamestoteachimprovisationalactingtechniquesotherwiseknownasimprov.Spolin
tookontheroleofthedramasupervisorfortheWorksProgressAdministrationsrecreational
projectinChicagofrom19391941.Whileactinginthisposition,Spolinsawaneedfortheater
trainingthatcouldcrossthebarriersofcultureandlanguage.Spolincreatedgamesthat
concentratedonpersonalcreativityandusingplaytoopenupapersonsabilitytousecreative
selfexpression.Spolinsaysthegamescamefromaneednotjustsomethingshedreamedup.
Shesawaproblemandwouldusegamestocomeupwithasolution.Wheneveranotherproblem
cameup,shewouldmakeupanothergametosolvetheproblem.In1946,Spolinfoundedthe
YoungActorsCompanyinHollywood,California.Thecompanywouldtrainchildrensixyears
andolderthroughtheatergamestogetthemreadytoperforminproductions.Manystudents

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havedescribedSpolinsgamesasbothfunandeasytodo.Theytakewhatsomeregardas
difficulttheatertechniquesandbreaksthemdownfortheactortounderstandandpractice.Many
classroomstodaystillusethetechniqueofimprovisation(Moffett).Improvisationhelpsactors
tocreateasceneandacharacteronthespot.ThegameBusStopexemplifiesthis.Thisgame
startswhentwopeoplesitonthestageandwaitonabus.Eachpersonchoosesacharacterto
playandthenallplayersmustinteractasthesecharacters.Thesegamesforcetheactortodig
deeperwithinthemselvestoputthemselvesinsomeoneelsesshoesandbecomecomfortablein
them.
StellaAdlerbecamealeaderintheactingcommunity.AdlerstudiedunderStanislavski
whocreatedTheSystemwhichusedspecifictechniquestomakeactorsactingtrue,realand
believable.AdlerfollowedStanislavskisteachingsbuttheydidnotagreeonhowtoshedlight
ontheseteachings.In1934,AdlermovedtoPariswithherhusbandandstudiedunder
Stanislavskiforfiveweeks.Stanislavskibelievedthatactorsshouldfocusonpersonal
experiencestobringontheemotions.Adlerdisagreedandfeltthatactorsshouldusetheir
imaginationtobringonrealemotions.Shebelievedthatusingyourownexperiencesseemed
twisted.AdlerconvincedStanislavskitochangehismethodsbyremovingthetechniqueof
drawingfromyourownemotions.AdlerandStanislavskibelievedthatifapersonplannedto
playacharacter,likeabaker,theyshouldresearchbakers/baking.Adlerusedthistechniqueand
combineditwithsomeofherotherideasandopenedaschoolforactors.Somefamousactors
whoactuallyattendedherschoolincludedMarlonBrando,RobertDeNiro,BeniciodelToro,
MarkRuffalo,SelmaHayek,SeanAstin,HenryWinkler,AntonioBanderasandMelanie

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Griffith.ManyHighSchoolandCollegetheateranddramaclassesstillteachhertechniques
today(Bauer)
Methodactingoccurswhenanactoruseseventsintheirownlives,sometimesfrom
disturbingevents,tohelpthemcomprehendacharacter.Muchdebateexistsastowhoactually
developedmethodacting.Somebelievethatthetitleofinventor/creatorbelongstoStanislavski
whileothersbelievethatthattitlebelongstoLeeStrasberg.Dependingonifsomeonesupports
methodactingoriftheydonotlikeit,methodactingconveyseitherselfrealizationor
selfindulgence.Methodactingbecameaverypopularactingmethodbackinthefortiesbut
somehowlostitpopularitythroughtheyears.However,methodactingmadeareturnto
Hollywood.Manybelievethatmethodactingstillexistsandhasbecomepopularagainhowever
manypeopledonotusethetermmethodacting,theyuseothernames.Manyactorswhosupport
methodactingbelievethattheemotionthatcomesforthfrommethodactorsevokesemotionand
touchessomethinginsideyou.Otherswhodonotsupportmethodactingbelievethatyousell
outknowledgeandskillforacheapemotion.Mostactorswhoopposemethodactingcomefrom
traditionaltheater.Manyactorswhousemethodactingbelieveitdifficulttofindanactorwho
doesnotactuallyusemethodactingwhethertheywouldadmittoitornot(Gussow).Some
famousactorswhohavestudiedmethodactinganduseitintheircraft,PaulNewman,Dustin
Hoffman,JoAnneWoodward,andAlPacino.DustinHoffman,anamazingactorwhohas
playedavarietyofcharacters,becameamethodactorandbelievesthatallactorsdraw
somethingfromtheirownlivestoconnectwiththecharactertheyportraywhethernegativeor
positive(Gussow).

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Becominganactorinvolvesmorethanjustactingontelevision,anactorshouldtakeall
opportunitiestheycanwhetherapartinaplayorjustimprovinactingclass.Someactorsdonot
believethatwantingtobecomeanactorevenexists.Forsome,itrevealstheirtrueselvesand
theyseenootherwayoflife(Nifong).Forsomerolesorauditions,anaspiringactormight
evenhavetotraveltodifferentplaceswhichwillmakethemmorewellknown,whichcouldlead
toabigrole.Becominganactordoesnotnecessarilyrequireadegree,butgoingtoacollegethat
offersactingprogramswillgivetheactormoreexperienceandthemoreexperiencegained,the
betteractortheyevolveinto.Anactorshouldtakeclassesbuttheyshouldalsogetprofessional
experience.Manyactorswillfindauditionsforbiggerpartssuchasinamovieorbroadway
theseauditionswillhelpwhethertheymakeitornot.Theseauditionswillshowanaspiring
actorwhattheyneedtoworkonandwillgivethemtheexperienceneededsotheywillnotgo
intofutureauditionsblind.Acquiringadditionalskillssuchasimpressionsordifferentaccents
canalsohelpprepareanactorforarole.Somerolesmayrequiresingingordancing,soworking
onthosetalentscanalsohelpprepareforroles.Ifsomeonejustdoesnothavethevoiceforthat,
thenmaybejuststicktotheactingroles.Onceanactorfeelsreadyforalmostanything,they
shouldhireanagent.Althoughnotrequired,anagentwillworkoutallthebusinesssuchas
mailingresumes,schedulingauditions,andnegotiatingcontractsifanactorlandsamoney
makingrole.Thiswillmakeitalotlessstressfulfortheactorbecausetheywillnothaveto
worryaboutwhatneedstogetdonebeforeanauditionanditwillgivethemmoretimetowork
onthecharacterthattheyplanonauditioningfor.(ActingCareerInformation)
Manypeoplewanttomakeitontelevisionorthebigscreen,butitwilltakesometime
beforeanactorgetsthere.Anaspiringactorneedstotakeclassesandworkandactindifferent

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typesofplaysormusicals.First,theactorshouldknowhowtoact.Manypeoplethinkthat
anyonecanjustgetanauditionandthenbecomefamousinoneday.Nottrue,anaspiringactor
hastoknowthefundamentalsbeforetheycandoanything.Anactorhastostartoutlearning
abouthowtoactinaclasseitherinhighschoolorcollege.Tobecomeatelevisionactor,an
aspiringactormustpursueitintherightlocation,notnecessarilyjustLosAngelesandNew
YorkplacesexistinVancouver,Montreal,Chicago,Miami,andevenBaltimore.Manycities
existthathavefilmingandauditions,butmostofthecastingdirectorsworkandliveinNew
YorkandLosAngeles(Breman).Awillingnesstodowhateverittakestomakeitinactingis
necessary.Anaspiringactormayhavetosacrificethingsintheirlifesothattheycanbecome
successfulenoughtomakeittoHollywood.Thismaymeanthatinsteadofgoingoutonadateor
outwithbuddies,theactormightneedtogotoanauditionorstayathomeworkingon
improvingtheircraft.Thiscouldruinrelationships,butactingdoesnotworklikearegularjob.
Itwilltakealotoftime,especiallyifanactorwantstomakeittoHollywood.Evenifanactor
doesgetthatHollywoodrole,itdoesnotjustmeansmoothsailingfromthere,Manyactorsmay
workaround14to20hoursadayandsometimesforlittlemoney.Commitmenttothejobisan
importantsteptobecominganactor.Thebestactorsouttherelovewhattheydoandgiveone
hundredpercent.Treatingpeoplewithkindnessandrespectbecomesimportantintheacting
industry.Peoplethatbehavepolitelyandrespectfullytootherpeoplewillusuallygetput
throughbecauseproducersanddirectorshavetorememberthattheywillcontinueworkingwith
thispersonforalongtimeandnoonewantstoworkwitharudeperson.Ifanaspiringactor
treatssomeonewithrespectandkindnesstheymightinthefuturewanttorepaythatactorby
helpingthemwitharoleorevenhiringthemforasecondtime.Someactorssayconsistencyand

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hardworkpaysoff.AlexanderNifong,anactorinHollywood,hadsixcallbacksbeforelanding
aroleonLawandOrderSVU.Thedirectorbecameimpressedwiththeworkethicdisplayed
ateachcallbackandwantedtohiretheactorandwantedtofindaroletomakesuretheactorgot
apart(Nifong).3+.
Beforecommittingtothecareerofacting,knowingthesalaryrangehelps.Manyfactors
existthatcanchangethesalary.Industry,companysize,levelofexperienceandamountof
educationallrepresentfactorsthataffectsalaryActor/PerformerSalary.Someonewhohas
workedintheindustrylonger,presentsmoreexperience,orworksonalargersizeshowreceives
ahighersalary.Themedianpayforanactor/performer,$52,226.00Actor/PerformerSalary.
Usuallyactorsonthebigscreenmakemuchmorethanthoseworkinginlocaltheater.
Actinghassurvivedforyearsandwillcontinuetogrowandimprovethroughtheyears.
Plentyofplacesnowoffereducationinthefieldandmanyplacestopracticethetalentofacting.
Nopromiseofmakingitbigexistsbutforthetrueactoratheart,justexpressingthatsideof
yourselffulfillsalltheyneed.Whetherinhighschoolplays,localtheater,tvorthebigscreen
forsomenootherwayoflifeexists.Whenwonderingwhetherornottopursueactingasa
career,onequotesumsitallup.Bepreparedtowait.Endlessly...Andbepreparedtofail.If
youtrulywanttobeanactor,andnothingelse,Irecommendnothavinganexitstrategy.
Becauseifyouhaveone,youwilltakeit(Nifong).

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