Great actors seem to possess the ability to draw the audience into their performance. They have a chameleon-like capability to transform from one character to the next. Actors who are consistently successful in creating powerful performances understand their obligation to play their characters with clarity, insight, and authenticity. They are also acutely aware that it takes an enormous amount of collaboration by many artists to create a lasting impact on the audience. They realize that a great theatrical experience transcends the actual performer. In other words, a performance isnât about the actor; itâs about creating an experience for the audience. For an actor to become a vehicle for the audienceâs journey, they must move beyond their own personal insecurities and focus on the action taking place in the world of the theatrical work. Quieting uncertainty and concentrating on action are paramount to a successful performance.
Influences on Acting
In life (as well as in art), we play a variety of roles. On any given day, I play the part of wife, mother, teacher, sister, daughter, colleague, friend, and so on. We all wear a lot of different hats! The accumulation of real-life experiences combined with a strong awareness of the different âmasksâ people wear depending on their environment influence the actorâs choices when developing the characters they play. Arguably the greatest actor of our time, Meryl Streep said, âActing is not about being someone different. Itâs finding the similarity in what is apparently different, then finding myself in thereâ (quoted in HernĂĄndez, 2016). An actor finds common ground with their character and embraces their characterâs differences as their own. When a character is difficult for an actor to relate to on a personal level (e.g., the character is a serial killer), they use imagination to connect with the characterâs motivation. Even the most eccentric characters can resonate with the actor on some level, and it is the work of the actor to discover those connections. Once strong associations are made, the actor produces a distinct perspective and fills the character with dimension.
Through candid and sincere acting, an actor helps to reveal the storyâs universal themes, which often exposes the flaws of society. When the actor portrays a character, they do not critique or reveal their opinion of the character, which would risk alienating the audience. Rather, the actor plays the character as truthfully as possible without judgment, empowering the audience to make their own decisions about the characterâs motivation and actions. Because the actor infuses their character with depth, the audience recognizes something of themselves and their society in the story and learns from the characterâs choices. When the audience relates to and learns from the character, the actor has done their job well!
Acting is demanding work, and self-doubt can creep up at any time; that is why developing a practical approach to performance is essential. Weâll discuss ways to release yourself from insecurities that hinder your expressiveness in performance in the chapters that follow. While we will spend much time discussing the performerâs journey, the ultimate goal of moving the audience will never be far from our thoughts. Letâs dig deeper now into audience experiences as theatregoers and highlight the value that representing humanity has for society.
Representation in Acting
We have established that the audience learns and grows when they see themselves reflected on stage and screen. At the 2020 Golden Globe Awards, comedian Kate McKinnon described the effect that fellow comedian, Ellen DeGeneres, had on her life. In her speech, McKinnon said:
In 1997, when Ellenâs sitcom was at the height of its popularity, I was in my motherâs basement lifting weights in front of the mirror and thinking, âAm I gay?â And I was, and I still am. But thatâs a very scary thing to suddenly know about yourself⌠And the only thing that made it less scary was seeing Ellen on TV. She risked her entire life, and her entire career, in order to tell the truth, and she suffered greatly for it. Of course, attitudes change, but only because brave people like Ellen jump into the fire to make them change. And if I hadnât seen her on TV, I would have thought I could never be on TV. They donât let LGBTQ+ people on TV. And more than that, I would have gone on thinking that I was an alien, and that I maybe didnât even have a right to be here. So, thank you Ellen, for giving me a shot at a good life.
(McKinnon, 2020)
McKinnon beautifully sums up the influence that performance can have. When we see ourselves represented in theatre and film, we feel validated. However, theatre and film lack diversity. This problem is multifaceted and systemic. The vast majority of decisions made about plays, television series, and film are in the hands of the white male demographic, and the works produced overwhelmingly represent that demographic. This restricts opportunities for minorities and homogenizes theatre. Consider the following:
While colorblind casting has garnered more opportunities for people of color to perform, it does not resolve the need for more representation of minority experiences. In his 2018 Golden Globe Award acceptance speech for Best Actor in a Television Drama, Sterling K. Brown said,
Throughout the majority of my career, Iâve benefited from colorblind casting which means, you know what, hey, letâs throw a brother in this role, right? Itâs always really cool. Dan Fogelman, you wrote a role for a black man. That could only be played by a black man. And so, what I appreciate so much about this thing is that Iâve been seen for who I am and being appreciated for who I am. And it makes it that much more difficult to dismiss me, or dismiss anybody who looks like me.
(Brown, 2018)
The distinction Brown makes is an important one. The âcanonâ of theatre still overwhelmingly typifies the white male experience, and opportunities for people of color to portray characters representative of their experiences is lacking.
A black classmate once spoke to me about the lack of acting opportunities she had. In our first semester of the program where we were studying, she was cast as Tituba in The Crucible, the single black character in the play. I remember her wondering aloud over lunch as to whether her only acting opportunities during our training would be slaves mired in stereotypes. Opportunities to portray varied black characters were in short supply for her and the only two other black actors in our course.
Traditionally, theatre has largely condoned and perpetuated the stereotyping of minorities or erased their presence altogether. We do not have to look far to notice white actors portraying characters that were initially written as another race (known as whitewashing), because it still occurs with regularity. However, as society enters a âwokeâ period, many audiences and critics are expressing doubts and at times outrage at such rewrites and casting choices. Scarlett Johansson faced backlash from her decision to play a character originally written as Japanese in 2017âs Ghost in the Shell. Emma Stone faced scrutiny for her portrayal of a character described as a quarter Chinese in the film Aloha. On his website, Cameron Crowe, the writer/director of Aloha, offered a âheart-felt apology to all who felt this was an odd or misguided casting choice,â and said, âI have learned something very inspiring. So many of us are hungry for stories with more racial diversity, more truth in representation, and I am anxious to help tell those stories in the futureâ (Crowe, 2015).
Nancy Wang Yuen states, âWhitewashing is a descendant of the original yellowface. Itâs all part of the same story in American media: the underrepresentation, misrepresentation, and usurping of significance of Asians by white actorsâ (quoted in Fang, 2018). And while the days of blackface, brownface, yellowface, and redface are no longer the norm on stage, it hasnât disappeared entirely. Angelina Jolie in A Mighty Heart, Jonathon Pryce in Miss Saigon, and Billy Crystal portraying Sammie Davis, Jr. while hosting the 2012 Oscars are just a few recent examples of brownface, yellowface, and blackface respectively, despite clear protestations that this is offensive and racist.
A white student once told me they were required to darken their skin through spray tanning to play an American Indian at an outdoor drama. They were conflicted but felt powerless to communicate their concern. Nineteen years old at the time and performing in their first professional production, they felt they had âno right to complain.â Flawed and insensitive casting, performances, costume, and make-up designs raise concerns that the arts and entertainment industry must address. Committing to better represent people of color and resolving the vital need for more diversity among those in power are crucial steps to take to address white privilege.
The LGBTQ+ community has also encountered stereotyping and lack of representation in theatre and film, and awareness of this discrimination is increasing. With thoughtful and innovative work featuring performers in the LGBTQ+ community about LGBTQ+ experiences, many audience members are seeing them...
