Christoper Ecclestone gives a masterclass in acting
Today I went to an acting masterclass held at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket.. The format is simple. The guest takes to the stage and introduces themselves, talks about their career a little and then opens the floor to questions. Most of the audience are young actors and Christopher Ecclestone was the guest today.
Here's a collection of quotes from him that I found particularly interesting.
About his creative choices in performance:
"The script is the central thing - every decision I make comes from what's written on the page."
Speaking about working as a team in a production:
"It's about being open and humble and trying to collaborate."
"Theatre and creativity has got to be about generosity."
On auditioning:
"There's no doubt that a big part of being an actor is dealing, psychologically and spiritually, with rejection."
About the phone hacking scandal:
"I found out yesterday that my phone was hacked, and I will be sticking the boot in."
On why he left Doctor Who:
"I left because I couldn't get along with the senior people. I didn't like the way things were being run; the culture that was building around the show,"
"My face didn't fit...I'm sure they were glad to see the back of me."
"I loved doing it"".
It's clear that he's exasperated at being asked the question but decided to answer frankly. It's also clear that he was very proud to play the part and loved working on something for children. He went on to talk about the success and the press.
"It's interesting about the press. It was a big success and it's led to 6 years of success but they concentrated on the fact that I left. They should have focused on the success."
On parts that stay with you:
"At drama school they teach you about getting into character but they don't teach you how to get out of character."
Roles he'd like to play:
"The Scottish play, Shylock, Titus, more written by Strindberg."
Books he finds inspiring include Primo Levi, 'If this is a Man' and Brian Keenan, 'An Evil Cradling'.
"They're about the triumph of the human spirit."
On personality traits that get in his way:
"I've got a big mouth, I'm opinionated, I always think I'm right, I've got a bad temper. Is that enough?"
Explaining how Hollywood affects his ego:
"i'm not Jennifer Lopez yet."
He came across as intelligent, self aware, principled, honest and generous with his knowledge. He answered questions for almost 2 hours. To me he is a person to admire and respect not just in his acting ability but in his ability to maintain his integrity in the face of fame and celebrity.
Here's a collection of quotes from him that I found particularly interesting.
About his creative choices in performance:
"The script is the central thing - every decision I make comes from what's written on the page."
Speaking about working as a team in a production:
"It's about being open and humble and trying to collaborate."
"Theatre and creativity has got to be about generosity."
On auditioning:
"There's no doubt that a big part of being an actor is dealing, psychologically and spiritually, with rejection."
About the phone hacking scandal:
"I found out yesterday that my phone was hacked, and I will be sticking the boot in."
On why he left Doctor Who:
"I left because I couldn't get along with the senior people. I didn't like the way things were being run; the culture that was building around the show,"
"My face didn't fit...I'm sure they were glad to see the back of me."
"I loved doing it"".
It's clear that he's exasperated at being asked the question but decided to answer frankly. It's also clear that he was very proud to play the part and loved working on something for children. He went on to talk about the success and the press.
"It's interesting about the press. It was a big success and it's led to 6 years of success but they concentrated on the fact that I left. They should have focused on the success."
On parts that stay with you:
"At drama school they teach you about getting into character but they don't teach you how to get out of character."
Roles he'd like to play:
"The Scottish play, Shylock, Titus, more written by Strindberg."
Books he finds inspiring include Primo Levi, 'If this is a Man' and Brian Keenan, 'An Evil Cradling'.
"They're about the triumph of the human spirit."
On personality traits that get in his way:
"I've got a big mouth, I'm opinionated, I always think I'm right, I've got a bad temper. Is that enough?"
Explaining how Hollywood affects his ego:
"i'm not Jennifer Lopez yet."
He came across as intelligent, self aware, principled, honest and generous with his knowledge. He answered questions for almost 2 hours. To me he is a person to admire and respect not just in his acting ability but in his ability to maintain his integrity in the face of fame and celebrity.
