Notes on Preparation and the Pedagogy of Acting
(part of a longer email conversation)
Hi T-,
I'm on board with the showing up on time, as punctuality is an essential film skill, and I can stay (although I don't feel disrespected if others need to leave), but I don't think that staying in the room for all scenes works for me as a student as well as does stepping out to prep. And I question whether having everyone in the room is actually as necessary or wise as we may have been taught from much of the common culture of Vancouver Scene-Study.
I appreciate that some people may have a greater capacity to learn through observation - at least more than myself. But, but by the time that the third or fourth scene comes around, unless I can go put what I've learned into practice, my brain just 'tops out:' I stop learning, and I'm not really paying attention - which is, frankly, a disrespectful thing for me to do to a performer. I've been going to acting classes for about a year and a half and this hasn't changed for me, so I don't think it's something I can easily change in myself.
I find that I really gain a lot by taking time to prep - as it actually lets me employ what I'm learning at the Share. And doing this well takes more than a minute or two.
Tonight, I was honestly thrilled that I could take time to prep (although I should not have left *during* someone's scene, and I will not do so again - thank you for pointing that out to me), and I think it showed in my work.
Normally my first take is my worst. Tonight, after I prepared, it was actually solid work. That is the first time that has *ever* happened for me. I want to get into a practice wherein I can regularly deliver work of that quality.
Further, I understand that stepping out to fully prep a scene when one is on deck is a part of the default practices of some of the more established acting academies. Staying to watch every scene may be a part of Vancouver's local scene-study culture, (perhaps a product of the scarcity of space?) but I don't think it's advisable from a basic teaching/learning standpoint as it's not effective for experiential learners. Prep time and space also, in my experience, more accurately simulates the audition or green-room environment than does moving from watching to performing. It also prevents the class from having to wait while I prep.
What's more, from observing this class, and pretty much every other scene study class that I've ever been in, I see other people's attention waiver too. As a performer, I would feel more respected by an attentive audience than a restless and distracted one. I'm flattered if people can learn from my scene, but if they learn like I do, their attention is often long-frayed by the time I'm up, and they're not learning from, let alone appreciating my work.
For these reasons of teaching, learning and, in my subjective experience, respect, I would very much value the option for on deck or-next-on-deck actors (and a partner for monologues, if desired) to use scene prep to its full advantage by taking the time to practice what they've learned. That, to me, would be a better and bolder learning model, and more supportive space for all involved.
A-