Acting is simple but Difficult
“ACTING is not ACTING ”; I mean it. Acting is an innate art which can be learnt through numerous mediums but there is a minute difference that you would see & applaud an Actor by saying “ He is a Born Actor ”. We don’t say that about every Actor isn’t it. This is nothing but Natural/Realistic Performer. However, they haven’t achieved it easily.
Acting is an activity performed by an Actor to tell a story by adopting the body language, dialect, physical appearance, clothing style and talking style of the Character through imagination. Here your imagination plays a crucial role much before you start performing in theatre, television, films, web-series, etc. There are Specialist Programmes/Colleges/Institute to develop these skills. Mostly all
Actors have gone through extensive Acting Course/Training to achieve the art. Acting or speaking in public may become stressful and anxious initially but with time it makes you confident. The more the experience, the less the stress & anxiousness.
The actor needs to behave as the character sincerely and should believe whatever he is saying; should not be detached from the character in any manner. The performance should be natural, believable, realistic and Not declamatory. Rehearsal plays a vital role in the entire process in which the actor prepares and practices the performance to get into the character. The continual process of rehearsal makes the actor Natural and a Realistic performer. Mostly the characters the actors are offered differ from the actors actual behaviour. The actor must not ignore the difference of his real state mind and the character. Until unless the actor knows the difference, he wont be able to bridge the gap. The actors performance is the combination of real and imaginary circumstances of the actor and the character. To achieve realistic performance; the actor needs to continuously concentrate, observe and implement the actions of the people around of the similar behaviour as the character in their performance.
Apart from this, there are 5 tips to become a Natural Actor-
1. Start Observing- The actor needs to spend time in performing those activities which he enjoys for relaxation. He must Travel, Explore and Experience the human lives around. These are nothing but the characters he will play in the future. The actor should observe the people and understand the Body language, dialect, clothing style, etc; so that whenever he is offered a similar character to play, he can implement all the observations. These observations will add value to his performance. Observation is the most important for the aspect of Acting. Start observing everything and everyone around.
2. Read the Entire Script- Mostly a new comer will fall pray to not reading entire script; thinking he needs to know only his character. But then this will keep him detached from the actual story. Let me explain, when he reads the entire script thoroughly; he will understand the characters in the frame/scene with him. The actor is only good as much he is adding value to the entire scene with other actors and that is possible only when you know all the characters/actors in the script. Reading the entire script will enhance the performance.
3. Memorize your Dialogues- You must have experienced that when you are well prepared; you will be confident to enter the Exam Hall and answer the questions. Similarly, when the actor knows his character and memorizes the dialogues; he will be more confident about his performance. Moreover, he will not fumble and reduce number of retakes. The Directors are delighted to work with those actors who memorize their dialogues and don’t request too many retakes, as a result the actor will be recommended by Director for other projects also. More work, Happy Actor.
4. Clarity of Speech- The actor’s voice is imperative for the entire cast and the audience. The audience should be able to understand your words clearly; then only he can connect with them. There are several Voice Modulation, Speech training Classes, etc to master this art. Clarity of Speech is crucial for the actor.
5. Confident about the Look- The script demands specific location, impressive dialogues and the look of the character. All these are equally important. The actor should understand the look required by the script and not the look which he personally believes looks good on-screen. The look should compliment the character description and the actor should be confident about the look. The actors priority should the performance as per the character description and not looking good on-screen.
The actor who drinks the character and portrays the same in his performance is a Realistic/ Natural Actor.
“ Acting is Simple but Difficult ”
By- Kiran Sharma