ITV WEST Workshop members warm-up during rehearsals for their production of the musical comedy, BUGSY MALONE (Christmas 2005). Actors exercise their bodies, voices and minds to help them focus on the workshop, rehearsal or performance ahead and so as to help them work better both as individual performers and as a team.
Frustrated? Overwhelmed? Here are a few tips to help you cope…
The business of acting can be difficult. Most well known actors project a capable and easygoing image, no matter how rough the going gets, because that's part of what gets them jobs - people in the business know they can handle it.
This often leaves the rest of us wondering why we feel frustrated and overwhelmed at times, wondering if we're really cut out for this business, if we really have the talent we think we do. This uncertainty is a natural part of being an artist, and of being human.
The first step in working through difficult feelings is to acknowledge them. If we deny them, they often bring us down even further, and cause trouble in our relationships with others and with ourselves.
If you've been feeling frustrated or overwhelmed, sit down with yourself for a few minutes to ask yourself what's going on. Are you afraid of something? That's okay - some fear is normal for everyone. Are you angry? Just plain "had it"? Once you've pinpointed the feeling, ask yourself if there's anything you can do about it. Do you need to confront someone? Share your fears? Go out for a walk to shake it all off? If you're experiencing a frequent, high level of fear or frustration you should consider relaxation exercises - such as the Alexander Technique and breathing exercises, meditation or yoga.
IF IT AIN'T FUN - IT AIN'T ACTING
In extreme cases, where you experience very high levels of feeling frustrated, you may need professional medical advice or even counseling - because let's face it ACTING SHOULD BE FUN - and if it's giving you that much grief, then there's probably something wrong. There are times when life feels bad, but it can get better.
Help yourself by finding someone who will help you.
You may have unconsciously chosen acting as a profession because of an underlying need to sort through and untangle your emotions. In childhood, emotions can become confused and entangled, and if the family is a very troubled one, or the child is very sensitive, this jumble of emotions can be overwhelming. As the child becomes an adult, the accumulation of these confused feelings over time can't be sorted and understood without some form of structure.
Acting can provide such a structure, allowing the actor to be one character, then another, experiencing one sequence of emotions, then another, until the jumble of feelings can be uncovered, sorted, and understood. . . But ACTING IS NOT THERAPY and shouldn't be used alone. So if you need help - don't be afraid to go find it. You'll find that a healthy, rounded person makes for a far better actor and a far better person!
EXERCISE TO UNCHAIN YOUR BODY AND BRAIN
Sometimes feelings just build up over time to the point where we feel overwhelmed. The energy of feelings can get stuck in the body if the feelings are not released. Regular exercise is a good antidote - it gives the body a chance to release built-up tension. Many actors use yoga, martial arts, dance or sport to keep physically fit and mentally alert.
DANCE YOUR FEELINGS THROUGH
One of the best forms of emotional clearing exercises is to turn on the radio or put on your favorite music - and just move! Your body will lead you if you let it - if you feel frustration welling up, dance the frustration. Imagine that you're gathering up all the frustrated, negative energy in your body, and throwing it out the window. You can do this as many times as you feel you need to in order to clear your energy. Dance your feelings. Shake a pillow and growl if you're angry, throw a few punches at the air. Let yourself move, and your energy will move. Once you've released some of the stuck energy, you can open up to new energy and possibilities. Sounds nuts? Sure. But it really works to help unburden yourself of those pent up emotions.
GETTING ALL NEW AGE AND HIPPY AIN'T SO DIPPY…
Another exercise which helps to release stuck energy is to stand in a relaxed manner with both feet planted on the ground, and imagine the difficult feelings or negative energy flowing out of your feet into the ground, to be "recycled" into good energy. It's amazing how deeply you can feel this process after you've worked with it a few times. Once you feel more clear, draw the "earth energy" up through your feet and into your body. If you enjoy these kinds of exercises, check out Qi Gong (also spelled Chi Kung), a Chinese movement form which works with the energy of the body and the universe.
There are some great exercises I've picked up from martial arts too - and you'll find similar exercises in dance training, meditation, yoga, sports - whatever helps you - steal it and use it to help you relax and channel your emotions and pent up feelings into positive energy. See? Sometimes getting all new age and hippy isn't so dippy after all!
WHATEVER HELPS - HELPS!
The most important thing is to release the feelings, however it works best for you to do that. Having a good cry can be very healing; going into the forest and stamping your feet can work wonders. As can stroking your cat, walking the dog, going for a swim or climbing a mountain - whatever helps HELPS.
The more you can let go of your negative feelings, the clearer you'll get about yourself, your life, and your career; and the more you can understand where the feelings are coming from, the easier it will be to release them and move forward.
REMEMBER:
ACTING SHOULD BE FUN!
BEING HAPPY AND HEALTHY
MAKES YOU THE BEST ACTOR YOU CAN BE!
Compiled by Adam Fresco (2006)
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