Adding the Words

Okay, so now you know what you want and who you want it from. The first step now is to simply add the words on top of that and see what happens. Let the words fall as they may in response to whatever the moment is. Try not to control the text, but simply let it be whatever it is in the moment. Remember that you’re trying to get away from the habit of playing the words. Practice letting your response to whatever’s happening in the moment– –guide the way you say the words– –instead of letting the words control how you respond to the moment. One thing I would suggest you consciously do at this point though– –is to look for statements and questions.

Whenever you see a question mark, that’s a question. So, ask the question and expect an answer. And if there isn’t a question mark at the end of the sentence– –then it’s a statement. So, simply make the statement. Assume at this point that everything you say is honest and sincere. Meaning that you’re not sarcastic or ironic or simply don’t really mean what you’re saying. It’s otherwise easy to diminish the text– –before you’ve even really had a chance to explore it. Simply meaning what you say is almost always the strongest choice– –and the one that will serve the scene and your acting best.

And then sometimes a line will be sarcastic– –and then you make that a strong and clear and specific and conscious choice– –that stands out and has a meaning all of its’ own.

So, either you’re working on a monologue or a dialogue scene– –get up on the floor and start trying it out. Moment to moment. Let the words come out any way they want to. Simply using the text to answer the moment– –and being mindful of what is statements and what is questions– –will usually get you quite far.