Before the storm...

January kick-started with a whole host of exciting and practical plans regarding improving myself as an actor. I booked to start a Meisner Stage 1: Emotional Connection course with the Salon Collective at the beginning of January. This week marked my third class on the course. For fear of sounding terribly pretentious - this week I had a 'break-through' moment in regards to my exploration and study of the Meisner technique. The Meisner teacher advises:
- to act on an impulse
- to retain simplicity, detail and honesty
- to repeat a line before you accept or reject it
- whatever your partner states - you must accept it's their truth
- to bring the tension you may feel onto your partner
- to use less work, less effort and take less responsibility
- to do nothing - explore more
- not to deny anything
The pure human connection which takes only two people repeating realisations / observations is utterly exhilarating. I want to take these techniques with me whilst filming self-tapes.
As well as the Meisner course, I have started to attend Shakespeare Practice Group every second Sunday. The first workshop style class last week opened my eyes to a stripped back, effective set of principles when working with Shakespeare script. The main focus being on the text and delivering that coherently and effectively. I know I have a lot more to learn and apply with this technique and I am happy to be able to attend these sessions over the next few months. I feel as if they will be incredibly helpful to me as an actor.
Last Monday night I attended the premiere of an episode of a comedy series called 'The Expert' that I was in at The Constellation Creatives CoLab, The Hospital Club Covent Garden. This was a lovely experience as other film and series work were screened. After the showings, we got a chance to talk to various film makers, actors and script writers. I think these types of nights are highly beneficial for actors.
Today I began workshops on the play 'Eris at the Wedding' by John King with director Robbie Taylor Hunt. Workshops are a fantastic 'safe space' to try out new things and collaborate with actor and director alike. They also keep me practising my craft which is always a win.


Entering into February and the beginning of Module 3 - I can only hope to keep up this proactive lifestyle alongside solidifying a worthwhile and interesting inquiry.