Pitch, tone, speed, timbre, accent, pause.
1) Did the actor respond well to your direction?
- The actor responded well to the instructions he was given, after a minor debate about accents, we managed to compromise and change the accent. However, the rest of the instructions were followed well.
2) What worked when put into practice?
- A buildup of tone and speed. Using a gradual process, that started off with a softer and quieter voice the actor could add a more dramatic side to the scene. I found that changing the emotional range in the voice quickly worked as it have the character a slightly erratic mannerism. This was achieved with contrating tones. However, it shouldn't be used too much otherwise it came across as over dramatic and insincere.
3) What didn't work when put into practice?
- Starting off angry. Immediately bursting into a loud voice technique made it seem too dramatic. For a realism piece, every sentence should be carefully considered and treated as if the actor is participating in a real conversation. Overdramatising it brings the audience out of the story and does not reflect on the actor doing a good job. This would be good if the play was a pantomime or other abstract piece where colourful reactions work well. My actor didn't do this however, as he naturally understood the realism of the piece.
3) Is it easy to respond to direction from your peers?
- At first no, you naturally want to interpret the piece in your own way, and being told what to do goes against instinct. It helps though, as an outsiders point of view gives you advice on how to act for other people and not just yourself.
My vocal techniques tend to hold and portray a lot of tension, in Gotcha especially, the whole play is building towards a climax so at any moment a fuse could blow. In realism acting you want to be able to show 'real' emotions even if you aren't expressing them directly. This can be done with tone and speed. Someone who's pretending they're okay will often have a higher pitch and talk really quickly and loudly, despite the context of their speech.
