They Tell Me I Can't Act
By Lynda Blair Vernalia, N2Arts Correspondent
Why that shouldn't stop you
 

‘m unclear what you’re doing here. You’re lacking in energy and focus… I don’t believe what you’re saying. Do you? You probably haven’t spent much time on your scene...Let’s move on, shall we? Next!”

The class stood motionless, the mood shattered by the sound of our classmate’s heart breaking. I trembled listening to those career-ending words from our professor, fearing to be “next.” How do you console someone the teacher just pronounced dead-on-arrival over a monologue he had been preparing for four weeks?

Do you fear that someday someone might tell you the “truth” about your acting? That you have no talent? That you should study accounting instead? Or even that you talk like a duck or are too fat? My first rule of theatre is that “truth” is subjective and “fear” is meaningless.

If you audition thinking, “What’s the point? There’s too many good actors; I’ll never get cast,” if you are not willing to audition again for a director who rejected you seven times already or spend all night learning the callback monologue, then you might as well stay home and quit right now.

Acting is an energetic force that emanates from who you are, but it takes an act of will to control it, to shape it. Negative attitudes discharge negative energy, diminishing an actor’s ability to present honest characters. You must exude confidence that you are the only logical choice for a role; otherwise, you will not convince a director, much less play a role with any conviction. By believing in your personal power you can walk away from rejection knowing that a memorable opportunity has been lost.

Remember:

* Believe that you have something unique to offer—even (or especially) the voice that sounds like a duck.

* Be positive and stay focused. Keep negative energy from draining the quality of your performance.

* Persistence and consistency always pay off in the long run.

This does not mean you will be cast 100% of the time, but it does mean you can survive in the competitive theatre world. People say actors have big egos, but what they really have is immense courage.

Lynda Blair Vernalia has a BA in Performance Arts (Music and Theatre) from Bradford College and an EdM from Harvard University. She performs in her home state of Massachusetts in community theatre, most frequently with her Drama Ministry team in her local church congregation where she also writes and directs. She can be reached by email at lbvern@comcast.net.