Hey everyone! I'm new on Stage32, and it was suggested by Kay Ross that I write a little something about my experience in the hope it might prove useful / interesting for the acting community.
So first of all, I was an actor and stand-up for a few years, but nowadays I'm a writer / director, and in 2019/2020 I co-founded narrative podcast company, Long Cat Media (www.longcatmedia.com). Our comedy thriller Mockery Manor (currently on season 2) was nominated for Best Fiction at the 2020 British Podcast Awards, and we've recently released a 5-part pirate musical dramedy, The Ballad of Anne & Mary.
So what's kind of interesting is that I do very little acting nowadays, but I'm more aware of what makes 'good acting' than when I did it full-time. And that's mainly because of two things; my stand-up experience, and directing the editing of Mockery Manor and Anne & Mary. I could write a whole creed on why that is, but I'll try to keep it brief. I may not succeed. (spoiler alert: I don't)
So, stand-up. Why is stand-up useful for actors? In my experience (and I can only speak from that), dying a thousand deaths is very instructive! First of all, I learned that humiliation couldn't kill me - although it can pop into your head years later, normally when you're feeling vulnerable, like in the middle of an intense hangover. But there's something self-affirming about getting on a stage again the night after you've bombed. I became thick-skinned, but also braver, more likely to try something interesting in front of an audience (or casting director etc) and shrug it off if it didn't work how I'd hoped. But if it DID work, then it was often far funnier, far more interesting than my original idea.
Second, stage-time. In London you can gig 7 nights a week if you want to. Sure, some of them will have 2 people in the audience and feel more like the unsexiest lap dance in the world (and yes, I used that line way too much, sigh), BUT regular performance in sometimes challenging situations helps keep your skills and confidence lubed up and ready to go for auditions and meetings.
Stand-up also taught me the importance of being present, and what that even means. So, sometimes I would lose the audience on a joke that normally worked a treat (a 'banker', some might say). Instead of ripping the roof off, the joke would waft into the space like a particularly viscous fart... despite the fact that I was doing it in the EXACT same tone, same stance, same everything, as always. And I figured out what it was: I was dead behind the eyes. The audience could sense that, inside my head, I was already contemplating what fried chicken establishment to visit on the walk to the tube. So I had to figure out how to be more present. I realised, for me, re-using an idea or joke I'd done a hundred times, not taking risks, was my downfall.
Woah, this is long. Sorry. So, finally, editing narrative podcasts. THIS has been so, so instructive. Listening to the same take again and again and again, chopping them up and Frankensteining good takes together, matching one actor's take with the other actors' takes (which weren't necessarily recorded on the same day), and then inserting pauses into a scene to create suspense, comedy, meaning... has taught me what the actor needs to deliver in the room. This is a huge subject, so I'll just say this; I really recommend you record yourself with a fairly decent microphone (doesn't have to be expensive, there are some really serviceable ones for about £130), download some editing software, and edit your takes into something you're happy with. It's painstaking and maddening, but the process of doing so will teach you so much about your habits, what quirks make you interesting, what's weakening your delivery, and so forth.
Thank you for reading if you got this far! I was actually procrastinating about finishing a script when I saw Kay's suggestion to do this, so I was VERY HAPPY to do so, haha! I would love to hear your takes (how many times have I said takes now) on stand-up, recording, acting, and anything else that cross-pollinates.
Lindsay xx
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Just wanted to chime in as well! I work with Lindsay as the other half of Long Cat Media, doing music and sound design, but I also come from the same acting/comedy background. I completely agree with Lindsay - it's been really revelatory to get super-granular with actors takes (including our own) in the edit, and we now have a much clearer sense of what we need from our actors as we begin each session than we did when we first started making audio drama.
Interestingly, we've also found that audio drama acting sits strangely between stage and screen acting. Without visuals, we have to be a bit "bigger" and more demonstrative than we would be on screen. But since we're right next to the mic, we can afford to be much "smaller" and more detailed than we would be on stage. Tiny breaths and vocalisations can enter the mix as well, and since this is a medium primarily enjoyed by headphone users, there's a lot of potential for atmosphere. We'd be curious to hear other people's experiences with all of this!
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Yes, good point Laurence! If you do a lot of stage work, audio can teach you to be smaller. And if you do a lot of screen work, audio can teach you to use your voice more. In that way, it's not just about learning skills and techniques that can only be applied to audio.
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I love this reflection, @LJ! Dying a thousand deaths - what a visual! But it also makes sense that it would steel your nerve for the projects ahead.
Good to meet you, @Laurence! I also love that dichotomy - you have to do more with the emoting, but less with the breathing and mouth sounds. So tricky! Thank you both for sharing!2 people like this
This is a very good point and reflection. As an actor, I just can feel any single word. Also, recording your voice and listen to it is a good point to understand how modulate your voice, in order to reach the range you're searching for.
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Very good experiential stand up stuff. I always thought that my comedy assisted my acting and vice-versa, too. Thanks for the post, LJ
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@LJ You’re so right about needing to be “in the present” and nailed a sense of what that even means. Audience can tell if you are not with “them” even if you’re standing right up close. The words come out, yet there’s often a glazed eye contact and organic fake radar feel actor’s brain is somewhere else . If actor isn’t genuinely enthused why should audience be? It can also be an insult if actor obviously views them as a chore. Another topic, I dig your word “Frankensteining” the good pieces together. I’ve only edited at London Film Academy cos I’m not a techie but I regularly watch others (or did pre covid) make some masterpieces out of odds and ends of film.