WHAT Makes A Great Theatrical Actor ?

Oy, Ive worked with several law firms in mining and geo forensics and about half of the attornies did a good job at their final arguments and summations. The worst thing was an inability to speak clearly and put emphases where they shoulda been.



A Great Theatrical ACTOOOR needs a strong but a nonphony voice, the rest you can train a chipmunk to do.

I cant imagine anybody on stage loudly saying
"You sockdolagizing old Mantrap!!" and getting anything but blank stares.

Bullshit! A good actor does not act but actually experiences the emotions he displays on stage. Being in the moment without flubbing your lines. Being able to bring out joy or sorrow on command is not something you can train a field mouse to do. Acting takes timing and precision.

Farmerman, isn't that the moment Lincoln got shot?

yeh, it was supposed to be a big laff getter. I would sit there like a lump and wonder "who wrote this ****?"

William Shatner
Tom Tryon
Gregory Peck
Carrottop
Paris Hilton

These above are all examples that a field mouse , CAN INDEED.ake it as an actor.

Also, if a woman is drop dead gorgeous, it really doesntmatter what she sounds like.

farmerman wrote:

Shooting Lincoln ?

Yeh, Nick was talking about my quote of

"You sockdolagizing old Mantrap"!! This was a line that Booth knew was coming up and he planned to shoot Lincoln as the lqffs ensued from that very line. Its just that, in todays world, such a line would NOT garner big laffs, anymore than a show called "Columbine , the Musical"

A really great courtroom scene is from "My Cousin Vinny"

enjoy:

Give'm the old "Razzle Dazzle" - Richard Gere in "Chicago"

It is like acting, in that one must know the audience well enough to counter any argument they have their mind. Set the stage, let them see only what needs to be seen, then dazzle them with charm.

First of all acting for the stage can be quite different from doing it for the camera. Many movie actors could never give a performance on stage because the stage requires different skills. Simply being in the moment isn't enough if you can't get the people past the third row to feel that moment with you. Acting for the camera doesn't require skill because a good director can cut around the lack of acting skill. On stage there is no ability to do that. There are no retakes. You do it right the first time or muddle through and keep going trying to get the next part right. I think it was Helen Hayes who once said, "You are lucky if you give 2 great performances in your lifetime. Not 2 great roles but 2 great performances."

A great theater actor requires several skills. Some of which can be taught and some which are hard to learn if you don't have it in yourself. Speaking clearly can be taught. So can a lot of other skills. I have always felt comic timing can be taught but someone that needs to be taught will never be as good at it as someone that feels it naturally.

A great stage actor, in my book, is very hard to find. I know a lot of good actors and even more adequate ones. But even the good actors can have moments when they look bad on stage. About 2 months ago I saw a show where after it the only criticism I could make was, "It wasn't a great show." It was a good show but it didn't quite make it that last little bit to make it great. It's a small little thing that is almost impossible to describe.

When I saw Ian McKellen on Broadway in Amadeus, it was an example of a great actor. He was sitting in a chair, not moving, and yet it was completely fascinating to watch him. Anyone can be taught to look good waving their sword and shield around yelling at the rafters. But to sit on a stage, not moving a muscle, and yet hold the attention of those 40 rows back. That is acting. And that is something that I don't think most people could learn, let alone a chipmunk.