Taxi!

One of the big issues I have with many actors is that they can be indulgent. (Shocking, no?) By this I mean that an actor can sometimes take their lines as being more precious than they are. All deference to writers, but not every line has the same weight within the body of a play. It is important to keep a brisk pace, except where a director or actor makes a conscious choice to slow the tempo down.

Too often I have seen actors treat all of their lines as having equal weight and importance, and often they drag them out. And if we have 2 actors, or a stage full of actors doing it, it makes for a looooooooong scene or show.

So an acting exercise that many directors, teachers and coaches use is the idea of the waiting taxi. No matter your scene, see what would happen to the tempo if you pretended a cab just pulled up for you, honked, and now is waiting. Suddenly all your lines have a time constraint to them, suddenly there is new energy and purpose to the lines. This may not be the way you deliver the lines in the actual show, but the testing of new pacing and speed may be just what you need to find a better tempo in a scene.

Oh and to make a really interesting adjustment, try having that taxi waiting, but try to still keep your lines careful and deliberate, like you want to get to the taxi, but only have this one chance to get the conversation right and clear before you dash off. Again, new dimensions to the work.

So, what are you waiting for? The meter is running!

                                   THE ACTORS SENSEI
                          Acting and speech lessons for all ages