This week's news from the Coliseum...

I am currently working on the casting for Dumb Show, the next production on at the Grange Arts Centre in June. The play is about Barry – ‘Mr Saturday Night’ – who is propositioned by two bankers offering him the five star treatment he thinks he deserves but all is not what it seems… This black comedy is a fierce satire on the ethics of celebrity culture and I’m looking forward to start working on it.

I’ll be holding auditions soon for the three characters and this process can be a nerve wracking situation for actors as it’s their job interview. They will be performing to a couple of people in a rehearsal studio which is of course not what they’ll actually do if they get the job which can make it all even more stressful. In fact some people can be great in the audition but never quite as good when they get on stage. I must point out that I try and get the best performance out of every auditionee, it’s certainly not like X-Factor or Britain’s Got Talent.

In the audition the actors have to demonstrate a real understanding the character that they are hoping to play. A lot of people think that the hardest thing an actor has to do is learn their lines but that is not the case. It’s like saying that the hardest thing a plumber has to do is know how to use a spanner. The learning of lines is the absolute basic; it’s everything else that makes someone a professional actor and perfect for the part.

Actors must tap into the internal life of the character and understand what their emotional state is for each scene (especially the one they are acting out for the audition). They must also understand the character’s place or status in the play and their relationship with the other people on stage. One of the signs of a great actor is their ability to listen while on stage. Understanding that the scene is not about them and their place in the grand scheme of the play’s narrative is key. It’s about understanding where the audience should be focusing their attention and not interrupting that.

All of this is made even harder when a production has actors playing a variety of roles. Jim Cartwright’s Two is a great example of this where two actors play a total of 14 characters. It’s not just a case of putting on a hat/fake moustache/wig etc. The actors must employ the different mannerisms, physicality, rhythm, tempo and the accent and tone of that particular character.

Overall the portrayal of any character must be believable to the audience within the reality of the play. If they don’t believe what an actor is trying to portray then the whole play falls down. This principle applies to all types of theatre from panto to Shakespeare, farce to drama. So when actors prepare for their audition they have an awful lot more to do than learn some lines.

See you out and about.

Kevin Shaw
Artistic Director