Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 10/23/18

Five of us… Chris and Heidi doing working audits. Chris as a philandering bartender and Heidi finally accepting a rather clumsy marriage proposal. Rob watching as Casey closes an investment deal and the possibility of a promotion… from their script.

Great workout. Supportive and insightful commentary. A good night in get theater.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 9/18/18

Five of us… This was a preparation class.

Memorizing a scene is old fashioned. You should never memorize a scene again. What we did today was learn a scene or prepare a scene. That process doesn’t consist of pounding lines into your head. We did some simple exercises and that effort explored and revealed and imprinted the path through the writing…the life…. into your body. When you build a muscle memory of the life as was we did… then you can just drop into the scene and listen and respond. Don’t memorize writing. Explore it, learn it, prepare it and then let your talent work.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 8/7/18

Remember we’re always working on your talent… the actors ability to be in the scene.
So today we worked on building/discovering a path through the scene.
Memorizing is a process full of problems because as we memorize we build in patterns of looking up or seeing lines in our head or verbal patterns based on repeating lines aloud as they are committed to memory.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 3/22/18

Five of us…  Mary Helen as the rejecting actress (bitch?) leveling with the Hollywood star. Aaron working on the whacked out mom moving in with her brother.  Rob as the Blogger who filmed a bank robbery for social media upload. And Casey working on the character for the /Alaska film.

This was a character night.  All our focus was on developing character that worked for the different pieces.  That really is the question of style and how a character functions or is used in the writing.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 3/17/18

Six of us.  Marcelo and Karen… welcome. Sorry this too so long to get out..  Busy Week… Casey limping in after a hospital stay and doing an arrogant brother for a Christian film.  Karen as the wife of a drug dealer making a deal.  Marcalo doing a cold read as a flare gun shooting party guy.  Grace as the werewolf bartender.  Andres as the detective dealing with an unsolved bombing.

Good workout tonight.  Loved the supportive and insightful commentary.  No matter how many times I say something… often “the bell is wrung” by someone saying something just a little differently.  And there is a window in a communal approach.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 3/11/18

Four of us. Grace doing a working audit as the pregnant daughter of a long disappeared father.  Marco as the UFO ambassador wanting to welcome the ET’s.  Katie working on an audition as the gypsy witch trying to stop a killer clown invasion.

Good workout guys.  You were all insightful and supportive in commentary.  There’s much to be learned from our fellow actors when we workout like this.  I think of each scene as a puzzle and we are collaborating to solve the puzzle.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 3/7/18

Five of us. Antoine and Rob doing working audits… both were cold reads of Dean the flare gun shooting vacationer being interviewed by the cops.  Marco working again on Tyler the jilted actor.  Michael working on a self submit for an industrial as a sympathetic/supportive fellow worker.

Cold reads.  Meh!  Rob and Antoine had to put up cold reads because this was their working audit.  BUT… Cold reading is a minor skill.  You’ll rarely see them in professional/union auditions.  Mostly they pop up in auditions for plays, student films, and low budget projects.  None the less it pays to take a good cold reading class to pick up the tricks and insights into this process.  We discussed some issues…

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 3/2/18

Four of us.  Small classes rock.  Janet doing a working audit… welcome.  Michael as a parole officer dealing with Black Jesus.  Janet as the confused/curious girlfriend dealing with Michael/boyfriend who’s pondering Black Jesus.  Marco as the cocky guy breaking up with his girlfriend who’s found true love elsewhere.

What a fun night.  There was some good work and you guys took adjustments and played and produced believable characters and set ready work.

Patrick’s Acting Class Notes: 2/25/18

Four of us… Michale working on a Camry industrial/commercial that was wall-to-wall copy. Janet working on a one liner for an audition. Christian working on an over privileged ex-addict young woman who’s grumping with her mother.

We talked about the biz and agents and commercials and casting before class.  These conversations are an important way for you guys to share what you’re encountering out there… and I learn from them as well.  Plus two of the scenes were for next-day auditions… and we all learn from current stuff.  I love it when you guys bring in scenes… but anyone who wants material only needs to ask.  I have a good library.