Critics search for ages for the wrong word, which, to give them credit, they eventually find. ~ Peter Ustinov.
The latest poem in my quest to improve my memory.
Yes, yours, my love, is the right human face.
I in my mind had waited for this long,
Seeing the false and searching for the true,
Then found you as a traveller finds a place
Of welcome suddenly amid the wrong
Valleys and rocks and twisting roads. But you,
What shall I call you? A fountain in a waste,
A well of water in a country dry,
Or anything that’s honest and good, an eye
That makes the whole world bright. Your open heart,
Simple with giving, gives the primal deed,
The first good world, the blossom, the blowing seed,
The hearth, the steadfast land, the wandering sea.
Not beautiful or rare in every part.
But like yourself, as they were meant to be.
- Edwin Muir
Spoken by Madame Arkadina in the Verse Speaking category with the tag(s) poetry, skills.
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The most important thing in the face is the eyes, and if you can make the eyes talk, you’re halfway there. ~ Ian Holm.
July 31: Have an imaginary conversation on your cell phone, in public today. Throw in an accent for good measure!
July 28: Could you play the opposite sex, not only for comic relief? Today is dress-up day! Be ready for that role.
July 26: An actors body is a vessel for communication. The healthier you are the more you can say. Take Yoga!
July 24: Listen to head-bobbing music on headphones on a train or subway, get super animated-observe reactions.
July 21: If it’s raining go out and play out a scene. No Umbrellas! Imagine camera crews all around you. Get wet.
July 20: Can you write a song for a musical? Try your hand at composing a song & melody for your made up show tune.
July 18: Would you be prepared to play a blind person? It takes time & skill. Practice with eyes closed & open.
(Not sure I could do this without a specific part to play)
July 16: Scope out how others perceive their own bodies on the beach. Makes for interesting observations.
(Been observing like that for years; does that mean I’ve been working all the time 
)
July 15: Today, let’s focus on mouths. Watch people’s smirks, smiles, grins, pouts, or laughs. Should be fun!
(Ditto)
July 14: Know who you are as an actor. Are you a Streep or a Jolie type? Play to your strengths & get more work.
July 13: Can you do accents? On the phone today, pick an accent and stay in character the entire time.
July 12: What facial expressions do you make when you’re on the phone? Watch yourself for an entire conversation.
(Would you really be natural if you’re watching yourself? I doubt it, I’d rather watch other people on the phone )
July 11: Act your age? Not today. Pick an age group 10 yrs +/-& do what they would do. Stay in character all day.
July 9: Scenes get broken up in Film yet U need to maintain the same mannerisms throughout. Practice staying in character.
(Or a non-method version: practice getting in and out of character quickly. Know your character. What’s your way in?)
July 8: Can you act dead? All actors eventually play a death scene. Practice being dead or dying with your whole body.
July 3: Barbecue Weekend! Observe gluttony & how people chew. Especially how they approach food before the kill!
July 1: Practice sitting in a comfy sofa. How do you sit, slump, & where do you put your legs? Observe yourself.
Spoken by Madame Arkadina in the Exercises category with the tag(s) challenges.
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You have to love the characters you play, even if no one else does. ~ Glenn Close.
Some more quotations, starting with my new mantra: I will study and get ready, and perhaps my chance will come. – Abraham Lincoln
Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there. – Will Rogers.
My education was doing good plays and also stinkers. When you do a stinker, you learn how to act. – Jeffrey Tambor.
The absolute truth is the thing that makes people laugh. – Carl Reiner.
Jackie Gleason said that comedy is the most exacting form of dramatic art, because it has an instant critic: laughter. – Chuck Jones.
Without wonder and insight, acting is just a trade. With it, it becomes creation. -Bette Davis.
All I want to see from an actor is the intensity and accuracy of their listening. – Alan Rickman.
Acting touches nerves you have absolutely no control over. – Alan Rickman
To grasp the full significance of life is the actor’s duty; to interpret it his problem; and to express it his dedication. – James Dean.
I need somebody to reflect me back, or to give me their reflection. – Judi Dench.
It’s so important in this business to stay open and childlike. You don’t want to block yourself. – Kirsten Dunst.
Talent is God-given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful. – Coach John Wooden,UCLA
Few filmmakers concentrate on the story. With little rehearsal time, anything you do onscreen is speed painting.- John Malkovich
I think a lot of the instincts you have doing comedy are the same for doing drama: it’s essentially about listening. – Will Ferrell.
When given an opportunity, deliver excellence and never quit. – Robert Rodriguez.
A lot of what acting is is paying attention. – Robert Redford
To be an artist means to search, to find and look at realities. To be an artist means to never look away. – Akira Kurosawa
Collaboration is like the sex of creativity. – Francis Ford Coppola
There is no formula for success. But there is a formula for failure and that is to try to please everybody. – Nicholas Ray
We all steal, but if we’re smart we steal from great directors. Then, we can call it ‘influence’. – Krzysztof Kieslowski
A film director is a midwife. His business is to deliver the actor of a child that he did not know he had inside him. – Jean Renoir
An actor is at his best a kind of unfrocked priest who can call on heaven and hell to mesmerize innocents. – Alec Guinness
Talent is as common as horseshit in a stable. The cultivation of it is extremely rare. – Eric Morris
Work for the actor lies in two areas: the ability to consistently create reality and the ability to express that reality. Strasberg
An ounce of behavior is worth a pound of words. – Sanford Meisner
An Actor has to burn inside with an outer ease. – Michael Chekhov
A good artist should be isolated. If he isn’t isolated, something is wrong. – Orson Welles
Anxiety is the Handmaiden of Creativity. – Chuck Jones
A lot of actors talk about ‘doing their homework’. Very few of them do it. – Tony Scott
Shut up and listen. Then react. And then act. – Lucille Ball
Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that. – Mark Twain.
90% of success is just showing up. – Woody Allen
For fast acting relief, try slowing down. – Lily Tomlin
Show me a great actor and I’ll show you a lousy husband. Show me a great actress, and you’ve seen the devil. – WC Fields
Playing Shakespeare requires technique. You don’t play a Bach toccata by ‘getting in the mood’. – Kevin Kline
Acting is mostly about listening. If you focus in on what the other person is saying, acting takes care of itself. – Alan Rickman
Drama lies in extreme exaggeration of the feelings, an exaggeration that dislocates flat everyday reality. – Eugene Ionesco
Your self-confidence is directly connected to how much you feel you are making a difference in your world. – Brian Tracy
Any emotion, if it is sincere, is involuntary. – Mark Twain
Take your beating, go back to your corner, rest, and take a beating again. Believe in your own talent. – Bruce Paltrow
If you’re going to tell people the truth, be funny or they’ll kill you. – Billy Wilder
Don’t be too clever for an audience. Make it obvious. Make the subtleties obvious also. – Billy Wilder
Quit now, you’ll never make it. If you disregard this advice, you’ll be halfway there. – David Zucker
An actor is never so great as when he reminds you of an animal – falling like a cat…moving like a fox. – Francois Truffaut
All great work is preparing yourself for the accident to happen. – Sidney Lumet
(This one makes me feel a little bit better)
Experience is what you get while looking for something else. – Federico Fellini
A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something. – Frank Capra
The magic doesn’t come from within the director’s mind, it comes from within the hearts of the actors. – James Cameron
Ever tried? Ever failed? No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. – Samuel Beckett
Ensure that your script is watertight. If it’s not on the page, it will never magically appear on the screen. – Richard E. Grant
On film you put all your energies into a single glance. – Alan Rickman
The key to acting is the reality of the doing. -Brent Noel
Success in show business depends on your ability to make and keep friends. – Sophie Tucker
Acting has to do with saying it as if you meant it, so for me the words are always very important. – Christopher Walken
Life’s like a play: it’s not the length, but the excellence of the acting that matters. – Seneca
Spoken by Madame Arkadina in the General, Quotes category with the tag(s) actors, directors, lists.
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I’ve figured out what to do so far, but it’s always the next thing you come to where the man with the bucket of ice cold water is waiting – whoosh! in your face. That’s why you work with directors who know what to tell you to do. ~ Dame Judi Dench.
Apologies for the lack of proper posts over the last month or so. I have been working on knocking the site into shape and posting seemed to slide down my list.
Firstly, I’ve stared sharing my Delicious here on my blog, turning the site into a little more of a lifestream affair. I’m trying to make sure they are all related to theatre and acting so they’re relevant to anyone who may rock up here at Arkadina. Don’t want to scare you away!
The Resources page has been updated to include Amazon links to the items I’m using so it’s easier to find out more. Yes, I know a liitle blatant. But times are hard and friends are few so you can’t blame a girl for trying
I’ve moved both my 2009 Movie List and Wish List to proper pages so they don’t get lost. That doesn’t really have any function other than to make things easier for me to find. And I’ve updated them too. Oh and they’re right there, in the sidebar. Lookee.
Plus, I have created a To-Do List. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do for a while, in fact I had it on a list somewhere Pretty short at the moment, mainly because I don’t write things down when I think of them. Probably ought to try to remedy this IRL, not just here on Arkadina.com, too, goodness know what I’ve forgotten.
I have also gathered together all the Quotations that appear randomly on the blog. People appear to be arriving here searching for some for some of them and it’s always irritating to find what you’re looking for is only available randomly. So now they’re not.
Spoken by Madame Arkadina in the Etc category with the tag(s) site.
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