PERFORMANCE: The Actors' Roundtable: "The Long Run"

Each week, Paden Fallis poses one question to a group of professional working actors from a variety of backgrounds. Our goal is not to demystify the work of the actor or explore their careers, but to dig a bit deeper into their artistic working process. ACTOR’S ROUNDTABLE: “THE LONG RUN” Recently I conducted a Q&A with actor Gary Sloan about how he approaches performing in a long-running production and the challenges inherent in playing the same role night after night for an extended time. As actors on the stage, we are not afforded the opportunity to backslide, but must continually stay sharp, fresh, and inhabit the role every time out—be it performance #2 or performance #222.  How do you approach the long run?  How do you keep it fresh? - Paden Fallis, Performing Arts Contributing Editor

WILLIAM BELCHAMBERS Being part of a company or a tour that requires a long run is quite possibly the hardest thing an actor has to endure. I have had friends who have toured or been part of a show for up to 5 years, and to find the freshness and originality night after night must be tricky.  Whether it be a long run or indeed a short run, what I will always try and maintain is a sense of freshness. This may sound vague, but it is vitally important for me that I try and have a sense that, no matter how many times before I have been out on that stage, it will feel like I have never been out there before, that those lines have never been spoken before, that this person has never been in this situation before. One of my acting teachers said to me once that, “The best thing an actor can have is an obstacle.” It seems bizarre that anyone would cause complications for themselves on stage, but trying to find something new each night helps tremendously. Whether it be a prop that is not set, or a costume that you forgot to change in to, or indeed another actor who does something wrong or different; whatever shakes you out of your comfort zone occasionally can only help in the long run.

NATHAN KLAU This topic often comes up in actor panels held after performances, when the audience gets the chance to ask questions of the cast. Considering that most of my work has involved touring with musicals, these questions are usually phrased like, “You have SO much energy up there. How do you guys do it every night?” Honestly, every time I hear this question asked, my reply is pretty simple: “It’s my job.” I think one of the coolest things about being an actor is that, when we’re fortunate enough to be working, we are doing what we love, and I absolutely believe the idea that when you’re engaged in something you love doing, it rarely feels like work. So 9 performances out of 10, I’m happily doing my thing on stage and it’s what I might call a “joyous effort,” akin to an endorphin rush during exercise. During those shows (usually at the end of an eight-show week) when your body is understandably exhausted, I don’t really have any special approach to keeping it fresh beyond just taking a deep breath, acknowledging that every audience deserves my 100% effort, and just doing it. Nike is rather helpful in this regard. :-)

LAURIE OKIN “Keeping it fresh” is really only something I have had to worry about in situations where I’m having a really hard time connecting to the other actors on stage. Just as real-life relationships grow and flourish when both people actually show up, so do onstage relationships AND the stories they feed into. Each performance—each moment—is new and has the potential to be emotionally spontaneous, and if you and your fellow actors are open, present, and connected, finding those moments together will always keep things fresh. However, if things do start feeling a bit stale, there are a few “tricks” I like to use. I’ll try to observe one new thing in each scene, whether it be another character’s wardrobe choice, a piece of the set or a prop I hadn’t seen, a noise offstage—anything I can use as a vehicle to enhance my character’s point of view. I might look at a fellow actor whose character I’m supposed to despise, for example, and notice that their hair is falling in their face and it might endear me to them for a moment, giving me something to play against. Or I might see that a character I find suspicious has a speck of dirt on their shoe and wonder momentarily where they’ve been walking. I take visual information and turn it into a part of the world of the story and my character’s feelings. These “wanderings” onstage aren’t the same thing as not being present to the scene—in fact, they serve the opposite purpose, often reconnecting me when I’m feeling unmoored. Anything to enrich and deepen the experience.

THOMAS WARD I find that the longer a run is, the more I have to trust the audience. If the audience isn’t “with me” then I know I’m on autopilot. I also enjoying finding ways to surprise and be surprised by my fellow actors while working within the framework of the production (blocking, direction, cues, etc.) Keeping it simple is also an important part of it. Rehearsal is about making a habit of your character’s objective. I always know WHAT my character wants, but I never know HOW my character will go about getting it. How I try to accomplish the objective will be completely dictated by my fellow actors. And since we are human beings, it will never be the exact same from night to night.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

William Belchambers is an actor who trained at R.A.D.A and has spent most of his career in theatre, in England, Europe, and U.S.A. Currently performing at The National Theatre, London, he has also spent seasons at The Globe and The Royal Shakespeare Company. Nathan Klau’s touring credits include Jersey Boys, The Lion King, Forever Plaid, and Anything Goes. Regionally, he has worked at Goodspeed Opera House, Arkansas Rep, and Theater-by-the-Sea. A native of West Simsbury, CT, Nathan graduated from Yale University in 1994 with a degree in History and Theater. He hopes to use it someday. Laurie Okin is a Los Angeles-based actress who has been seen over the years in dozens of national commercials, as well as guest starring on The Office and as a series regular on PBS’s Copshop. She has also appeared in Samantha Who?, My Own Worst Enemy, Friends, and MadTV. Laurie also has an extensive background in the theatre and is a company member at The Road Theater and Rogue Machine Theater. Thomas Ward is an actor and playwright based in Minneapolis. He appeared in the Off-Broadway premiere of Craig Wright’s The Unseen at the Cherry Lane Theatre. He has performed regionally with Actors Theatre of Louisville, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Georgia Shakespeare, WaterTower Theatre (Dallas), and the ZACH Scott Theatre (Austin), among others. He was previously profiled by stated.

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