The dictionary meaning of the word ‘act’ is not ‘to pretend’ or ‘to play different characters’ or ‘disguise oneself’ or ‘emote’ but quite s...
The dictionary meaning of the word ‘act’ is not ‘to pretend’ or ‘to play different characters’ or ‘disguise oneself’ or ‘emote’ but quite simply ‘to do’. Those who aren’t aware of this (and that includes an astonishing number of actors I have met) will consider it paradoxical to talk of honesty in an activity that is naturally taken to be be an artifice. Yet, even they will admit that the elusive quality of truth is the holy grail of every thinking actor’s journey and of their own expectations from the actor.
Before attempting to define what makes for truth in acting, it is worth pondering whether there can be such a thing as a dishonest actor. Actors cannot plagiarise as writers or musicians can, nor can someone else do the acting for them. Actors can and do mimic and steal ideas from each other, as does any creative person, but unless in their work they employ ideas from life as well, the output will remain in the realm of mimicry or theft.
Then, there is no trick by which an actor can cheat and improve a bad performance – the narcissistic grandstanding frequently resorted to by insecure film stars who believe that...
