UC Santa Cruz

Upon enrolling as a Master’s candidate at University of California Santa Cruz – I decided to focus my research on how I could expand my toolbox as an actor. I had always approached my roles with an instinct, vague at best, of how my role would best be portrayed, but I never had a clear idea of what my method of approach was. So, in researching various acting methods, my aim was twofold – to first clarify for myself what methods I was using in approaching my acting, and secondly, to attempt to apply the newfound wisdom in acting theory to my work. From there, I hope to apply this knowledge not only to my personal approach as an artist, but to also offer some insight for actors who, similar to myself, have a desire to hone their craft, but aren’t quite sure what “method of acting” best resonates with them.

To clarify my research further, I will be focusing on my attempt to apply Stanislavski’s system of acting to two distinctly different roles: Benny Southstreet in Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows’ 1950 musical comedy Guys and Dolls: A Musical Fable of Broadway, and Herr Freder in Martin Crimp’s 2009 adaptation of Ferdinand Bruckner’s 1926 play Pains of Youth. Both productions were radically different in approach and execution, thus calling for a variety of different tools in creating both roles. In exploring the differences and similarities in my approach, I hope to discover what methods of acting resonate most with me, and in doing so, aim to emerge with a deeper understanding of not only myself as an actor, but of where I fit in the long lineage of acting methodology.

I chose to use the metaphor of the toolbox because I feel it embodies a holistic approach to acting – on one end, in allowing myself to identify a variety of methods (tools) from different theorists (namely Constantin Stanislavski, David Mamet, and Uta Hagen), I am breaking free of the often cultist desire expressed by some actors to stick to one holy method of acting. On the other end, a toolbox implies that there is space to be filled – thus surrendering to the notion that as an artist, I am constantly growing, learning, and adding new tools to my repertoire.