Acting requires a precise balance of conscious and subconscious input. This lesson focuses on when to use which aspect of yourself in the work.
Acting Techniques - Emotional Accessibility
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We'll be talking about use of the mind, for the purposes of acting, in today's lesson. In particular, we will talk about two different aspects of mind: the conscious mind and the subconscious mind. Both have their part in the creation of believable characters. There are other levels of mind but that's for a more advanced class.....
What do we mean by conscious mind? It is the part of you that learns things, for the purposes of this class. The conscious mind can remember things, can learn. It makes decisions based on your conscious awareness and acts from that awareness only. In contrast, when we speak of the subconscious mind, we refer to that part which "knows" things: Our instincts, gut reactions, spiritual sensing and empathic ability.
It is your conscious mind logically goes from point to point in the script, gleaning the over-all meaning. It is the conscious mind that remembers blocking, costume changes, lines, cues, directions given, and basic acting choices. The actor is well served by the conscious mind in these areas. The conscious mind can be an ally to the actor, but it is more often the biggest enemy. The problem occurs when an actor allows choices made by the conscious mind to freeze the performance into a predictable, controlled characterization. The result is cerebral and distant.
Often times, this is the hardest point in developing a character for the actor who is unfamiliar with calling on subconscious input. I've seen actors hold the script in their hands long, long after having learned all the lines, unwilling to let go. Unwilling to experience what will happen if they suddenly don't know their line. What happens when the conscious mind blanks out is often magic!
Consider suspending any decision about how you will play out your choices, and never let the conscious mind decide that beforehand! One of the best ways of getting in touch with subconscious influence is through improvisation. Because there is no script, and no time to judge or intellectualize your response, improvisational acting forces you to rely on instinct and impulse. What you learn, once you master your fear, is that you can trust your ability to respond in the moment.
I have no exercises for the conscious mind because, in years of teaching acting to hundreds of students, I ve never met anyone who needed more training in that area. Without exception, the reverse has been true, and the conscious mind was too much in control of the acting process. I have taught many students and worked with a few actors who spent no time at all on research for period or culturally significant productions and this is not something I can teach with an exercise. Know your material. Read through the entire script, not just your scenes.
The Subconscious Mind can be likened to a treasure chest of jewels and priceless gold. That part of your mind does not bear the limitations you have placed on yourself in growing up. We all do that, you know. We go from being free, unhibited children whose imaginations can create an entire world around us for the purposes of pure amusement to hesitant creators. We hesitate because we no longer believe in our own power to manifest.
The big secret: your world as it is right this moment is the sum total of what you have thought about yourself, your world and your potential. Reaching the subconscious mind can allow you to remember more of your potential, help you to create more positive thoughts about yourself and return you to a time of innocence where you knew you could anything, so you did!
So, how does one get past the rigid, sometimes even stodgy will of the conscious mind to find fresh choices on lines that have been memorized for weeks and a "first time I've ever done this" sensation on movements that have been rehearsed over and over? One excellent way is to meditate. Meditation can be seen as some mystical type of experience that only a few can have or it can be seen as a natural part of life.
In the stillness is great magic. So, if you don't meditate, start now. Even if it's only five minutes, set that time apart to "not think". Don't do. Just be still. This will increase your intuitive sensing, which is a function of the subconsious levels of mind.
Another way to invite more subconscious input in your life is to experiment with what you know and what you have come to think you know. What I mean by this is that your past programming can throw your conscious mind into a response to a situation which is not even remotely in tune with the present. Let's say you ordered a steak dinner at a certain restaurant and it was ruined. Then, let's say a few weeks later, a friend invites you out and suggests steak. You rebell, saying that oh, no you don't want steak. Is that true? Or is it the conscious mind memory of the past event coloring your present decision?
Learn to watch yourself and your responses and you may begin to see how much your "learned" behaviors from the conscious mind are controlling your actions.
Acting Lesson Four - The Actor's Emotions
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