Interest Grows In Amateur Drama

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 39, 16 February 1938, Page 14

Interest Grows In Amateur Drama

Various Hints On Stage Craft

nnHERE are few towns in New Zealand these days which do not boast their own amateur dramatic society. It may be an ambitious undertaking, with a professional producer, carrying an impressive stock of costumes, wigs, “props” and scenery. It may, on the other hand, be a rather muddly affair, where the members are their own dress designer'-, wig makers, scenery painters, and property men, and no one is really in authority. Whether the society be great or small, it is fun to be a member of the cast. If you are thinking of joining one, and are a new recruit at acting, it will pay you to learn a few of the elementary points of dramatic technique. It will give you more confidence to face the “preliminary canter” for the casting of the parts, and may result in your being one of the lions of the piece, rather than receiving a role in which the only time you open your mouth is when you have to exclaim “Yes” or “No.” The brevity of stage directions in some plays often makes “confusion worse confounded” to the complete amateurs. Such signs as “L,” “R,” **C” or “Upstage” and “Downstage” convey nothing to them, so here is a little explanation. The letter “L.” stands for the left side of the stage, as you face the audience. “R” means right. “C” stands for centre, “Upstage” for the back of the stage, and “Downstage” for the front, near the footlights. Remember that if you have to speak any lines when facing Upstage, i.e., with your back to the audience, you should raise your voice. When you are making

an entry, or crossing the stage, commence your walk with the foot that is farthest away from the audience. Whilst on the subject of walking on a stage, it will pay you to practise the correct stage walk. Have you noticed how easy, graceful and apparently effortless is the step of a professional actress? You envy her for being born what you call “a good walker,” and sigh to think that your poor efforts can never in the remotest degree resemble hers. She has probably practised hours before a mirror to get that sinuous swing, and it can be yours, too, if you care to take a little trouble. Don’t hurry. Imagine an audience in front of you. Starting with your “Upstage” foot cross the floor with fairly long, easy strides, keeping your feet in a straight line, and putting the ball of the foot down first. Let the movement come from the hips, and not from the knees. Take things fairly leisurely, and remember nearly all movement on the stage is slower than that in real life. When you get to the other side, let your Upstage foot be a little forward, as though you were about to take another step, then turn smartly on the balls of tfca feet, and you will be in position to “cross” again, with the Upstage foot, all ready to start across to the o.her side. Assiduous practise of this method of walking can immensely improve your “everyday mode, so it is well worth attention, and can be useful on all kinds of occasions, such as presentations, and at meetings if you have to be on the platform. Keep your head up, shoulders back, and “tummy” in, whilst practising. How to sit. Taking a seat on the stage has a technique all its own, too, and should be practised just as carefully. “Stage walk” over to a chair and, when you draw near to it, turn on the balls of the feet and sink gracefully down. The walk and the “Taking of the chair” should have perfect continuity. There should be no “shuffling about” before you are seated. If you sit down correctly, you will be in a position of perfect aplomb with one foot slightly forward, and the other just a little backward. The hands can be

loosely folded in the lap. Never sit on the stage with your legs crossed unless the producer specially directs it. Stage business. When you sink gracefully on to one knee on the stage, remember to go down on the knee nearest the audience. This is one of the unwritten rules of stagecraft, and a breach of it is an unpardonable offence in professional eyes. If you are given a sum of money in real life, the usual procedure is to glance through it to see that you have been handed the right change. Do so in the same circumstances on the stage; the effect is much more natural. A telephone conversation with an imaginary person at the other end of the wire is a great stumbling block to the amateur. Should you have to “give anyone a ring” allow a reasonable time for the imaginary operator to put the call through. When the supposed person at the other end “answers,” keep pausing for replies, and accompany them with appropriate facial expression, and little - natural exclamations, such as “Oh! not r really!” “Yes, yes I see,” and any remarks which fit the situation. You may be called upon to write a

letter on the stage. Don’t rattle it off at a speed that would leave the world’s champion secretary gasping for breath ! Write it very little more rapidly than you would in real life, and when you have finished, glance over what you have written. Whilst on the subject of reading anything on the stage, be sure to memorise the subject matter of the document as thoroughly as your “lines.” Otherwise when you have to proclaim the joyful news contained in the telegram from the rich u. cle that he will pay off the mortgage on the farm to save you from being thrown out, you will, in all probability, be as helpless as grandpa without his spectacles! Footlights have an unpleasant way of “glaring back” at you when you are behind them, and sometimes render anything of a printed nature completely indecipherable. Let them laugh. If the piece is a comedy, and you have several opportunities to “take the stage” with some

particularly telling bit of nonsense, bear in mind the golden rule of stage comedians—“ Wait for your laughs!” At an amateur show the whole point of a joke is often missed by the audience because the performer hurries on with the next part of a speech without waiting for the laughter to subside. In such circumstances, the audience begins to feel that it dare not laugh too heartily for fear of losing the gist of what is being said, and you feel you are a “flop,” when really the fault lies with yourself. When you raise a laugh, wait until it has died down somewhat before continuing to speak, though this does not mean you must stand frozenly. Engage in some gesture, “business” and facial play to fit the situation. The “stage business” and gestures of a play are usually fixed by the producer, but you can profitably employ some time privately practising facial expression before a mirror. Try to portray a whole gamut of emotions, Horror, Fear, Love, Impatience, and the like, and you will soon begin to be convincing in your part. Love Scenes. Novelists tell us that unless you have actually experienced Love, you should never attempt to write about it. The advice can also apply to acting. If you are called upon to engage in a romantic interlude, however, do try to forget that your stage lover is the business-like young man who cashes your cheques at the bank, and try not

to be self-conscious. Never mind a few titters at rehearsals. After all, “the play’s the thing.” A really convincing love scene by amateurs can score a small triumph, whilst one in which the performers are pitifully “aware” of themselves, hopelessly afraid of going all out for fear of exciting ridicule, is positively painful to witness. You must, of course, be completely familiar with the words of your part, which also includes all the “cues”—the lines at which the last person ceased speaking, and where you chip in! Don't feel aggrieved if you are allotted only a small part. Not everyone can be the Ellen Terry of the piece, and many professional stars can trace their present triumphs to being “spotted” in the clever rendering of some relatively unimportant part. The prevailing spirit in a dramatic society should be “Give and take.” Unless you want to get yourself disliked, don’t be argumentative, but cheerfully accept every dictum which comes along, remembering constantly the rule that “The producer always has the last word!”