STAC website assignment - rough draft

We had to write about something that STAC did so far this year to be put up on the STAC website. This is my rough draft:

This past November, STAC kids had the opportunity to work with professional actress and coach, Joy *insert last name here*. Think of the kindest, most generous, knowledgeable person you have ever met. That’s Joy. Each student in her workshop was responsible for finding a monologue that he or she would like to spend time working on with Joy’s help and expertise.

One of the lessons that Joy taught us was how to use subtext. Subtext is what the character is thinking underneath the spoken lines. We have subtext all the time in our every day lives. Subtext is just as important to an actor, if not more important than the words that come out of his mouth. One STACie wrote the following about watching a fellow classmate during the subtext exercise, “I noticed a huge difference when she used subtext…The character went through [a journey], rather than just playing the mood of the piece, and it was very honest when she did this.”

Memorizing lines are to an actor what measuring flour is to a baker. It’s the tedious task that has to be completed in order to get to the fun stuff. In acting, the fun stuff is the subtext and what happens to the character when an actor engages in the use of subtext. All of the students in Joy’s workshop were encouraged and required to explore subtext. I think it’s safe to say that each individual was pleased with what they were able to accomplish with this new acting tool.

A simpler, but just as important lesson that Joy taught us was to breathe. To breathe is to give life to yourself and to the character you are playing. Actors often forget to breathe when they are performing. This only constricts your body and limits how far you can take your performance. Breathing forces “you to get the subtext going because you're not saying anything [when you’re taking a breath.] You're just "looking" at the person you're talking to and…you're able to focus on what your little mind is saying behind what the monologue tells you to say.…It adds life to the piece. It can [also] add contrast, but in a simplistic way.”

Everyone in the workshop really enjoyed the time we spent working with Joy. She pushed each of us to our individual limits, so that we could grow as actors and actresses.