Acting | Lesson 2

Lesson 2

Lecture 2 had us discussing 'status', and the need for others to indicate it. Status doesn't necessarily come from the way in which a person acts/moves or talks but rather is often the product of other people's attitudes towards them. People with a lower status may evoke confusion, and avoidance as those of higher positions see themselves as too superior to 'deal' with them.

One of our key exercises, therefore, was to enter the room upon being given a card (Ace to King) with the lower numbers being 'lower status', and vice versa.

Having sneaked a glance at the number, we hide the card and re-enter the room according to that status. Using our walks to the chair, our introduction to the class ("Hello, my name is ..."), and our exit alone, we'd have to embody our status. The rest of the group would then have to guess our status from performance alone. 

This exercise felt quite out of my comfort zone, as I'd been given a higher status card and this required a great deal of confidence. Unfortunately my nervousness came out during the performance, and most people guessed 6 (one 7), when the card was in actual fact an 8. This was understandable, as though I tried to embody movement from chest and head alone (something that indicates confidence), and look at everybody when sitting down, I didn't take my time at the chair which would have indicated comfortableness. 

This exercise was a good way of looking for subtle clues in the movement of the hands, eyes, the legs, and timing of their movement, to pick up the underlining thoughts (i.e. my status is a King and i'm repulsed by the thought of sitting in this chair amongst the lower class). It also helped bring attention to our own unconscious behaviours, and the way they impend upon the performance.