As seductive as the monologue can be, I was excited to get back to working with a scene partner. After all, filmmaking or storytelling of any kind is a collaborative effort. Even though it had only been two weeks of working independently, I had almost forgotten how fun it was to act with a scene partner.
When Mark put everyone into breakout rooms to rehearse the scene, I felt more at ease knowing my partner and I would support one another. While having prior knowledge of the material you are working on can be beneficial, there is also something fun about going in blind and working to find out what the relationships were, are, and where they are going. My scene partner and I immediately jumped into that mindset after our first reading. We were looking for the undertones of the conversation and what each of our characters wanted out of the conversation. With each take, we attempted to dig deeper into why these characters say the things they do. I've previously talked about doing this kind of work for scenes and how beneficial it was, but that was without a partner to bounce off of. Asking these questions can truly alter both of your performances for the better. Before we knew it, our time in the break-out rooms was over, and we were all pulled back into class.
This week's scene lent itself nicely to dissection, focusing on why people make certain decisions. In the scene, one character breaks off a relationship but is not fully committed to the idea. Part of them wants to stay, but they are making this tough decision anyway. So, Mark asked the class why someone would do something that would be painful. If someone feels like a decision is a bad one, why would they make it anyway? These kinds of questions for complex characters are what can make this work so rewarding. Mark pushed us to find that motivation in the characters we were playing. While we all tried to answer these questions about the same characters, it never ceases to impress me how each performance feels so widely different than the last.
I enjoyed this portion of class because it felt different than a formula method of everyone performing, getting feedback, and just calling it a night. While all GRAS teachers have gone the extra mile, this discussion was with the entire class, which felt like a meeting of the minds of passionate artists. Just one of those little moments that make you pause and smile.
Typically, this is where I wrap up all my learning from Mark nicely and look to the future. This time things will be different, as I will continue to work with Mark for the next two weeks. Why the switch-up? Well, it's been a while since I've been able to give an update on my outside-of-class endeavors, and I have some exciting news. An acting agency called me back to audition with them in person. Asking Mark questions as I prepare for the audition at the end of