Acting Class: Full Frontal Nudity, yes or no???

Acting class last night was amazing! I had such a good time. I actually got to be on stage rather than just watching. I loved it. The first little skit I did was an improv with another student. I was to come in and try to convince her to go on this double date with me even though her previous blind dates weren't very successful. Be selfish and manipulative in order to get what I want? Done. I am really good at that! It went well.

Next it was my turn to recreate three minutes of my life. I chose to wash the dishes and then make a grocery list to take to the store. It went alright. I was nervous, wondering if I was boring the audience but we aren't supposed to worry about entertaining others so I tried to go about my business. It is actually not that easy when there are 30 people watching you!

Then it was my turn to improv. My teacher set up this scenario, he had a guy pretend to be a producer for a play that I auditioned for and he loved me! The director and author loved me too! He was coming over to offer me the job, which is great because I am the starving actress who hasn't had any work in the last three years. There is only one hitch, the part requires me to do a scene in full frontal nudity! Meanwhile during the skit I am supposed to continue on with my tasks of washing dishes and making a grocery list. The improv went well. The producer came in and we sat at the table and talked about the job. I completely gave up doing my "tasks" as I would in real life if a producer came over to give me a job! Then he broke it to me, the requirement of full frontal nudity. What?!? I tried to understand why and what I was going to do. When I needed time to think I returned to my task of washing dishes. I just didn't know what to say, should I do it? I really needed the money. What would my parents think? All of this was running through my head. I just stood there in silence for a moment. My acting teacher loved that, explaining that silence can be powerful and is often not used in improv. A big shout out to my acting coach in Vegas, Rhonda Carlson who taught me the value of using silence in monologues and singing. Also I just didn't know what to say! I was speechless. The wheels in my head were turning  as I considered whether or not to take the part. So I did what I would do in life, put off the decision! I asked the producer how long I could take to decide. He asked me to call him by the end of the day. I told him I'd call him by midnight. That's the end of the day, right? As I showed the producer out of my pretend house, the acting teacher yelled, "take the job!" That was the end of my skit. Everyone laughed. It was rather funny. They liked my honest performance. I guess that is the advantage to playing yourself, you know how to act. Now the trick is to make every character just as "real." I must find myself in each character to make every role I play just as believable. Oh and I need to get a role. Minor things really.

I do love the acting class! It is so fun, such a high! I went to bed last Monday night at 1:30am just because it takes me so long to come down from the high. The moral is: don't take acting class until 10pm! And how can there only be a one a week! I can't get enough!