📘 Part 3: Acting and performers

This episode's vocabulary

Recognition (noun) - an agreement that something is true or legal.

Perfectionist (noun) - a person who wants everything to be perfect and demands the highest standards possible.

To get a kick out of something (phrase) - to enjoy something.

To make a/your mark (on something) (idiom) - to have an important effect on something.

Subculture (noun) - the way of life, customs, and ideas of a particular group of people within a society that are different from the rest of that society.

To simulate (verb) - to create conditions or processes similar to something that exists.

Lines (plural noun) - the words that an actor speaks when performing in a film, play, etc.

Make-believe (noun) - believing or imagining things that appear to be attractive or exciting, but are not real.

To enhance (verb) - to improve the quality, amount, or strength of something.

Simultaneously (adverb) - in a way that is simultaneous (= happening or being done at exactly the same time).

Craft (noun) - skill and experience, especially in relation to making objects; a job or activity that needs skill and experience, or something produced using skill and experience.

Subtle (adj.) - not loud, bright, noticeable, or obvious in any way.

Subtlety (noun) - the quality of being subtle.

Fragmented (adj.) - consisting of several separate parts.

Questions and Answers

M: Why might actors or actresses be very interested in their work?

R: Well, why is anyone interested in the work, frankly? They could have some personal connection to it, or they might like the recognition they get from it, which is especially true if you're a famous person or a famous actor. Alternatively, they may be perfectionists and get a kick out of a job well done, or a kick out of doing a job well done.

M: Why could being a professional actor or actress be a good career?

R: Other than the reasons I mentioned? Well, I imagine it's reasonably well paid, especially if you get to the top, then we're talking about work that makes literally millions of dollars. And they also get the chance to make their mark on the world, especially in the culture or even various subcultures, if they're in certain kinds of media.

M: What can children learn from acting?

R: Well, drama plays a powerful role in our lives even if we aren't professional actors. We can develop our creativity and imagination in addition to simulating what certain real-life situations might be like, and what we might do in them as well. And that's assuming, well, this is, of course, assuming the drama is well structured and prepared, so the kids aren't literally running a script in their heads, even though that can also be a useful outcome for learning your lines.

M: Why do children like special costumes?

R: Well, dressing up is part of make-believe, or it's part of make-believe activities, and it enhances play in general. And kids seem to be all about that, really, especially when they're younger. It allows them to more effectively take on the role they imagine themselves in, and it makes it simultaneously more believable and more magical, like physical evidence, they really are the character they're playing.

M: What are the differences between actors who earn much and those who earn little?

R: I imagine, like all things, it's a balance of hard work and luck, really. They have to be in the right places at the right time, but also show they've put in the work to develop their craft and how well they can perform in various roles, and then the money starts rolling in. I'm not sure that's unique to acting, though. That could be with any job, really.

M: What are the differences between acting in a theatre and acting in a film?

R: I was reading a book recently by Mary Margulies. She's a famous actress in, well, in the UK. So part of the book she was...Well, in part of the book, she was going on about theatre acting requiring people to project energy outwards, to engage the audience in real-time. And film acting needs more subtlety, since cameras capture even tiny things about people. I imagine film acting is also more fragmented too, because scenes are often filmed or shot out of sequence for budget reasons.