We're Back in Business

"Well I've Been Afraid of Changin'..."

My mentality is a kaleidoscope: bright, distinct, and ever-changing. There's more going on in there than I can say, and sometimes I don't know, I just feel. For a girl who always thinks about things, being increasingly dependent on feelings has been extremely scary. According to +Nicola Reynolds, our latest lecturer, it's our job as actors to be able to access our feelings easily. Her family may call her overemotional, but that's okay... that's her job! 

To acknowledge this is liberating. It's okay that I've been more emotional in this point in my life than ever. Yesterday at lunch, we were talking about Christmas and Boxing Day, then poor +Kelly Vergill asked me about Thanksgiving. I immediately started crying. I thought of my last Thanksgiving with the family, where we were grateful for Kerri's pregnancy; of times in Australia where we'd cook a traditional meal, and I got my Aussie friends to dress up like Pilgrims and Indians (for their pleasure; we don't actually do that in America). It was not the thought that made me cry though, it was a deep longing. A Feeling.

Gimme a Break

I've found a really good way of centring myself is through literature. Lucky me, I can do this and apply it to my degree by reading plays, speeches, the news (best to be an actor who's in the know of public concerns). It also relieves the self-attention that is such a huge part of being an actor. One of the plays I've read recently, Brontë by Polly Teale, sums this up perfectly.

We've been given so many different ways to analyse and break down text. Preparing for a mock audition, I've written out my text and treated it like a grammar assignment, marking it up, separating adjectives from verbs from nouns. Stressing each of these groups in subsequent readings makes it come to life in a new way every time.

Getting Out of the House

I understand your concern:  Sal, have you literally just spent your time indoors reading? Well, no! I decided to take Leo out for a little roll last weekend (I brought Brontë with me, hehehe) to enjoy the sunshine. It is so interesting to reflect on the changing seasons in Cardiff compared to D.C. and Sydney. It's variable here; we have wonderful days of the perfect warmth, followed by rainy, chilly days. Best advice for travel to the U.K.? Check the forecast daily.

Acting Through Song

Our latest project (Nicola's heading it with Joe Hood, Musical Director) has been equally torturous and liberating. They have chosen songs for me that I would never choose for myself, one that is extremely simplistic, and one that is extremely dorky and humorous. We perform in less than a fortnight, and shortly after that we begin rehearsing for our first public performance, "The World Goes Round", a Kander and Ebb revue and for "Fleeced!", the show we'll be bringing up to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Au Revoir for now:)