Welcome and Introduction to this blog

Right: Ian Wilson-Pope as Wotan in "Das Rheingold" for Fulham Opera, August 2011.

Welcome to my Guide to Acting for Opera Singers

I'm writing this blog at the suggestion and recommendation of a number of my professional colleagues, and it is intended as a guide for younger or less experienced opera singers about an essential skill in our profession, and perhaps also as a refresher for those in the profession who wish to "brush-up" or improve their existing skills.

The main reasons for writing this blog are:

 

1. There appears to be a predominant view that opera singers can't or won't act.
2. Opera singers aren't always taught how to act.
3. Opera places special demands on a singer as to "how" to act, that do not occur in the other major arenas of acting, such as Film or TV work, and even to some extent Theatre Stage work ("straight" acting, as it tends to be known).
4. There tends to be an over-emphasis on musical and vocal studies while at college, neglecting acting workshops and performance skills.

I'll be covering all sorts of acting techniques, some of the "Do's and Don't's" of acting, how to act in a chorus, principal roles, fights and choreography, film acting, acting close up and personal, dealing with directors and producers, and even performing when "in the round".  Some important points will probably recur again and again.  But before we embark on the "A-Z" articles, which I hope will come out either weekly or fortnightly, let's think about what acting actually is!

Acting is essentially the portrayal of another person (character) in a realistic, honest and sincere way, so that the audience should not see the performer's own character, but the one being represented on either the stage, film, or TV.  In other words, acting is pretending to be someone else other than yourself.

 

That all sounds pretty simple and easy: surely anyone can do it?  Well, you'd be surprised the number of times that I've seen people with as much "acting ability" as a drowned rat or a baked potato appear on the operatic stage.  In one opera I saw, there was a wooden puppet that was less "wooden" than most of the "live" performers on stage!  So, that's why I am writing this blog, to pass on some of the tips and skills that I've learnt and accumulated from years of performing in opera on the stage and in film, from small-scale fringe performances to large theatres and in cinema.

 

One last point I should make in this introduction is this: the only way to learn is to try and fail, then try again!  Don't lose heart if at first something doesn't work.  Many times trying a new technique for the first time might not work, but keep with it and persevere.  And remember, this is only a Guide to Acting.  The greatest actors have something innate and deep within them, what we call "Star Quality", but many skills can be learnt and developed to turn a mediocre or poor actor into a very good one!

 

Come back soon for the first proper installment when we'll discuss "A is for Acting... NOT!"