Is acting casting?
Sat, 12 May 2001, 01:53 amWalter Plinge44 posts in thread
Is acting casting?
Sat, 12 May 2001, 01:53 amI have a theory: that acting is casting.
If a character in a play is urbane and sophisticated, then you cast an urbane and sophisticated actor. If the character is neurotic, you cast a neurotic actor. That kind of thing.
If, instead of asking a loose-hipped type to play a starched collar, or an intellectual to play an ignorant, uneducated type, a director were to cast actors who are as close as possible to type, how different do you think it would make the process of working and playing the piece?
How many actors can actually play anything? And how many are only good within a limited range of roles? And can a director justify casting their play entirely with "types", who match -- IRL -- some or all of the characteristics of the people they're playing?
I had thought of making this a poll, but I think it's better served in this forum, where lengthy dissertations -- in either direction -- can be offered.
I look forward to a substantial, thought-provoking debate,
peace,
David M.
If a character in a play is urbane and sophisticated, then you cast an urbane and sophisticated actor. If the character is neurotic, you cast a neurotic actor. That kind of thing.
If, instead of asking a loose-hipped type to play a starched collar, or an intellectual to play an ignorant, uneducated type, a director were to cast actors who are as close as possible to type, how different do you think it would make the process of working and playing the piece?
How many actors can actually play anything? And how many are only good within a limited range of roles? And can a director justify casting their play entirely with "types", who match -- IRL -- some or all of the characteristics of the people they're playing?
I had thought of making this a poll, but I think it's better served in this forum, where lengthy dissertations -- in either direction -- can be offered.
I look forward to a substantial, thought-provoking debate,
peace,
David M.
RE: Is acting casting?
Sun, 13 May 2001, 12:21 pm>Scenario: A director has to choose between two equally talented actors, either of
> whom could play Willy Loman brilliantly. One of them has an upright, confident, even
> urbane, bearing that -- while versatile enough to be malleable into any character -- is
> inherently at odds with the kind of physical person Willy is. He can do it, and
> seamlessly, but it will be an actor's device.
> The other actor has an indefinable sadness about him... an innate manner of speaking
> and moving that reads as a kind of emotional weariness.
> Both are brilliant. Both are committed. Both are perfectly valid choices. But who gets
> the job?
> I know who I'd choose.
What if, however, Actor 1 was better than Actor 2 (the one more like Willy)?
That is where it gets really annoying as directors will often go for Actor 2 anyway, in the mistaken belief that they will be able to carry off the role, by sheer virtue of the fact that they present as mopier and dumber than Actor 1.
By the same token, Actor 2 may have been cast for the 147th time as a tragic loser purely because of their outward presentation.
As far as I'm concerned, casting on the basis of personality is a raw deal for all concerned.
Amanda 'Tired of Playing Aggressive Bitches/Sluts/Whores' Chesterton
> whom could play Willy Loman brilliantly. One of them has an upright, confident, even
> urbane, bearing that -- while versatile enough to be malleable into any character -- is
> inherently at odds with the kind of physical person Willy is. He can do it, and
> seamlessly, but it will be an actor's device.
> The other actor has an indefinable sadness about him... an innate manner of speaking
> and moving that reads as a kind of emotional weariness.
> Both are brilliant. Both are committed. Both are perfectly valid choices. But who gets
> the job?
> I know who I'd choose.
What if, however, Actor 1 was better than Actor 2 (the one more like Willy)?
That is where it gets really annoying as directors will often go for Actor 2 anyway, in the mistaken belief that they will be able to carry off the role, by sheer virtue of the fact that they present as mopier and dumber than Actor 1.
By the same token, Actor 2 may have been cast for the 147th time as a tragic loser purely because of their outward presentation.
As far as I'm concerned, casting on the basis of personality is a raw deal for all concerned.
Amanda 'Tired of Playing Aggressive Bitches/Sluts/Whores' Chesterton
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