Is it an insult to be called a "ham"?
Tue, 28 Apr 2009, 06:05 pmPffft24 posts in thread
Is it an insult to be called a "ham"?
Tue, 28 Apr 2009, 06:05 pmAm I over reacting? I've just completed a season of comedy/thriller "Tip Toe Through the Tombstones". I'm under no illusion that the play is anything but pure entertainment, the characters are one dimentional and were portrayed as such. We had full houses every night and lots of fantastic audience reaction and feedback.
I've read 2 reviews by the same author. One was featured on this website (not sure if you can view it under reviews but it's called "ham_4_t"). The other mention of the play was in the Garrick Theatre newsletter. In both reviews he called the cast "hams". Some of his comments were very personal and 2 cast members were extremely insulted by them, however I'm not going into that. My beef (pun intended) lays with the fact that he called us "ham actors". Examples of his work are:
"it had a cast of the hammiest actors every to grace the boards"
"the overwhelming smell of pork in the air"
"excessive ham acting on stage"
"clearly put into perspective what it truly means to be a ham"
Two online dictionary definitions for "ham actor" are:
"An incompetent actor who over plays and is incapable of subtility. An over-actor"
"An unskilled actor"
Of course, he's entitled to his opinion and all reviews are subjective but why try to mask the fact that he hated the play and the acting by writing "I loved it".
So, my question is.... is it an insult to be called a ham actor. I certainly feel insulted. Would you?
Hams Fly at Hammy Hill
Fri, 1 May 2009, 02:43 pmI remember the late Alwyn Kurts (of 'Homicide' fame) once describing himself as "an old ham". While this was undoubtedly just a bit of self-deprecatory humour, such was my admiration for the man at the time that I ceased to think of the epithet as anything but complimentary.
To my mind, the expression 'ham it up' is similar to 'camp it up' and is a skill any actor should have in his or her toolbox to be used as and when required.
And for a really good demonstration of both, come and see 'Bannockburn! The (almost) True Story' currently running at Phoenix Theatre, corner of Carrington & Rock'n'ham Road Hammy Hill 6163 (UBD Map 346 J7)
Ssstinger>>>