Whither anon?

I’ve been doing a bit of reflection lately, thinking about what to do next, assuming I survive “Get Smart”, and it’s got me a wondering… How many of you have “Acting Action Plans”? You know what I mean, something as complex as a strategy to take you where you want to go, or perhaps (as in my case) something as simple as a “wish list” of projects you’d like to fit into the next year or two. I thought it might be nice to read what others think about when they review their “other job”. So….I’ll start by opening my soul. Firstly, I want to survive the current production. Not just survive, but obviously do my best for the play, my fellow actors, the crew and the company that is placing their faith in me. Then a bit of R & R as a reward (I do have other hobbies). As for the future, I certainly intend to do more student films. I’ve found them great fun, often challenging, and I really just like to help out prospective film-makers of the future. I’ll certainly go back to acting classes, as I know I still have so much more to learn. I’d also like to tackle Shakespeare, as I consider “the Bard” my next acting litmus test. I’m also game to try my hand (voice?) at musical comedy of some type (did G & S in High School and loved it), as long as the old voice is up to it. I would also like to learn more about stage makeup - I need to move away from the shotgun applicator approach. Other than that – I’ll see what comes. Never say never, I suppose. Over to you. Lee “86” Sheppard

We should all have plans. I am working on two or three specific projects for the next twelve months as well as some very general plans relating to the direction I intend to go in. I don't act any more but I write and direct as well as work on technical projects. Even if this is a hobby for you you should have plans. Is that all there is? Well if that's all there is my friend, then let's keep dancing. www.tonymoore.id.au

I tend to plan about 12 months ahead if I can, so right now I'm booked out theatre work-wise until the end of 2009, and am working out potential projects for 2010.

I can't help but think that the idea of an Acting Action Plan would be one of the most beneficial things! A clear idea of where I would like to go and the things I would like to achieve as a performer. However, given the nature of the "community theatre beast" (and I use that terminology with love and affection) I have to wonder whether this is actually possible? I never know what's coming around the corner - that's why I'm always on this site looking for info. I mean, what if I put into my action plan that I think I need to develop my performance skills in naturalistic acting, but then no projects that I felt would give me an opportunity to do so came up? So I think if one was to design an Acting Action Plan, it would be important to keep it quite general - almost a list of goals that could be accomplished in a number of ways. For example: "I want to have played a role that gives me an opportunity to explore naturalistic performance techniques within 5 years." In this way, you would be able to have achievable goals. DazzaB "Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep." Scott Adams

There are (at least) two ways to think about plans. The first is in terms of scheduling. When I was newer to Perth I tended to do whatever people would cast me in, to get some exposure. I guess that was a plan in itself, with which I have had some success. Now I am a little more in the loop as to who might be doing what, where & when. This harkens back to Craig's comment in the recent thread about pre-casting, where he described how he keeps involved in theatre, whether onstage or elsewhere. My plan has now changed. As an actor who has a "day job" plus other hobbies, & of course a non-theatrical husband (who supports and humours me as well as I do him), I have to consider carefully what projects I might like to take on. I tend now to try to limit myself to perhaps two productions a year that I really want to do, which I find sustainable. As Dazza mentions we actors in community theatre are not always aware of what is available very far in to the future. For this reason I use the ITA site a lot and enquire as early as possible about anything I might be interested in, as it helps me to make the best use of my time. Planning part deux: my karate instructor encouraged us all to set goals for ourselves - short, medium & long-term. An example of a short term goal might be: "learn the Chekov speech for the next month's audition"; medium: "help with makeup backstage this year"; long term: "play a role that gives me an opportunity to explore naturalistic performance techniques within 5 years." Almost as important as setting the goals is reviewing them, to see how far you have come in achieving them, so I would suggest a review date for each goal as well. And if anyone subscribes to the ideas in the book, "the Secret", having a goal in the first place is the main step to achieving it.

Yes - it has to be a fluid plan, and open to regular review. Who knows when the next opportunity may come up? I suppose that, at the very least, having some goals helps make those limited choices easier for me (eg if there are two plays available, and one is a Shakespeare, then my current goal leads me in that direction). BTW - I just noticed that "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" has been postponed until next year. Possible medium plan: get the old singing voice back into shape. "86"