Research Investigation on the Glass Menagerie
- Submitted by: rnorm6
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- Category: Arts
- Date Submitted: 02/19/2010 10:26 PM
- Pages: 4
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When preparing for a role, the actor must try and establish the ‘through line’, what Stanislavski termed as the ‘Super Objective’. This is the overall motivation of the character.
_‘Everyone has their own pace, think of the extremes, the laid back character who seems to deal with everything at the same unhurried relaxed way, the opposite, would be the character who lives on his nerves, his body in a state of constant tension, his mind spinning…The actor’s job is to find the energy level that best relates to the character they are representing and then finding ways to generate this appropriate energy level as and when, it is needed.’ (The Actors Store, 2009) _
This information is relevant to the character of Tom as the actor may interpret him as being fairly in the middle of both extremes stated here in an external sense, however, internally his emotions and hatred for his work and the warehouse and his yearning for freedom where he can be the poet he wants. This manifests as Tom’s ‘Super Objective’. This can be applied to the character as his passion for creativity creates a more extreme pace and when he fights for his passion, more tension manifests and the actor is able to alter their physicality and voice by increasing their energy levels into portraying this passion.
“Acting does not require you to be physically perfect. Actors need to reflect life in all its myriad forms, but actors do require, an intimate knowledge of their own bodies. What it can and can’t do.”
{draw:frame} Physicality is the essence of life as an action brings meaning to any word and also conveys the subtext. The movement in Tom Wingfield’s case is imperative in the portrayal of his character and the socio-historical context of the time. It is important that the actor release all tension prior to working physically on the character. Stanislavski referred to tension as the ‘occupational disease of the actor’ (Stanislavsky, 1938). He believed that tension was the enemy of the...
_‘Everyone has their own pace, think of the extremes, the laid back character who seems to deal with everything at the same unhurried relaxed way, the opposite, would be the character who lives on his nerves, his body in a state of constant tension, his mind spinning…The actor’s job is to find the energy level that best relates to the character they are representing and then finding ways to generate this appropriate energy level as and when, it is needed.’ (The Actors Store, 2009) _
This information is relevant to the character of Tom as the actor may interpret him as being fairly in the middle of both extremes stated here in an external sense, however, internally his emotions and hatred for his work and the warehouse and his yearning for freedom where he can be the poet he wants. This manifests as Tom’s ‘Super Objective’. This can be applied to the character as his passion for creativity creates a more extreme pace and when he fights for his passion, more tension manifests and the actor is able to alter their physicality and voice by increasing their energy levels into portraying this passion.
“Acting does not require you to be physically perfect. Actors need to reflect life in all its myriad forms, but actors do require, an intimate knowledge of their own bodies. What it can and can’t do.”
{draw:frame} Physicality is the essence of life as an action brings meaning to any word and also conveys the subtext. The movement in Tom Wingfield’s case is imperative in the portrayal of his character and the socio-historical context of the time. It is important that the actor release all tension prior to working physically on the character. Stanislavski referred to tension as the ‘occupational disease of the actor’ (Stanislavsky, 1938). He believed that tension was the enemy of the...