The Vs. Studio Blog

I was performing in a play, a total passion project, and in the audience that night was one of my acting heroes. As a matter of fact, he’d originated the role I was playing. (No pressure, right?)

What I’ll never forget is that the entire time, he sat on the edge of his seat, totally absorbed and invested in the show. I could feel him rooting all of us on. He had a big smile on his face, his eyes were wide open as they ping-ponged back and forth on the action. It was almost child-like. He was all in.

Let me tell you, that energy and presence made such a difference to us on stage. Afterwards, he stuck around for hours talking to the cast, asking questions, taking a genuine interest in every aspect of the production. It made for a great, great night.

When we’re all back in the theatre again, and we will be soon, let us all be that awesome audience member. Let us love and be grateful just to be there. Witnessing the miracle of live theatre. Let us embody and have that rooting spirit in our hearts. Trust me, it will make all the difference to those actors on stage who are baring their soul. Which will then translate to everyone having a greater experience of the show that night.

“How long must you wait until you demand the best of yourself?” -Epictetus

“There is no tomorrow! There is no tomorrow!” -Apollo Creed

Pressure is a choice and a privilege. It’s also the only way you make a diamond.

Learn to love it.

No doubt, there’s been an explosion of content with no let up in sight. There are over 300 different streaming services right now. You heard that right. 300. Yet as this same article mentions, nearly 50% of people surveyed reported dissatisfaction. Chief among their reasons were “the decentralized nature of all those choices.”

Do we really need more content and more providers?

Or just better arbiters?

Hey! It’s your tomorrow
(Right now)
Come on, it’s everything
(Right now)
Catch your magic moment
Do it right here and now
It means everything

-Van Halen, “Right Now”

In case you had any doubt…

You’re right where you’re supposed to be. Doing right what you’re supposed to do. You’re on the right path. In the right place. It’s exactly the right time. You have all the right skills. All the right knowledge. All the right contacts. Everything you’ve done was to get you right here.

Now that we’ve got that straight, what are you gonna do right now?

That’s the title of a brand new play written by my friend and uber-talented playwright, John Kolvenbach. This past Friday I attended a reading of it at a theatre space in Los Angeles. There were about 20 of us (all masked and socially distanced) and the night was nothing short of magical. It marked the first time I’d seen anything live in over a year. The play is so timely as it’s all about experiencing that communal feeling again. Dropping in to it. John’s writing is so, so good. It just crackles and the acting was spectacular. The audience energy was real and palpable.

It’s one thing to try and remember what it’s like to see great live theatre. It’s a whole other thing to experience it again. Everything about it–the preshow banter, being with friends, finding your seats, ambient street noise, the collective emotion and intelligence of the audience, silence, breathing in and out, watching great actors in the flesh, hearing great language, meeting new people afterwards, etc…, all of it. I was overcome with emotion as I had that feeling of “Oh yeah. That’s what it like. That’s why I do this and love this art form so much.”

I can’t wait for you to experience it again too. Hang on. We’re almost there…

“The way someone else perceives what you do is a result of their own experiences (which you can’t control), their own preferences (which you can’t predict), and their own expectations (which you don’t set). If your choices don’t match their expectations that is their concern, not yours.” -James Clear

Are you trying to write a book? Or the next Great American Novel?

Are you making a movie? Or trying to stand on the shoulders of Citizen Kane?

Are you painting a picture? Or conjuring up a masterpiece?

(You see where I am going with this…)

Only you know the answer. And everything has its merit. Don’t be influenced by what someone else says or does or worse, tells you what you should or shouldn’t do. Per Emily Dickinson, “The heart wants what it wants– or else it does not care.”

But it’s important to know what exactly you’re trying for. To define it. As that will dictate how much effort, how much risk, how much time and how much cost to your soul it’s gonna take to make it happen.

Remember the 1991, Tony Scott film “The Last Boy Scout?” It’s flawed but kinda awesome too and has attained “cult classic” status. In it, Bruce Willis plays Joe Hallenbeck, a formerly decorated but then disgraced Secret Service agent, who’s now barely getting by as a private investigator. He ends up getting paired on a case with LA Stallions quarterback Jimmy Dix, played by Damon Wayans. If you haven’t seen, give it a watch. You’ll enjoy it.

A recurring sequence in the film is Joe confronting various people he’s mad at and asking them if they want to be punched in the head or the gut. Like this clip where Joe confronts his friend for sleeping with Joe’s wife. It’s Joe’s simple way of squaring things with those who’ve wronged him.

For some reason–don’t ask me why–I connected this sequence to making and receiving art. The question to ask:

Do you want to reach people in their heads or their guts?

Ideally it’s both, but if I had to choose one, I’d pick the gut. I want people to be emotionally moved and rattled and entertained first. That has to be there for me. Then, hopefully, they think about it afterwards.

And while you can’t control how your art is received, the answer to this question might reveal what kind of art you make. As well as how you manifest it; meaning the style, direction, design choices, etc…

So what it’s gonna be? Head or gut?

Lloyd: “What are my chances?”

Mary: “Not good.”

Lloyd: “You mean not good like one out of a hundred?”

Mary: “I’d say more like one out of a million.”

Lloyd: “So you’re telling me there’s a chance….Yeah!!!”

Who knows how it will turn out? But just like Lloyd here, all you need is a chance to move forward.

Go make your art.

Yes, know the arc of the character you’re playing and the story you’re trying to tell. If for nothing else, information.

However, under no circumstances whatsoever, should you “arc” your performance.

We didn’t pay to watch you warm up, ease into it, modulate, pre-shape, know where you’re going, etc…Banish all thoughts such as “My character wouldn’t be that (insert emotion) here.”

Horseshit.

Always, always start in the middle. Come out of the gates swinging. Go right for the jugular. Grab hold of us and don’t let go.

There are no limits on far you can go. Surprise yourself! Remember, just like in life, you have no idea what’s next or if there’s even another line coming. This might be it. Your only chance to change the other person.

So give it all you got. Now! Now! Now!