The Vs. Studio Blog

“Many people are trying to take beauty out of the world. Artists keep trying to put it back in.” -Gareth Williams

“Beauty will save the world.” -Dostoevsky

“There is, however, a certain peculiarity in the essence of beauty, a peculiarity in the status of art: namely, the convincingness of a true work of art is completely irrefutable and it forces even an opposing heart to surrender…Those works of art which have scooped up the truth and presented it to us as a living force – they take hold of us, compel us, and nobody ever, not even in ages to come, will appear to refute them.

So perhaps that ancient trinity of Truth, Goodness and Beauty is not simply an empty, faded formula as we thought in the days of our self-confident, materialistic youth? If the tops of these three trees converge, as the scholars maintained, but the too blatant, too direct stems of Truth and Goodness are crushed, cut down, not allowed through – then perhaps the fantastic, unpredictable, unexpected stems of Beauty will push through and soar TO THAT VERY SAME PLACE, and in so doing will fulfill the work of all three.” -excerpt from Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s 1970 Nobel Prize acceptance speech

Looking for your life’s purpose?

Put beauty, joy and love back in the world everywhere you can.

There is no greater purpose or higher calling than this.

“Freddie, love, why does anyone do anything? […] The wellsprings of human action are deep and cloudy.” -Lloyd to Frederick in the play Noises Off by Michael Frayn

“When all around it strife and uncertainty, there’s nothing like a good old-fashioned plate of…(holding up plates of sardines) Curtain!” -Selsdon in Noises Off

Tears of joy and laughter.

That’s what myself and everyone in our Vs. Theatre Club outing shed last week during the Geffen’s Production of Michael Frayn’s hysterical play, NOISES OFF.

Yes, I had tears from laughing at all the brilliant comedic moments. But also, I had tears from sharing communal space and feeling everyone else’s joy. It was infectious.

The production is magnificent. The direction is flawless and the actors are at the top of their comedic game. It’s an antidote for these difficult times. Go see it. You’ll be glad you did.

Seeing the play and talking with people afterwards reminded me that sometimes the greatest gift an artist or theatre can do is to just bring people together and give them a respite from their troubles. It’s a remarkable gift and opportunity. Never underestimate or take for granted, its power.

“One of the things I always thought was the secret of The Beatles was that our music was self-taught. We were never consciously thinking of what we were doing. Anything we did came naturally. A breathtaking chord change wouldn’t happen because we knew how that chord related to another chord. We weren’t able to read music or write it down, so we just made it up. My dad was exactly the same. And there’s a certain joy that comes into your stuff if you didn’t mean it, if you didn’t try to make it happen and it happens of its own accord. There’s a certain magic about that. So much of what we did came from a deep sense of wonder rather than study. We didn’t really study music at all.” -Paul McCartney, The Lyrics

“But the risk is worth it. Because the half-baked work, shared in a trusting environment, is the fuel for the system that created the works of genius.” -Seth Godin

“You were only waiting for this moment to be free.” song, Blackbird by The Beatles

Most times you shouldn’t serve the pie until it’s fully baked.

But sometimes, especially in collaborative mediums, you should serve it up half- baked. Give the team a taste. Get them excited.

And who knows? Maybe your half-baked version is actually fully baked and ready to go.

This Seth blog post.

Feel scared…and do it anyway.

Feel shy…and do it anyway.

Feel inadequate…and do it anyway.

Feel imperfect…and do it anyway.

Feel tired…and do it anyway.

Feel fraudulent…and do it anyway.

Feel intimidated..and do it anyway

Feel rushed…and do it anyway.

Feel hungry…and do it anyway.

Feel lazy…and do it anyway.

Feel sucky…and do it anyway.

Shrink the gap between feeling and doing.

Do so, consistently, over a long enough period of time, and you can accomplish just about any goal.

P.S. – This song. These lyrics. Revisit often.

“At every moment keep a sturdy mind on the task at hand, as a Roman and human being, doing it with strict and simple dignity, affection, freedom, and justice—giving yourself a break from all other considerations. You can do this if you approach each task as if it is your last, giving up every distraction, emotional subversion of reason, and all drama, vanity, and complaint over your fair share. You can see how mastery over a few things makes it possible to live an abundant and devout life—for, if you keep watch over these things, the gods won’t ask for more.” -Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

“Attention is the most basic form of love. By paying attention we let ourselves be touched by life, and our hearts naturally become more open and engaged.” -Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With The Heart Of A Buddha

“Attention, taken to its highest degree, is the same thing as prayer. It presupposes faith and love. Absolutely unmixed attention is prayer.” -Simone Weil

You don’t need faith or religion to experience sacred moments.

You just need to pay full attention to each one as they happen.

For that’s what makes the moment sacred.

“Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is watching.” -C.S. Lewis

“Whenever you do a thing, act as if all the world were watching.” -Thomas à Kempis

“Dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. Love like you’ve never been hurt and live like it’s heaven on Earth.” – Mark Twain

Make your art as if no one is watching.

Make your actions as if everyone is.

“You’re dangerous ’cause you’re honest.” -U2, song Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses?

The best acting isn’t safe. It’s dangerous. Unpredictable. Honest. Vulnerable. Raw. You’re out there on the edge. Not sure what’s gonna happen next.

It should feel like that, anyway. To you and the audience. (Not “out of control” though. There is a huge difference.)

The right teachers and directors create a very safe environment for you to do dangerous work. Seek them out. For those are who you want to work with.

“When I was starting out, I used to sit down and write a couple times a week. And then, one day, I was watching these construction workers go back to work. I was watching them kind of trudgin’ down the street…It was like a revelation to me, and I realized, ‘These guys don’t want to go back to work after lunch, but they’re goin’… ’cause that’s their job!’ And I thought, ‘If they can exhibit that level of dedication for that job, I should be able to do the same.’ Just trudge your ass in!” -Jerry Seinfeld in Comedian​

“Do your job.” -Bill Belichik

Sometimes you’re gonna feel like doing the thing. Sometimes you’re not.

But you will ALWAYS feel good AFTER you’ve done the thing.

So do the thing.

Remember…Decide. Do. Feel.

For the actor…

Sometimes coming with the exact right verb or phrase for what you want or your actions in a scene/overall script, is difficult. Another way to tackle this is to just write down what your character dreams about. Write one or two pages in vivid detail. Dont’ edit. Don’t worry if it’s logical or if it can actually happen. Just let it flow. (There should be some excitement going on.)

When you’re done, now connect to that dream. Desperately want it. Believe that you deserve it. Expect it.

As a result of doing this work, three things will happen:

(1) You’ll remember this dream in each scene and all throughout the play.

(2) You’ll be set up for maximum conflict when your character fails to achieve it. But you’ll keep fighting for it.

(3). Because of (1) and (2), you’ll be alive in every moment and thus, riveting to watch.

“Artists can talk. Artists love interviews. Artists love talking about their songs, being asked about their melodies and lyrics and creativity.

Because artists know that as long as they keep talking they can hide within the words.

Because artists know that the music itself is fully exposing. No more hiding. The music is the thing. The centerpiece of it all.

Most artists can talk their way into their music coming off the way they want it to come off…but then what do the songs have to say about it?” -Gabe Andersen

If they awarded medals for our ability to talk about the work, we’d all win gold.

Don’t talk about it. Be about it.

Just do the work. Let it speak for itself.