Here I am at home again! Germany was awesome! Bad Homburg is so beautiful! And it was wonderful to get a chance to spend time with my Great Uncle Hansi and his wife Marion, especially since my Oma (grandmother) here in CA passed away while my sister and I were in Germany. I cried at the airport leaving Hansi and Marion, because they are pretty much the same age as Oma, and I don't know if I'll get to see them again by the time I can afford to go to Germany again. I cried when I heard about Oma as well, because I didn't get to say goodbye or say "I love you" one last time, but she'd been bed-ridden for the last nine years because of a stroke, and that's hardly any life. We'd all been expecting it for a long time, and it was definitely for the better for Oma.
Anyhow, on to acting topics. I was left a comment on my previous post by David Millstone: "Sometimes, when family and friends say that a character seemed 'just like you' in real life, it's a compliment; it can mean you've got the part in your body enough to be yours. Trust yourself (as if you had a choice!)" I have mixed feelings about this: On the one hand, it is such a positive and wonderfully affirming comment, very much appreciated! But on the other hand, I know I didn't put a whole lot of homework into the character, so in this case it seems to me that if my character seemed just like me, it was the lack of homework showing through. And then on the third hand, every character is based on ourselves. As an actor, who we are as a person is our instrument, our honest emotional reactions, etc. So every character is bound to be somewhat like who we are in real life. (And now the little negative voice in my head says, "What about actors like Alfred Molina, Sam Rockwell, etc?" Thanks for sharing!) *sigh* There seem to be so many different views of "good acting", I get lost sometimes wondering which is right, which is better. (Chameleon-like character acting, honest but just like our real self acting, emotionally dramatic Acting, charicature acting) But it's not really a question of which is 'right' or 'better', is it? Each project calls for something different, and each actor has his or her own strengths that make them good at a specific type of acting. And the really good actors are versatile and good at many or all of the different types of acting, or even blending elements of the different types. Hum. I'll let that simmer in my thoughts for a while. And Mr. Millstone is right: I need to trust myself and the choices I make, even if it seems that the character I create is "just like me". (Most people won't know that, anyways.)
The other night, I got to see Rupert Everett in the role of Sherlock Holmes in a TV movie, The Case of The Silk Stockings. Now, I have to say that Jeremy Brett has been my favorite actor in the role of Sherlock Holmes, no one else can hold a candle to his characterization. At least that is how I felt until I saw Everett's performance. I was extremely impressed by Everett in the role, he nailed it perfectly (although it was strange to see him with a prosthetic hook nose.) It was astounding to me that Everett's dark eyes, which have seemed so warm in other roles, were completely icy and analytical as Holmes. I think I actually liked Everett better than Brett in the role.
Last night, I got to see Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida at a local community theater. It was fabulous! I was touched by the story, the dancing was awesome, the cast was excellent! I thought it was interesting that in certain songs, all of the characters sang in the style of Elton John, with the same vocal inflections and vocal style. (Yes, they're his songs, but it surprised me that they would be sung as if Elton John himself were singing them, instead of in character.) I was particularly impressed by Kelli Thacker in the role of Amneris (the Egyptian Princess), she was in the role directly from Broadway and the 1st National Tour. In her bio she lists Lina Lamont from Singing In The Rain as one of her favorite roles, and her portrayal of Amneris displayed this perfectly. (I also couldn't help thinking she'd be perfect as Glinda in Wicked as well, I hope she gets to play that role in the future.) Anyhow, her performace in Aida was so striking to me. Amneris was cute & silly but regal and commanding at the same time. Thacker's performance was deeply honest and unadorned, especially in comparison to Jamila Ajibade who played Aida, who was extremely emotionally dramatic, almost melodramtic in my opinion. Yet the audience seemed to love Ajibade's performance, even though it seemed to me to lack a certain amount of honesty due to the dramatic stylization. (This is where my earlier thought came from that perhaps no one type of acting is better than another.) But, in my opinion, I can see clearly why Thacker has been on Broadway and Ajibade has not. Thacker's performace was more touchingly honest and subtle than Ajibade's. But it was a very thin line between the two performances as well.
Anyhow, I'm starting to ramble now and repeat myself, so that's it for tonight!
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