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VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD! Where A.I. is a four-letter word.
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Don G. King's Row
Joined: 11 Nov 2004 Posts: 1071 Location: MA
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 5:24 am Post subject: Question for the stage performers here |
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I know that several of the folks here do stage work, so I figured I'd get some honest answers here to a question I've been curious about.
When you're doing a play/musical/improv or whatever, does your effort or performance level change depending on the day of week or size of audience? If you have performances Thurs-Sun, is the Saturday evening performance to a full house likely to be any better than the Thursday evening performance to a not-quite-packed audience? I know it shouldn't necessarily be, but we are all human, and I wonder if there's an element of "saving up" one's A-game for a bigger crowd.
Just curious, as I'm going to a show tonight and I'd hate to think I'm getting less for my money than if I went Saturday night. |
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Bish 3.5 kHz
Joined: 22 Nov 2009 Posts: 3738 Location: Lost in the cultural wasteland of Long Island
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 6:44 am Post subject: |
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For the last ten years we've been walking the boy through the start of an acting career, so my observations are a little vicarious rather than from personal stage experience. Although now concentrating on screen work, his stage career started in professional musical theater. One recurring theme was the quality of the audience having an effect on the quality of the performance. Live theater is a two-way street and a receptive/enthusiastic Wednesday half-house could enthuse the cast more than a full, but lackluster, Saturday night crowd.
The only time I ever heard any comment regarding raising a specific performance was when the buzz went around that there were agents or the like out there beyond the footlights _________________ Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls. |
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Bruce Boardmeister
Joined: 06 Jun 2005 Posts: 7927 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 7:29 am Post subject: |
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I don't think Deirdre has enough disc space on the site for me to give you my full answer, annotated with a few hundred personal experiences, but in short, yes, every audience, every night is different and so are the actors and their performances. I produced 40 plays in my own theater and I've been in about that many myself including one that ran for two whole years, and every one of those performances was different and it was usually hard to predict how the audience would react. It's a different chemistry every time. That's what makes the business so thrilling/challenging/heartening/frightening/soul fulfilling/horrible/delightful......well you get the idea.
If the play is well written, the director was insightful, and the actors are competent and comfortable in their roles, you're likely to have a very good time no matter what night. Go prepared to enjoy yourself.
I will say one thing audiences can do to enjoy a play more when there's a small audience, especially with a comedy, is to sit together in a group and not scattered about the theater. You'll all laugh a lot more when you have neighbors than when you're alone.
B _________________ VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005
I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. . |
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imaginator The Thirteenth Floor
Joined: 10 Nov 2004 Posts: 1348 Location: raleigh, nc
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 9:07 am Post subject: |
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it comes right down to how professional the actors and their director are.
a really "pro" group will give the same effort regardless. i've been in several productions where the pre-show pep talk reminded us that the people in the audience were probably there for the one/and/only performance they'd see, and they deserved the same effort we had given opening night. sometimes it took a little more adrenaline, but we'd do it.
there are always exceptions. i trust your experience won't be one of them. _________________ rowell gormon
www.voices2go.com
"Mr. Warm & Friendly Voice...with Character!"
Rowell Gormon's Clogged Blog - http://voices2go.com/blog |
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Deirdre Czarina Emeritus
Joined: 10 Nov 2004 Posts: 13016 Location: East Jesus, Maine
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 9:22 am Post subject: |
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The people in those seats are there to see the show, so we give them that show!
There will be times, as those above have said, where the audience does indeed become that other cast member,
and sometimes,
once in a splendid while,
you get to experience the real magic where the ensemble becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
That is one of THE most transcendent experiences on earth— it's the cocaine of theater.
There is no excuse for anything less than excellence on any night. You never know when the muse will visit. _________________ DBCooperVO.com |
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TQuinn Contributor
Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Posts: 45 Location: Washington, DC
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 9:49 am Post subject: Re: Question for the stage performers here |
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Hi Don-
I'm just wrapping up a repertory run of HENRY V and RICHARD II here in DC. You asked:
Don G. wrote: | When you're doing a play/musical/improv or whatever, does your effort or performance level change depending on the day of week or size of audience? |
I'll limit my response to professional theater, as your mileage may vary with community theaters. My short answer is that I always try to give my optimal performance. I can also say that none of my fellow actors intentionally pull back their performance, either. This even goes for the lead, who played both kings, who went on vocal rest between shows, the people who get stitches and MRIs and root canals between shows. So, the short answer is at the top of the show, nobody I know intentionally holds back. However, an actor may choose to do a move differently.
As to a "better" performance, as the theater is live, it is often difficult to tell at the start whether a performance will be "better" or "worse." It will always be "different" than an earlier or later show, and that is where the fun lies for the actor, and, I think, for the audience, too.
However, certain factors impact on the actors from show to show. Opening nights and donor nights are different than audio assisted or sign language interpretted or student shows. The prime difference is the audience's reaction. For instance, high school students laugh at different things than scholars laugh at. Some audiences are nervous and some are at ease. Some members want to be there and some don't want to be there.
So, when I go to the theater, and when ticket price and availability (and babysitters are not limiting factors), I would go twice. Once during preivews or early in the run and the second time on Tuesday, Friday, or Saturday nights later in the run, largely because that is when I think that that the more ardent theater patrons go. I think you'll see that reflected in ticket prices.
T |
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samowry Club 300
Joined: 11 Nov 2006 Posts: 371 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 11:29 am Post subject: |
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Good points. Say hello to my friend Louis Lotorto. He was out here in Portland an age ago. That double bill sounds like an amazing experience.
Nice website for you by the way.
Sam Mowry |
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TQuinn Contributor
Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Posts: 45 Location: Washington, DC
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 2:34 pm Post subject: |
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Sam-
I'm in scenes with Louis. What a wonderful actor and a phenomenally nice guy. Also, from Portland and Ashland you may know Dan Kremer, Larry Paulsen, Derrick Wheeden, and Robin Rodriguez, too. They all made the trip to DC for the shows.
Final push. 1 HENRY tonight, 2 HENRYs tomorrow, and a HENRY and a RICHARD on Saturday . . . then we close.
I'll post some of the production stills on my webpage after I wake up.
Thank you for taking a look at the page.
Tony |
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Don G. King's Row
Joined: 11 Nov 2004 Posts: 1071 Location: MA
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 5:33 pm Post subject: |
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Thank you all for your enlightening responses. As it happens, my schedule didn't allow me to go tonight. But the info pretty much aligns with what I expected.
My daughter (22) and I went to see RENT just a week ago at the somewhat local professional theater. I'll qualify any comments by saying that we saw it in Providence last year and she actually got to see it in Boston when Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal joined for the special tour, so she's been spoiled. That said, I have a great appreciation for anyone who can sing (and act) professionally, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a very talented company, and the theater itself is mall enough that there really isn't a bad seat in the house. We were in the fourth row smack in the middle, and while the sound mix could have been a little better, the performances were very good; enough so that I was planning on going again tonight, albeit alone.
To make things even better, they're doing the rush seating a half hour before the show, so I could have been enjoying it for a whopping $16! Good thing I still have 10,080 minutes to catch it before it wraps on the 18th. |
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JBarrett M&M
Joined: 19 Feb 2007 Posts: 2043 Location: Las Vegas, NV
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:12 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for all the comments that have been shared in this thread. I wish I had something to contribute besides echoes of previous comments. It's been about fifteen years since I was last on a stage, and I can't tell you how much I miss it. One of these days... _________________ Justin S. Barrett
http://www.justinsbarrett.com/ |
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Chrissy Guest
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 10:18 pm Post subject: |
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I always try and do my best no matter what night, size of audience, or who's out there. I ask that people don't tell me the size of the audience or who's out there. Once I start preparing for the performance I make that my total focus. I spend my time clearing out which means getting rid of all that has happened prior to coming to the theater, warming up, and getting in character.
You can equate it to doing a VO job. Are you going to put less into a $100 job than a $500 job? |
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Bruce Boardmeister
Joined: 06 Jun 2005 Posts: 7927 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 6:50 am Post subject: |
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Admittedly, if you're going to see a truly amateur production, you may have a better time if you lower your expectations a bit and then allow yourself to be blown away when the cast and crew exceed them. It's much like watching minor-minor league or little league baseball. Hey, they're really trying out there and lots of folks have a good time watching.
B _________________ VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005
I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. . |
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craigcrumpton Been Here Awhile
Joined: 17 Mar 2008 Posts: 240 Location: Atlanta, GA
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Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 6:56 am Post subject: Re: Question for the stage performers here |
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Coming in after the fact, but since I'm already typing...
Don G. wrote: | When you're doing a play/musical/improv or whatever, does your effort or performance level change depending on the day of week or size of audience? | For me personally, never. I love performing for a live audience. And it doesn't matter what size the crowd is. I've performed live shows for fewer than a dozen people (in a more intimate setting), and in a couple of rare instances for crowds as large as 10,000. If I have an audience, I give 100%. I figure if they wouldn't be there if they didn't want to be entertained, so to offer anything less than my best (no matter how I feel personally) simply isn't fair.
Quote: | If you have performances Thurs-Sun, is the Saturday evening performance to a full house likely to be any better than the Thursday evening performance to a not-quite-packed audience? I know it shouldn't necessarily be, but we are all human, and I wonder if there's an element of "saving up" one's A-game for a bigger crowd. | You guessed it correctly. It shouldn't be that way, but it is. While one or more performers in a show may be at a level professionally where they always give 100%, that might not be true of the entire cast. Shows with larger crowds do tend to get better performances from the cast. And sometimes it can also depend on the audience's response too -- a more lively audience tends to pull more energy from the performers. When the audience gives a great response, as a performer you feel compelled to give more. _________________ Publisher: Voice Actors in the News
Host: Viva VO Atlanta! (on VU and Facebook for VO peeps in the Southeast US) |
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