Can I ask - how well/exactly do you think our DCs need to learn lines for auditions?
My reason for asking is I'm having a bit of a tussle with my DS as he learns a couple of scenes for an audition on Saturday.
He always remembers his lines fairly well and TBH finds learning lines much easier than I would BUT...
He says it doesn't matter if he's not EXACT - for example, the line might read 'Maybe it's Rudolph' and he might say 'It might be Rudolph'. Not changing the meaning, just using the words that come naturally to him. I've been ecouraging him to be more exact. He does realise about giving cues etc so is always careful with the ends of lines. BTW he has no formal acting training but has had a few roles on telly & stage.
I am by no means an expert,but I would tend to agree with your ds.Whenever we get a bit of script from the agent,it is nearly always accompanied by a brief of no direction from parents.Casting directors want to see what the child can bring to the role themselves,and want them to be very natural,so replacing the odd word that he prefers to use without losing the meaning is to be encouraged I think.
I think if you get bogged down with being too exact you can lose that naturalness and could be in danger of sounding too rehearsed or mechanical.
If they think he is right for the part,I'm sure that will come through in his own delivery and character.
Best of luck x
My DD has a very good memory, she tends to read lines once and has them remembered right away but not always the exact line (sometimes not in the exact order either lol). When she was getting ready for her stage schools big play her teacher reminded her that it was more important for the show to go on then to get the exact line or the exact order as long as they had the gist of it, i.e don't just stand there speechless trying to remember what your line is or say "uhm...er...uhm..." and there were a few kids including my DD who didn't get the line exactly right or missed a bit but you couldn't tell because they just kept going or said something similar (I only noticed because I went over and over the lines with her and knew them off by heart by showtime).
My dd also seems to read the lines once and known them - and all the other character's lines too. However I get them wrong over and over again - even when I have the script in front of me and reading them. This week she had to do a self tape audition for a feature film where dd had to react to things the other character said - I was rubbish, my voice sounded terrible and I was very wooden, yet dd still managed to get all her lines and reactions spot on! She was very patient with me (only told me off twice and only laughed uncontrollably at me once).
My admiration for her and all the other dcs on this site has increased 100 fold since my dabble with 'acting'.
I think it is better to be exact, but not essential for an audition. Sometimes it takes a lot of work as an actor to make a writer's words seem natural for the character. Sometimes that's the writer's failing - but more usually (if the work is of decent calibre) it's just that the actor hasn't had the rehearsal time to find a way to make the words his/her own. That's one of the reasons I don't think it will matter so much in an audition - getting the essence of the character and situation is more important. Also, new scripts/screenplays are sometimes slightly changed for the chosen actor - and are sometimes changed quite radically once on the shoot or in the rehearsal room for all sorts of reasons.
It does matter if it's verse - but then it's usually easier to get verse right than wrong.
There is also the context of the material and the audition to take into account.
Some playwrights are renowned for the beauty, precision, integrity (insert pretentious word of your choosing...) of their words. So the CD would be looking for an actor who can do justice to that. Most Shakespeare is expected to be delivered as he wrote it, I don't suppose the purists approve of actors fiddling about with the language of Oscar Wilde, similar for others.
Then there is stuff that's developmental and will be evolving through rehearsal and workshopping, so the CD may be looking for actors who can participate in script development.
So a bit of homework might help to decode their expectations.
However, they are kids, so the ability to 'do natural' might reduce if they start to over-think it. It's a balance....
I think it's important for DS to learn the lines as far as possible.
He learns them and says them how he feels they should be said - no coaching or prompting from me or anyone else, that leaves him free to move about and express himself but also leaves him able to take direction.
It's stood him in good stead so far...I think it looks far better than going in clutching your script and having your nose down towards the paper all the time. It leaves him free to make eye contact if that's needed.
But he is definately one who seems to get a few words wrong and then gets them stuck in his head
"Tall and proud my mother taught me, this is how we dance" - RIVERDANCE
If is the odd word I really wouldn't worry, let him go in and do his thing, confortable & relaxed. Yes it's great if they are exact and remember it word for word but if they like his look/voice etc.. I shouldn't think they will make a decision based on the odd word. If he naturally says it his way I'd say leave him because if he is struggling he might go in and have a mind blank at he word he is 'supposed' to use and panic. Although in saying that I have known children to completely forget their lines, think they've stuffed it all up and still get a recall. Who knows how the CD's minds work!
Learning lines is a skill being tested at audition. deviating from the supplied script is dangerous because you have no idea if the panel expect it to be accurate. Maybe it was chosen for that exact reason?
Unless a Director is comfortable with actors changing the text, it's extremely annoying to have an actor who delivers the gist, and is unreliable. Cue lines are not just the ends of sentences! You have no idea if everyone has a different cue word they are listening for. DSMs HATE actors who deviate from the script, so if people cannot learn the lines for the audition, then it doesn't look good! I even sat on one audition panel with the author - and every time people mangled his words, he just drew a small red line on the name list, and they were scuppered.
paulears wrote:Learning lines is a skill being tested at audition. deviating from the supplied script is dangerous because you have no idea if the panel expect it to be accurate. Maybe it was chosen for that exact reason?
Unless a Director is comfortable with actors changing the text, it's extremely annoying to have an actor who delivers the gist, and is unreliable. Cue lines are not just the ends of sentences! You have no idea if everyone has a different cue word they are listening for. DSMs HATE actors who deviate from the script, so if people cannot learn the lines for the audition, then it doesn't look good! I even sat on one audition panel with the author - and every time people mangled his words, he just drew a small red line on the name list, and they were scuppered.
That's good to know - I can nag him even more now to get it right!!
"Tall and proud my mother taught me, this is how we dance" - RIVERDANCE
I think it's better the more off book you can be. If your asked to do something in different ways its hard to be flexible if your struggling with lines. Some CDs are more facilitating than others. Although sometimes they want it to be looser. Good luck!
him to be more exact. He does realise about giving cues etc so is always careful with the ends of lines. BTW he has no formal acting training but has had a few roles on telly & stage.
