By Scarlett Pinder
Over this term, I have learned and studied many new techniques, methods and exercises to help me analyse classical and contemporary plays, monologues and songs from a new perspective. Learning these new techniques with our lecturer Claire Eden have been very beneficial to me and my study and has allowed me to explore scripts and plays from a new perspective.
Sight Reading
One of the first techniques we learned about in actor and text was the importance of sight reading. During this class, we got into groups and were given scenes from a play. I realised that I struggled quite a bit with sight reading specifically with reading the larger paragraphs with trickier wording out loud. I think that working on this, is a skill that’s necessary for an actor, it’s important for the first rehearsal of a play where actors typically read through the script together and get familiar with their material. “Learning to sight read skillfully frees you, gives you confidence, and allows you to trust your intuition.” Comey, J. (2020). This quote exaggerates the importance of sight reading as it allows an actor to have the freedom of how they interpret a speech, scene or monologue. the noun “Intuition” is significant to me, it exaggerates that having intuition is such an important aspect of being an intelligent actor.
To improve, I practiced sight-reading every day for a week and tracked my progress. I noticed that reading aloud gradually became easier and more fluid over time. By the second read, I found myself speaking with more emotion which helped make the text feel more engaging, expressive and interesting and gave my characters meaning.
During R&D week, I took on the challenge of volunteering to sight-read for the character Paula in our first rehearsal. Despite finding it quite hard, I was able to deliver most of the lines with emotion and confidence, and I feel really proud of myself for being able to do it. “The more you speak the text aloud and let it take you on a journey rather than imposing on it, the better.” (p242) Houseman, B. (2002). Finding your voice : a complete voice training manual for actors. London: Nick Hern Books. This signifies how conveying the meaning and emotions within the text helps make sight reading feel more engaging and overall more effective
Romeo and Juliet
Within actor and text, we studied Romeo and Juliet where we focused on the physicality of a character and examined how an actor’s presence and movement vary depending on the time period and their social status. In our class, there was an exercise where we moved about in the space and Claire read out multiple characters from Romeo and Juliet and we had to change our physicality and presence depending on who that character was. It was interesting to me how my physicality shifted when portraying Tybalt where my movements were precise and sharp to reflect his fiery temper. In contrast, I noticed my movements were graceful and sophisticated with a good posture to reflect the corsets women wore during this period. “Physical actions are the necessary balance for verbal actions” Uta Hagen (2008) this exaggerates the importance of physicality and how effective communication isn’t just delivered through speech. actions and the way a character presents themself adds so much depth and authenticity to a character.
During our R&D week, this lesson became practical in the ‘Sadomasochism for Accountants’ group, where I performed in a ‘speed dating’ scene. I portrayed two contrasting characters in the same scene, and I had to quickly change character while staying seated which required rapid character shifts.
Character 1 – obnoxious, loud, arrogant
Character 2 – mean, judgmental, spiteful
Reflecting the exploration of posture and physicality as a reflection on personality, I embodied character 1 by slouching with my legs spread out and shoulders back with a bold expression. For character 2, I sat up right with my arms folded, legs crossed and a disgusted look on my face. “When executed masterfully, it can elevate a performance, adding layers of depth, intrigue, and meaning.” Sellars, T. (2023). It’s clear to me that when this is done correctly, it can add so much depth and elevates a performance. there’s a clear contrast between character which can allow the audience to view things from different perspectives which is really intriguing to me as an actor.
This significantly reshaped my characters presentation. By employing physicality and making bold choices (which I often struggle with), the characters became more distinct to me and the audience, clarifying their thought processes.
Context behind the scene
While studying Romeo and Juliet with Claire in actor and text, we explored the different ways we as actors can understand the text, specifically a Shakespeare text which requires a lot more thought and understanding due to the complex language.
In class, we got into a group of three where I was put with Liv and Jess to explore Act 1 Scene 5, Romeo and Juliets duologue. We all explored ways we could understand this text to make the performance feel true to ourselves.
To begin, we started by researching the context of the piece as well as writing down the translation to the dialogue so I could understand it, this was very beneficial as it was clear to me how everything should be expressed and the mood of the scene. When me and Liv performed this scene however, I noticed that everything was delivered in a small way. We staged it shoulder to shoulder and walking around each other as we spoke, this was impactful for a short time however we didn’t have enough time to stage it properly. I’ve learned that we spent too much time writing and discussing and trying to discover metaphors and hidden meanings so much so that we didn’t have enough time to properly get it on our feet. I think its important for me to learn from this when it comes to scene work in the future, I need to focus on spending more time moving rather than talking.
Through this process, Jess acted as our director. However I found that I was coming up with some ideas and presenting them to her which I found really exciting as I often struggle with bringing my ideas to the table. I felt really proud that I was able to express my thoughts even if it was a small group of three. My ideas were for Romeo to touch Juliets hands and for her to touch his during certain lines to develop their chemistry and connection as well as clearly showing the love they have for each other. To help me progress in the future, I will try sharing my ideas with groups over time to develop my confidence with sharing ideas with bigger groups so that I can potentially perform as a director for one of the group projects. “Techniques such as brainstorming, mind mapping, and digital collaboration tools are invaluable assets that can significantly enhance the flow of ideas within a team” Join The Collective. (2025). I think that this could be a brilliant technique for me that will allow me to share my thoughts and ideas with ease and confidence as it won’t make me feel pressured. techniques like “mind mapping” will also allow others to easily add some of their ideas and allow us to work well as a group.
Me and My Girl
During week 5, we looked at an extract from the play Me and My Girl, where we got into groups to perform a scene. I was unfortunately ill during the lesson when people got into groups, so I last minute joined Bo, Nathan, Lucy, and Jaina’s group where I performed as a character buying a drink from the bar. My character had no lines and was there mostly just to react to the large rifle that Bo was carrying. I found playing an ensemble character with no lines very exciting as I was able to create a whole new character with their own thoughts and opinions. Creating a character was very exciting for me as i could experiment with my characters physicality and the way she spoke.
I eventually decided on a character that was exaggerated and boisterous to reflect the action of what was going on between Bo and Jaina. As Nathans character was presented in a more uncomfortable and awkward sort of way, I thought that the dynamics between each character was presented in a really interesting way and from watching the video back I really liked the distinct characteristics which made each character different from each other. I also really liked how I reacted. In the past, I’ve often struggled to perform in a way that was big and exaggerated as I’ve had more experience with small screen acting as the camera picks up small things that cant be seen on a stage. I found that with this exercise, I was really proud with my ability to be able to completely let go and make bold choices with my acting. In the future, I will recall on how I performed with this scene and use it to make big acting choices
I think if we had more time I would have liked to experiment even more with character choices. I would have really liked to have pushed myself and created a character far out of my comfort zone, for example a character who is full of themselves and thinks they’re better than everyone else. I struggle with this sort of characteristic as I often struggle playing a character that people tend to dislike. “Take the time to explore your character’s backstory and their journey throughout the story. “Take the time to explore your character’s backstory and their journey throughout the story. This will help you make choices that are consistent with their development.” Choiceinsiders.com. (2021). This really underscored the importance of thorough character analysis when performing. it exaggerates how consistent choices that aligns with the characters development ensures the portrayal remains believable and true to the narrative. creating depth and delving into a characters history is crucial in my opinion. I think it’s impossible to deliver a truthful performance with no backstory as there would be no purpose to why the character is there in the first place. to help me move forward for the future, I will take inspiration from this site and use the techniques, “What are their values, beliefs, and motivations? What do they want to achieve?” Choiceinsiders.com. (2021). to help me create an accurate backstory and determine if its easier for me to create meaningful characters with a clear thought process.
Romeo and Juliet
while studying Romeo and Juliet, we studied how we would go around acting Juliet’s monologue Act 3 scene 2. i really enjoyed this task as i really enjoy researching and understanding context behind actions and why a character would behave a certain way. with this task, i also decided to look into and annotate the scene Juliet shows up in before this scene with Romeo occurs. i did this so i could really understand her urgency and how strong her love is for Romeo. “In a play, the whole stream of individual, minor objectives, all the imaginative thoughts, feelings and actions of an actor, should converge to carry out the super objective of a plot.” Konstantin Stanislavski (1936) this exaggerates how an actors work must be purposeful and have meaning, and the research into a character and the context behind actions builds their character and every choice contributes to the narrative and their goals.
Bibliography
Houseman, B. (2002). Finding your voice : a complete voice training manual for actors. London: Nick Hern Books.
Konstantin Stanislavski (1936). An Actor Prepares. [online] Read Books Ltd. Available at: https://www.craftfilmschool.com/userfiles/files/An%20Actor%20Prepares.pdf.
Uta Hagen (2008). Respect for Acting. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons.
Comey, J. (2020). Importance Of Sight Reading In Acting – The StageyActor. [online] The StageyActor. Available at: https://thestageyactor.com/importance-of-sight-reading-in-acting/ [Accessed 4 Jan. 2026].
Sellars, T. (2023). Dramatic Conventions: The Power of Multiple Roles. [online] Theatre Haus. Available at: https://theatrehaus.com/2023/02/dramatic-conventions-the-power-of-multiple-roles/.
Join The Collective. (2025). Innovative Idea Sharing Techniques for Aspiring Leaders. [online] Available at: https://www.jointhecollective.com/article/innovative-idea-sharing-techniques-for-aspiring-leaders/ [Accessed 3 Sep. 2025].
