I have always wanted to be an actress but i don't do anything about it.?

Question

I look at people on the TV and look at thier expressions and copy them, and the phrases. But when it comes to doing something i can never be bothered (or) i spend ages on the net looking for clubs and theatres but because where i live is a small town there is nothing there. Please help me be totally focused on this task or give me a website and i get so worked up about this and do nothing to make it work. I talk about it all the time to my mates about wanting to do it but theres nothing there. Please help.

Answer 1

Hi Sarah,
I'm a young director living in Cambridge, England, and I have to commute to London nearly every day even though I'm not earning anything, costing me roughly £20 on travel per day alone. And I'm not be any means the only person sacrificing this much to do something I love doing as a career. That's how tough it is.
If you don't go out there and get yourself heard and seen, no matter how small your town is, then you'll never get anywhere, nor can you expect someone to come along and give you inspiration. If you need external output all the time to keep you enthused then it's probably the wrong profession for you, and you might be better off being an extra in films and TV shows in your spare time (there are agencies who deal specifically in casting extras - www.filmtvextra.com for one - just type 'film extra' into google and you'll find loads).
However, if you're genuinely committed to making it as an actress then either go to a local city and join one of their amdram groups, or approach your teachers (are you still at college?) about starting an extra-curricular drama club, or simply advertise on local websites and see if anyone else in your town might be interested in starting up a theatre group. Then you'll be around other like-minded people who will be able to support and help each other, give advice etc.
When you're in a group, just get involved in as much as possible. Likewise, if there are any professional theatres in your area, ask if you can help out in any way during your time off - that'll get your face seen, you'll meet professional people etc, and when an actress drops out last minute they'll be more likely to go - 'hm, we could always ask that friendly, helpful girl who wants to be an actress to stand in'. People in theatre are normally uber-friendly, sometimes because their genuinely nice people, and sometimes because part of them is always wondering if you're going to be the next Julia Roberts, and they think that if they're nice to you now, you might remember them when you're getting your oscar!
So go out there, get yourself known, use your initiative. It's not easy, and you'll need tonnes of perseverance, but it's a lot of fun.

Answer 2

Is there a city near by? Often they have amateur theater clubs which put on plays 2 or 3 times a year. They meet and rehearse for 6 or 8 weeks and then put on the play and the neighbours come and pay for the tickets and enough money is made for the next show

They would love to have a person who is interested come and make tea and be useful while you get some information first hand about acting and play production.

it is a fascinating skill.

Answer 3

Hey Sarah,

Sounds like you should do a lot of reading. Local acting is a good idea, mentioned above. Here are some web sites that have a lot of information. The Screen Actors Guild would be worth joining after you get some validation that you will be able to be gainfully employed.

The HBO show below is cool too.

Answer 4

Regardless how small your 'town' or 'village': get off your ****...

If IT doesn't exist, create it. Theatre is exactly that. Do some readings. Get one more than yourself to 'bounce' off you.

Do you know about the 'anti-Christ'? Well, his name is Stanislavsky. He created the METHOD... and annoyed the crap out of (at the time) contemporary European playwrights.

Before the 'kitchen-sink' and newly-created English plays of the '60s, the notion 'realism', at least in Europe, was suspect at best.

"Angry Young Men" as a coterie, elite, if you will, did not work.

Along came Pinter.

Paul

Answer 5

Well, most people in the entertainment buisness say that you're going to have to go to New York or Hollywood.

Firstly, you're going to have to go to an acting school. Just because you're talented does not mean that you will be an actress. Even if you do get the proper training, there is a slim chance of becoming famous. However, it is nearly impossible if you don't get training.

You're also going to need an agent. In this buisness, you can't do it on your own!

Get to know other people like you, they can help! Check out nextcat.com, where you can meet others in the entertainment world.

Answer 6

Have you ever seen a play in your area? Often, local theatres and theatre societies hold regular auditions for citzens of their twons. You can also look in surrounding towns for theatres and groups. For example, if you lived in MA, you could look on the website: www.jacneed.com/auditions. (The MA entertainment digest.)

Answer 7

The successful ones start with acting school. You build connections from there. Nobody's going to hand it to you.