I'm generally a mild-mannered person and I have to act as an angry character. What should I do?

Question

I can only remember getting mad three times in at least the past four or five years, so being angry is not something I'm used to. I'm part of a drama team, and in one of our skits I have found out that my girlfriend has given me AIDS and has been stealing from me and I'm supposed to blow up, get angry, and leave her. How should I act, including voice inflections, attitudes, reactions, and body movement? And note, if you point game on my question I'm reporting it, because I actually need help, not spam.

Answer 1

Acting is a strange kind of play.... Some actors are able to put on a mask, but beneath there is no change in the person. Others change their inner emotion to form the appropriate mask for what they wish to express.

If you haven't already, figure out which kind of actor you are. If you can convincingly just wear the mask, go with that. If not, they you need to find the sincere emotion to help produce the mask you need.

As for the second option.... Find your own emotional response to the act of someone betraying you. (How would you FEEL if you found out someone you held close to your heart had betrayed you so badly?) Play out the scene in your mind not just as an intellectual abstraction, but as if you are really living it. Express the emotions you feel.

Answer 2

Oh my God, that *****! That would be my first reaction. Then I would get on the phone and bless her out. Even before I found I out she may not have known about the aids, the stealing, I would kick her to the moon, and tell her to get out. My nephew was in this predicament at one time. His mother was involved. She was quiet until the results came out as negative, then she just broke down. Everyone has a different reaction to news as the above. Just try to imagine your emotions, some people would accept it as fate, but having to be angry you will have to dig deep if you have not experienced a lot of anger. Your body movement should be limited because large movements means you are a very angry person all the time. Yours should be tears, loud words and expression of the face. Practice with your friends, over and over eventually you will find the acting you need..............Also really getting to know your character really knowing him will help you in how to respond to the situation. You will become a more dimensional actor if you actually react as the character you are playing. If you try to act as you would then you become a one dimensional actor, in other words all your acting will be the same, kind of like Kevin Costner, (boring) a more dimensional actor would be Robert Deniro. Now there is an angry actor, but also can be charming too. Depends on the role. Robert one of my favorites. No one defines you (personally) by your role, so that is the time to really let go of who you are. And be the character, be the character. LOL

Answer 3

Do you remember what made you angry in the last 4 yrs? You should try to imagine you are back in that situation, when something happened that really pushed you over the edge.
This will put you in the right mind set for the mood of the scene. Then throw in a bit of shouting, and a little bit of wobbly voice might do the trick.

Because it's shocking news you receive in the scene...think of what it feels like to get a big shock like that.
The room seems to close in on you, you feel slightly fainty, anxiety, cold sweats, you shake with rage, disorientation.... This should probably be acted out before you have to blow up at your co-star.

I'm not an actor so can't really help you more...Good Luck!

Answer 4

I don't do anger either, but I've provoked it a few times....

This is what I see:

1) No humor, no smile, no open, no warm.... the more closed you can make yourself seem, the more real it will look. Icy blank stare, with absolutely no empathy.

2) Keep your body rigid, like you are in fight stance. Fling things if you have them. Don't be loose or relaxed. Be tensed and keep as much breath "in" as you comfortably can. I don't know why, but pissed people seem to puff up.

3) Speak at least two levels louder than normal. Say mean and untrue things loudly and if you are going to use inflection, exaggerate your pointed comments with a fist hitting a table or counter top.

4) Pace. Every space in your space is yours. If you accidentally walk into an inanimate object, knock it over. If you accidentally walk into your co-star, make no apologies (a harsh look suffices)

5) As your anger escalates and you feel the timing is good, flip things in the direction of (BUT NOT AT) your co-star (it's good to aim at a table nearby but not too close because your aim could be off).

6) Before storming out, remember the icy, no warmth part. Any softness will be interpreted as empathy. So walk very heavy footed and deliberately.

Hope it helps!

Good luck!

Answer 5

It's been awhile since I last listened to the Howard Stern show, but I picked up on something that might help you.

Robin Quivers answered that question this way: She said that she gets into character by imagining a tiny person standing in her palm. In her case, she imagined a little Indian.

As I understood it, she pretends that she is interacting with the tiny imaginary person.

Maybe you can follow the link below and contact her about this.

I think you can pull this off! Good luck, and enjoy acting. After all, it is play, and playing is fun.

Answer 6

OK, I am part of a Drama team too. What you can do is either think about those three times you get mad, or actually "become" your character. In acting, you can't really "become" an actor, but instead think of how your character reacts to the others.
For example, think of how your character is hurt and betrayed. Act like you are in his place. I hope that helps!!

Answer 7

That's a good one. How would one go about acting angry without having that smirk come over your face eventually? I suppose your going to have to wear a "mask" and pretend your somebody else for the gig. Imaginatively project yourself into another life. Kudos to you for having this kind of problem. :)

Answer 8

welcome to the world of acting, hehe i have been in community theater since i was a teenager, what i do is remember the emotions from my past and use them on stage, and as silly as it sounds i spend time looking in the mirror and practice, i learned this from a family friend who did movies, where this doesn't translate to the stage very well it did teach me to over emote. practice practice practice and if u see it in the mirror so will the audience.