Memorization
May I say something when it comes to memorization:
Years and years ago I could memorize in the blink of an eye. I took pride in my ability to memorize lines, facts and things quickly and accurately. As my acting career continued, I was a singer first. I memorized songs rather than scenes. I auditioned for musicals rather than plays (in fact I've still never done one straight play in my lifetime). Slowly, and without me even realizing it those skills of memorization faded away. When I had to memorize a short line in a musical or a scene for a competition ,I had a very difficult time. It took me weeks, sometime months, ahead of time to get familiar with and memorize material before I had them solidly down. Although this could fly in my high school career where all I auditioned for and took as a class was Musical Theater, it could not in college. I had now chosen a major where I really had to be an actor first (as my drama teacher always said). Being an actor first meant that I had to be good and even better at acting than singing. I had always been a singer and I was unsure and afraid of how to do this. One big part of being an actor is memorization. Coming into my Acting 1 class I knew I would have to memorize, but I didn't know how much. At this point, we are on our third monologues and are beginning to work on a scene. The first monologue was very difficult for me to memorize. I drilled it over and over again. It wasn't until the actual presentation of it that I realized I was memorized. As I've continued through the other monologues, I have noted how much more at ease I've felt at prepping and performing them, not only because of the comfortableness I've gained with my peers and teacher, but also because the memorization was getting easier! The more and more you have to memorize, the easier it becomes. Memorization is a muscle memory and being forced to work it hard in my Acting 1 class has improved that skill, as well as confidence in my acting ability and in myself. If you are ever in a place where you feel that you are hopelessly trying to memorize something that does not seem to be sticking, do not give up! In fact, once you've got that project down, go work on another one. Memorize something else! It gets easier with practice and time. It is what I've learned through difficult experience, and you can too.
Years and years ago I could memorize in the blink of an eye. I took pride in my ability to memorize lines, facts and things quickly and accurately. As my acting career continued, I was a singer first. I memorized songs rather than scenes. I auditioned for musicals rather than plays (in fact I've still never done one straight play in my lifetime). Slowly, and without me even realizing it those skills of memorization faded away. When I had to memorize a short line in a musical or a scene for a competition ,I had a very difficult time. It took me weeks, sometime months, ahead of time to get familiar with and memorize material before I had them solidly down. Although this could fly in my high school career where all I auditioned for and took as a class was Musical Theater, it could not in college. I had now chosen a major where I really had to be an actor first (as my drama teacher always said). Being an actor first meant that I had to be good and even better at acting than singing. I had always been a singer and I was unsure and afraid of how to do this. One big part of being an actor is memorization. Coming into my Acting 1 class I knew I would have to memorize, but I didn't know how much. At this point, we are on our third monologues and are beginning to work on a scene. The first monologue was very difficult for me to memorize. I drilled it over and over again. It wasn't until the actual presentation of it that I realized I was memorized. As I've continued through the other monologues, I have noted how much more at ease I've felt at prepping and performing them, not only because of the comfortableness I've gained with my peers and teacher, but also because the memorization was getting easier! The more and more you have to memorize, the easier it becomes. Memorization is a muscle memory and being forced to work it hard in my Acting 1 class has improved that skill, as well as confidence in my acting ability and in myself. If you are ever in a place where you feel that you are hopelessly trying to memorize something that does not seem to be sticking, do not give up! In fact, once you've got that project down, go work on another one. Memorize something else! It gets easier with practice and time. It is what I've learned through difficult experience, and you can too.
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