ThE eNd

Time flies when you’re having fun. This term has indeed flown, but not so fast that I haven’t been able to catch on and enjoy the ride. This last week was filled with assessments: for Voice, Camera, Dance, and two for Movement. I rather enjoyed these and the sense of completion that they gave.

In our last class before the holidays we watched the short films from our Mike Leigh Project. Some of it was seriously impressive (and entertaining) but a lot of it, and most of my part, was seriously disappointing. In my attempts to be ‘real’ my character had diminished in purpose and importance so that on screen my performance was somewhat uninteresting. However, I learned a lot from the experience of creating a character in this particular way and, after all, the focus of this project was on the process, not the product.

I’m apparently youthful enough to qualify as a high school pupil. My course leader chose me and some others in the class to be involved in an extra project where we were the cast for a mock horror trailer set in a high school. Unpaid, a favour perhaps, but even so this was a fun few hours and I got to try out a London accent, and squirt on some fake blood and pretend I was dying which is always a laugh. Afterwards we discovered that the trailer may be shown at some prestigious places, to some rather important people, which was a good reminder that it’s important to always give 100% whatever the work.

Also this week we showcased the scenes we’ve been working on in our extra theatre classes throughout the term. I pranced around as Henry Higgins in my period dressing gown and slicked hair, with my RP accent, and it was really “quite a pleasure”. ‘Pygmalion’ by George Bernard Shaw is wonderfully written, sumptuous theatre and I love period roles. I hope I will get to do more of that in the future.

I left my end-of-term tutorial with mingled joy and despair. Apparently I started the term quite shy and have become much more brave and confident, which is positive. It’s also hardly surprising since this term has been my first experience of any kind of actor training, and of living in London. I think I can forgive myself for being a bit tentative to begin with. The main thrust of the criticism from my tutors was that I need to start stretching myself and not being afraid to go to the extremes in characters. This is fair enough, and I agree, but it touches on an important issue that I discussed with some of my classmates in some depth. How extreme can, or should, I actually go? Is it possible to be an unlimited, unrestricted actor and also a moral person? Does an actor need to separate their professional life and personal life, and pretend that what they do in their professional life isn’t really them? As a Christian, how can I be the best actor I can be without compromising my faith? I know this is an issue I will continue to face throughout my life. My conclusion was to accept that at any given time I am faced with two clear options, which are often in tension: to do what the world wants or to do what God wants. I am determined to always try to do the latter. Often this will seem strange or foolish to others (my tutors and classmates especially); the world will not understand, maybe sometimes even I won’t fully understand, but the truth is this: in Christ I am “a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17) and therefore to do anything else would be against my very nature.

I’ve learnt so much, I’ve grown, and I’m thoroughly enjoying this course but I am looking forward to being on home soil, celebrating Christmas and New Year with family and old friends and having a good break to recover, and absorb. I finished the week with a Christmas house party and the next morning I was on the train speeding back up to Scotland!

“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8