Don’t Perform the Emotion — Play the Thought

One of the most common notes we give in LAMDA lessons is: don’t try to show us how the character feels.

It sounds strange. After all, acting is about emotion, isn’t it?

Yes — but convincing emotion usually comes from understanding what the character is thinking, rather than deciding what facial expression or tone of voice will demonstrate that they are angry, frightened, delighted or upset.

Follow the thought

Every good piece has a journey of thought. A character might begin confidently, suddenly remember something, become uncertain, make a new discovery and finally reach a decision.

Those changes are where the interesting acting happens.

Before performing a section of your piece, ask yourself:

• What am I thinking here?

• Who am I speaking to?

• What do I want them to understand or do?

• What changes my thought?

• What is different by the end of the piece?

If the thought changes, your voice, pace, expression and physicality will often change naturally with it.

Look for the turning points

Take a pencil and go through your script looking for moments where something shifts.

Perhaps your character suddenly realises they have made a mistake. Perhaps they remember something important. Perhaps the person they are speaking to isn't reacting as expected. Perhaps they decide to try a completely different tactic.

Mark these moments. They are your turning points.

A performance in which every sentence is delivered with the same emotion can quickly become one-note. A performance in which we can actually see the character thinking feels spontaneous — even when the actor has rehearsed it dozens of times.

Don't decide what your face should do

This is particularly important with facial expression.

Rather than thinking, “I need to look shocked here,” concentrate completely on the thought that shocks your character. Instead of thinking, “I need to look sad,” concentrate on what your character has just realised or remembered.

Your expression then becomes a reaction, rather than something pasted onto the performance.

The same applies to vocal modulation. Don't add a pause simply because you think a dramatic pause would sound impressive. Pause because your character needs a moment to think.

Make the words matter

Ultimately, strong acting isn't about showing an examiner how many performance techniques you know. Those techniques — pace, pause, pitch, emphasis, facial expression, gesture and movement — are tools.

The thought comes first.

So next time you rehearse your LAMDA piece, try performing it once without worrying about being dramatic at all. Simply concentrate on thinking every thought and meaning every word.

You may be surprised by how much more interesting your performance becomes.

Director's Note: Don't show us the emotion. Let us see the thought that creates it.