Speaking of podcasts, this one came to KC Stage from Angie Fiedler and I think it's really useful! AG

There will be a series of podcasts on NYTheatre.com based on conversations with directors. The first one is about auditioning; it was hosted by Martin Denton.

http://www.nyte.org/pcast/nythpod188.mp3

Studio Manager Jeff Fellin suggested a long time ago that we should record podcasts on what we do at the Actor Training Studio. And we've finally done one. We talk about that ATS staple, the Open Scene on this first one. We'd be happy to entertain suggestions for other topics -- personally I'd like those to be craft related rather than career related, but would listen to anything.

Jeff's been good enough to place the podcast on his site. Here's the link:

Books referenced in this podcast are: Bill Howey's The Actor's Menu, available at www.actorsmenu.com or at Amazon;

We had a really stimulating discussion in last Saturday's Process class. I was working with a new actor (in class for a little over a month) that was facing an issue we all face at some point -- indicating, forcing, embellishing.

I had asked her, in the next repetition of the scene, to "do nothing." She sat in one place and just spoke the words to her partner. What she then proceeded to do was not "nothing" -- this particular actor has a really live instrument; what she's feeling really comes through. Rather, her work was much more focused, with her intentions much more directed at her partner than before. The class agreed that what they saw was much clearer and more compelling than the repetition earlier.

Alrighty then! We had 12 actors on Saturday and 12 on Sunday that attended the ATS Audition Workshop and I think things went just fabulously. I talked my friend and creative partner Anna Hadzi of Denver into coming in to coach this with me and Anna did her usual -- charmed and inspired everyone while passing along her wealth of knowledge and experience in such a practical way.

And the actors came in wonderfully prepared, yet still able to jump through the many hoops Anna and I tossed in front of them. We saw some really touching work this weekend -- both funny and poignant stuff.

On Saturday, the actors came prepared to audition for one of three plays -- Angels in America, The Odd Couple (either male or female version) or Chekhov's The Seagull. We had a really solid representation for all three, too. They signed in, filled out an audition form and then came in one at a time to audition. Anna and I gave each of them a few adjustments and had them work those in immediately, all the while recording the process (using the new DVD recorder at the studio -- boy did that make it simple). Then everyone came in to watch the playback for everyone and we also taped the person receiving the feedback. During that, we fielded feedback and questions from the group, then we assigned callback scenes from the plays and ran those, while recording once again. We finished late, but everyone worked hard and got ample time on their feet.

I've thought enough of this book to bulk-order it for ATS actors. So far the reviews from them have all been quite positive. I love Bill's clear thinking and articulation of the actor's process. He deals with emotion very directly and breaks down an actor's choices really succinctly. Great Stuff. You can order this book directly from Bill and Carla Howey at the Actor's Menu website. Reviews are starting to come in, from Backstage West and actor Jeffrey Tambor, among others.

A lot of the time, when you're making decisions about a scene, you can be bothered, slowed down, thwarted even, by trying to make the "right" choice. We talk a lot in the studio about there being "no right or wrong," but we then go on to work on making our choices about relationship, circumstances and especially objective the most exciting and active we can. So in effect, we're still trying to make "the right choice."

So -- how to start? Make a choice, any choice and develop it. Do this in class and when working on your own -- land on something and then work it through. It'll change, mutate, grow, evolve and if you stick with it, you'll find yourself with a setup that excites you, intentionally, emotionally and physically -- and when you're working from that sort of place, you'll be compelling to watch -- and that's the final test.