Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/17 12:45I just thought of another, but the thing is; I can't change it. I have a rather nasal-sounding voice. At the beggining of this year, my chorus teacher would always criticize me about it, and I would tell her I couldn't control it. She made me do all of these things and finally she was like, "Wow, you DO have a naturally nasal voice". And I was like "Yea, so does Kristin Chenoweth,and she ended up just fine.". My voice teacher told me my voice just resonates in my cheeks, but whatever; I embrace it. [:Jessica
Currently: Alice in Wonderland Jr. - Understudy for all characters
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acc929
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/17 20:05Acting: I have this tendency to always look at the person when I'm delivering a line, which I know actually isn't that wierd because that's what you do in real life, but it's become a habit where I'll even look upstage, which I know is bad. Also, if i'm not 100% focused, I snap my fingers and tap my toes when someone else is doing their thing (though not loudly, because I can't really snap). I'm just kind of fidgety.
Singing: I guess that bad technique and bad habits in singing are kind of the same. I have a tendency to take shallow breaths instead of deep ones and sometimes I don't open my mouth enough when I sing, which is bad for my projection.
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I once read this interview with an actress (don't remember who it was), but she said that the director asked her to not move her eyebrows at all. I think that would be so hard! After I read that, I tried to do a scene without moving my eyebrows and it was impossible! I can't imagine getting really into a scene and then the director going "That was great... but you moved your eyebrows."
Wouldn't that be a terrible note to get after a performance? Haha! Your eyebrows are a big part of conveying whatever text your singing, actually their pretty essential I think.
Name: Bruce Current Production: None. Upcoming Auditions:
The Butler Did It Singing (Chandler)
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vivian123
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/18 16:37haha. this is a fun thread to read. i don't know too much of my "quirks" just yet since i haven't performed enough to know what my habits are. i do know that i do tap my feet to the tempo of the music and rock back and forth often to the tempo. it's probably since i've played piano since i was in preschool and i've always used my head to bob the the tempo as a make-shift metronome for myself(i hate using metronomes if i'm not playing a scale). and i do tend to place my hands over my stomach if i don't know what to do acting-wise.
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bassetluver589
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/18 17:28Whenever I am acting and I'm not doing anything with my hands, I start to pick at the loose skin near my cuticles on one hand or put the first little crease on my index finger under my thumbnail (that probably sounds weird, but hopefully you get the point). I try to get myself to stop, but then I just start doing it again! I also like to pick at the edges on my costume that are at hand level. I keep kicking myself when I become aware of it, but then I don't stop!
Peace! Sarah
- Currently in rehearsals for Treasure Island, my first professional production, as the pirate Anne Bonny.
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Does anyone else have a problem with swaying to music? (I have a scene where I'm not supposed to react to the music at all, just pretend to talk to the lady beside me.) ITS "ONE MORE ANGEL IN HEAVEN"!!! THE SONG JUST WANTS TO BE SWAYED TO!!!
yeah... can you tell I JUST got critiqued for this one?Lissa
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palewithyellowhair
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 16:25Sometimes when I'm acting,my speaking voice gets higher and twang-y,it's really odd. I also clench my jaw when i'm not speaking.Only sometimesUpcoming Things-Youth Sing Praise 2008,Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Theatre Program, Current Role-Ado Annie & Galinda In AAW Variety Show Favorite Roles-Scout(To Kill a Mockingbird)Dinah(High Society)Mary MacGregor(The Prime) and Lottie(Little Princess) Auditions-None Dream Roles-Johanna(Sweeney Todd)Galinda(Wicked)Maureen(RENT)Cosette(Les Mis)
Fave Quote-"And are you Beautiful & Pale,with yellow hair,like her,I'd want you beautiful & pale the way i dreamed you were...
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xtragically_beautifulx
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 20:08Acting: I sometimes look to stiff when I'm nervous sometimes. I always show my emotion on my face. I get stiff especially when my character is sad. Also when I cry (even in real life) my nose drips more than the actual tears. lol. I have the higher pitch when when I am accting too. And I already have a pretty high speaking voice, so it gets to the sound of a dog whistle.
Singing. This is terrible but I sing through my throat sometimes. About a year ago I had a voice teacher who wasn't liscensed to teach me how to sing and she didn't pay any attention to the fact I'm pushing something. Luckilly, I switched teachers and it's going away a bit. But I have to be VERY vareful now.
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lilmissbroadway
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 20:49Not nessicarily(sp!) acting or singing, but from the very moment I know about an audition, to when they put up the cast list, I'll obsess,obsess,obsess about it! Kinda like my ITW audition on Monday.....I Rent a Wicked apartment on Avenue Q! (Unfortunatly, it's haunted by a Phantom) Sarah
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Starlet_Actress21
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 21:09A horrible habit that I have, which i haven't figured out how to kick yet, is that I get really shy after about two months of working with a director. This means I'll hold back from doing what I really can, and I'll get really nervous when I can see them during a scene. You can imagine what a problem this is, especially at theatre school, when I've known my teacher for a year and a half, and my principal for four years. The good thing about this is that I absolutely explode on stage during performances and they're delighted. But I wish I didn't lose confidence in myself so that they do, too.Auditioning for: Brigadoon, theatre season, American Music Theatre, Into the Woods, Sound of Music, and AMDA.
Currently In: Nothing
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brucecriesxout
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 21:17Another awful one is mixing my chaacter voices and dialects! My southern accent will sound like british and on crack if I'm not paying attention to the way I'm speaking, It's terrible!
I feel like I don't have enough range in the dialects or character voice department. The ones I'm skilled at I do VERY well the others..yea.Name: Bruce Current Production: None. Upcoming Auditions:
The Butler Did It Singing (Chandler)
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brucecriesxout
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 21:17P.S: Thanks for making this post so fun ya'll!Name: Bruce Current Production: None. Upcoming Auditions:
The Butler Did It Singing (Chandler)
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Flece
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/19 21:35Oh! Sometimes I start going all Julie Andrews when I sing or just pronounce things weirdly in general in an attempt to keep things as open as possible.
Since I started losing my hearing, I've developed the habit of keeping my mouth closed when I sing in an attempt to hear better. It's hard to trust myself, but I've been getting a lot of praise when I just open my mouth and let the sound out.Briana
Currently: Roustabout, "Side Show"
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Starlet_Actress21
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/20 11:04brucecriesxout wrote: Another awful one is mixing my chaacter voices and dialects! My southern accent will sound like british and on crack if I'm not paying attention to the way I'm speaking, It's terrible!
I feel like I don't have enough range in the dialects or character voice department. The ones I'm skilled at I do VERY well the others..yea.
^I can only do afew accents well (RP Brit, Cockney, and French)... I was told at a workshop that the three you really ned to know are RP brit, Cockney and Irish. I can do passable Irish, but I'm not comfortable with it.
I've found I have a similar problem- when I do Southern and French, if I don't stay completely focused, I'll slip into an English accent, because I've known how to do for a longer period of time.Auditioning for: Brigadoon, theatre season, American Music Theatre, Into the Woods, Sound of Music, and AMDA.
Currently In: Nothing
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brucecriesxout
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Re:Acting and Singing Quirks! - 2008/02/20 17:20haha, same here my english/cockney were the first dialects I started learning. I have to really focus on what I'm saying but try to seem comfortable.Name: Bruce Current Production: None. Upcoming Auditions:
The Butler Did It Singing (Chandler)
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