Aphorisms for the Theater, from Myself with special thanks to M. Prof for three months of falling on my ass.

A few reflections on my first three months with Monsieur le Professeur:

Lesson: It is horrible when actors push to be good.

Lesson: It is beautiful when an actor is surprising.
Lesson: An actor can be full of surprises if they are free to play.
Lesson: Play comes out of a game between the actors and the audience.

Lesson: It is horrible when I have an idea before I go onstage.
Lesson: When I go onstage with no idea but trying to play a game, people love it.

Lesson: Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never GO ON THE STAGE AND TRY TO BE EMOTIONAL. EVERYONE WANTS TO SLAP ME WHEN I DO THIS.

Lesson: People are more beautiful, more alive, when they are in the shit. A great actor, so confident, goes onstage and then drops an expensive prop into the pit orchestra. Hah! Their face lights up like a Christmas tree because they are in the shit.

Lesson: Really playing a game puts actors in and out of the shit all of the time. Pretending to play a game, no matter how convincing your pretend is, bores everybody. The actors have to really play.

Lesson: When I go on the stage and pretend to be in the shit, I am horrible. When I go on the stage and am playing a game and happen to fall in the shit, I am alive.