Learning the Stage & Other Techniques

Many people think theater is all about just getting up there and performing, and that's it.  Nothing could be further than the truth.  There are many things that an actor needs to know in order to make sure he/she is on the same page with fellow actors, the director, and other technical staff.

Stage Positions

Upstage and Downstage.  The area nearest the audience and footlights is called downstage.  The area in the back of the stage, near the back wall of the stage or setting, is called upstage.

A Black History Tribute: Ira Aldridge (First African American Shakespearean Actor)

Ira Aldridge as Othello, 1830 by Henry Perronet Briggs

In honor of Black History Month, I wanted to talk about the life of Ira Aldridge, the first African American Shakespearean actor.  Just this past weekend, Saturday, February, 18th, 2012, I was given the job to video tape a One-Act Play called Ira Aldridge: The African Roscius, written by Jacqueline E. Lawton.  The play was part of The 23rd Annual Savannah Black Heritage Festival and was featuring Avery Brooks (Ira Aldridge) and Jewell Robinson (Amanda Ira Aldridge, his daughter).  

A Brief History of Acting

You know the old cliche, you won't know where you're going until you know where you've been.  Well, it's the same for acting.  Of course, like anything, when you talk about history, it's always a little fuzzy.  It's been passed down through history and in many theater classrooms that the first actor was Thespis of Icaria.  Thespis was a part of a dithyrambic chorus that sang in honor of Dionysus, a Greek god of wine and