Pt. 2: Let the Play Tell You What to Work On

This episode features a work session with Kaleb on the character of Joe Pitt in Angels in America. It’s a rough one. But we’re not releasing this to abuse Kaleb any more than he already has been. We’re sharing this because so many of us make the mistake of inventing a backstory or past that has nothing to do with the facts of the play, don’t serve the play and therefore don’t help us ground ourselves in the reality of the circumstances as actors. When we invent an imagined past that is not connected to the facts of the play, it has to do with our own personal experience and preconceived notions. This is why using our own lives to create a character is such shaky territory. This session is also a reminder that even when we are building something factual, we have to be connected to them. As Stella Adler said: “the facts must be filtered through the imagination and become the experience of the facts.” Have an acting question for Milton? Email him at: [email protected]