Over the past few months, I’m reminded of the necessity of thoroughly preparing a character. The craft of acting is not just the techniques we study like voice, movement, breath, character work, text analysis, given circumstances, stage orientation, and the extensive theatre vocabulary that becomes part of our shared language. I’m referring to the deeper work, the kind that lives beneath the surface of every scene. When I worked with Beth DeVolder, she always brought incred

When I was teaching high school theatre... Yes, I taught high school theatre for two and a half years. It wasn’t for me. I couldn’t stand the institution. The kids though... I liked the kids. Well, most of them. Plus, continuing contracts are like hen’s teeth and I am impatient. In any case, when I was teaching high school theatre, one of my favourite lessons began with taking my students outside. It was fall as I remember. The leaves were turning. I made them look around and

Beth DeVolder was one of the founding members of Unleashed Heart Productions. She wrote this a couple of weeks before she was diagnosed with liver cancer. Many of you may not realize that, besides being an award winning actor, musician and composer, Beth was an academic. She had four university degrees including a PhD in Disability Studies. We were preparing for a production of Peter Morgan’s great play, Frost/Nixon, which is inspired by David Frost’s important interviews wit

We often talk about grounding as preparation for performance. What does it mean to be grounded? What does it feel like? How do I achieve...