4.19.2007

Woo hoo.. I'm in the club!

I am now officially a fully fledged beginner in Meisner Technique studies. I'm now up to doing activities and doors, so I'm up to the stage that everyone else seemed to be when I started the class. Well sort of, I still don't need to have a strong reason for either, though yesterday after doing my door I was asked to think more about the reason next time. So I need a semi-important reason for my door and a not really important reason for my activity.

Just so you know, a "door" in Meisner language is when you come to your partner's door, wanting something from them. Your partner in the exercise should be doing an activity, something that is very important to them. The thing that you come for should be something that's very important to you, and the two of you interact with each other, reacting and repeating.

Yesterday I did a door, it was my second one and it went pretty well. I did one on Monday which I wasn't pleased with at all. I knocked on the door, the guy let me in and acted like he didn't want me there, I hung around a bit being aimless and there was nothing going on. I was told by the teacher I should have left if I felt like it. I've felt like leaving the room in these exercises almost every time I've done one, I've done a lot of hovers, which is when you just show up in the person's space without reason, and the doors, and every time the person has acted like they didn't want me there. If I took that advice I would really have done hardly anything in class. The only time I did an activity it was going nowhere too and I felt like I was unwelcome even though it was supposed to be my place.

Why is no one ever pleased to see me!!!??

Last night it went a bit better, from a Meisner point of view. I came for a lightbulb. The guy wasn't particularly fussed either way for me to be in his place. He was amiable enough but our interaction was going nowhere. I actually left though, because I was asked too, but he really only asked me to leave because the teacher pretty much told him too. Afterwards he kept going on how clueless and aimless I was in the scene, which wasn't particularly flattering but that wasn't the point. I did what I was supposed to do reasonably well, for a beginner anyway.

So, something actually went well for once, even though it's obvious I have serious character flaws and I'm utterly horrible to be around. I can't fake it because Meisner is about reality and you're not supposed to "act" when you're doing it, you have to be true to how you're feeling. Looks like I'm stuck with being kicked out of everyone's place then.

1 comment:

Ronald said...

That sounds tough. If you're not acting so much as being yourself I can imagine it getting a little less than comfortable. And you reckon you've a flawed character? LOL. I'm sure that's not true, but even if it is, that's not so bad is it? Who needs air-brushed, ever so polite, just-so persons? More and more on here I find myself drawn to slightly off-kilter people. Why the fuck do you think I hang around this blog? Anyway, congratulations on progressing.