Last night I had the pleasure of hearing and seeing a group of wonderful actors read/perform a short script I wrote, The Blue Diner, based on a story that a couple of friends of mine and I came up with, and that we’re going to shoot. This reading, however, had nothing to do with casting or shooting the film. It was simply a chance for these actors to get their hands on some pages, and for me, and the others in attendance, to get to be a part of it.
And I’m very happy I was a part of it. Any time you have this opportunity to see actors inhabit your characters jump at the chance. It’s awesome.
In this case, before the script was read ( a weak word for what they did), I introduced the script by talking generally about the choices the characters face, and what I think the tone of the script is (Noir with a Twilight Zone feel). But I didn’t offer any opinion as to how I thought the actors should be those characters. And I’m glad I didn’t because it gave them the chance to bring their own thing to the script.
There are three characters in the script. One of the actors, playing one of the female characters, came fairly close to how I pictured how that character would be. She was chill, low key, in control — which was great. But the other two actors take on the characters was markedly different from what I had pictured as I wrote the script — which was also great. The actor playing the male character brought a nervous energy I hadn’t pictured in his character, but it was effective and engrossing. The third actor, playing the other female character, brought a bigness with strong emotional swings — also something I hadn’t pictured. But again, great.
So I ended up seeing these vivid performances of the characters in the script that gave me a whole new perspective on how the characters could be played. The fact that I happened to love what they did is basically beside the point. Even if it turned out that I wasn’t thrilled with their choices as actors, it still would’ve been eye-opening. Not to mention, it was just plain fun.
Also, things happen, when things happen with your script. At minimum, if you’re open to it, you’ll learn about your writing — where it’s strong and where it could be stronger. On this occasion, the script and the performance there of, also made someone in attendance excited enough about the script to want to help make it, which is also exciting.
So I highly recommend trying to make this happen with your own pages. There doesn’t need to be some greater goal beyond the reading/performance itself. It gets your work out there and brings it alive. And, at least in my neck of the woods, actors are looking for pages to perform — so put your script in their hands.
P.S. If you’re curious about the script (and you subscribe to the New Play Exchange) … The Blue Diner. If not, feel free to contact me too. 🙂
Charlie Lyons Writes 