In my experience most actors go looking for an acting coach when they’re already under the gun. The audition date is closing in. The actor feels under prepared and they’re hoping that a coach will pull things together for them. To be painfully honest, even with the most skilled coach imaginable, under these circumstances a one-hour session is likely to have minimal impact on your audition.
The effectiveness of any coaching depends on a number of factors.
Decide how much coaching you need to reach a desired objective. To noticeably improve your monologue performance you’ll likely need 2 to 3, one-hour sessions. There should be reasonable time between sessions for you to rehearse. Rehearsal is absolutely essential to getting the most out of your coaching.
To make the most of any coaching session make sure you’re prepared. Be completely off book. No real coaching can happen until you’ve got the script down cold. Rehearse on your feet and make sure you can sustain a sense of character through the entire length of the monologue. If you cannot do this than you don’t need a monologue coach. You need to get into a good acting class and develop skills that will allow you to create a character for the monologue. No coach can create the character for you.
Find a coach that’s right for you. That coach is likely to be someone you’ve already established a working relationship with, an acting teacher or director who is familiar with your work. If you can find no one who fits that description, try to find someone who has directorial experience and is known for working well with actors. This kind of coach is likely to be very familiar with what works and what doesn’t in a monologue audition. Try to get references for any coach that you’re considering from actors who’ve actually worked with them.
One last point. Actors should not coach other actors. They do not have the same perspective as someone who’s actually conducted castings or directed actors in a production. That perspective is essential to effective coaching.
Next… Coaching vs. Class
Labels: monologue coaching