Being present,
In the moment,
In the zone,
In flow,
Losing oneself.
No matter what terminology we might prefer,
Or what acting methodology we might follow,
It's widely accepted that this state of being fully in the moment,
Or present,
Is the holy grail of any acting pursuit,
Yet the arising of this experience in most actors seems to be erratic at best.
The more we seem to seek it,
The more elusive it becomes,
Becoming overshadowed instead by the yearning for experience itself.
In life,
We suffer not because of what we experience,
But because we are constantly in opposition to our experience,
Trying to make pleasant states remain and unpleasant states go away.
Our acting,
It seems,
Also suffers from the same flawed strategy.
By learning to be truly with our experience,
Fully,
Unconditionally,
Non-judgmentally,
We are finally able to reliably access this presence we so often seek,
But so rarely find.
This is where mindfulness training is not only helpful,
But arguably essential for the modern actor.
If one wishes to be truly present,
It can not only be in the times when nerves,
Fear,
Or anxiety are not present,
Nor can it lose its potency at the first sign of the inner critic.
Mindfulness is not just another tool.
Its application or denial affects the very foundations of our experience of the world.
In order to learn to be truly present,
We must learn to be present with all of our experience,
Completely,
Unconditionally,
And without exception.
So what is mindfulness,
Then?
Instead of thinking of mindfulness as a state to attain,
We might be better thinking of it as a way to relate to experience.
We are not so much trying to change experience itself,
But alter how we relate to the experience we are having.
If mindfulness only works under certain circumstances,
It's not a radical approach at all.
In order for it to be useful in any way,
It must be able to be applied unconditionally.
In mindful acting,
We use a range of techniques,
From various different acting practitioners as well as meditative traditions,
From Meisner and practical aesthetics,
Through to the sensory exercises of the various method acting traditions.
By filtering these techniques through a kind of mindfulness filter,
We can begin to understand how and why these techniques work.
Like anything,
Effective mindfulness practice is based on principles.
What I believe is that the success of any particular acting approach is based on how well they each utilize these same principles.
In mindful acting,
We work with a few principles,
Particularly when applying mindfulness theory directly to our acting training.
So what are these principles?
Firstly,
All good acting methodology works through unconsciously applying the principles of effective mindfulness.
Secondly,
The success of any technique is directly related to its ability to effectively cover the range of these principles.
Some techniques focus on just a few principles,
To the neglect of others.
By examining all techniques through the mindfulness filter,
We can begin to see what works,
Why they work,
How they work,
And eliminate the unnecessary aspects that get in the way.
By recognizing this crossover,
We come to understand that not only do actors benefit from mindfulness training,
But that in fact anyone who wants to come more into their own presence can also benefit from the various acting traditions the world has to offer.
Now you're probably asking yourself,
What are the principles of effective mindfulness?
Then you'd be right to ask,
But unfortunately that's a little less easy to sum up.
So for that,
You're going to have to come along for the ride and find out for yourself.
