James Lipton- Inside the Actor's Studio- advice to Mitt

[Ichingcarpenter]

Last edited Tue May 15, 2012, 01:54 PM - Edit history (1)

In this media-saturated era, the line between politics and performance has virtually vanished, and the public is having a hard time believing Mr. Romney’s persona (as in dramatis personae) — a potentially fatal flaw for any actor, but especially for a presidential candidate. Why doesn’t Mr. Romney’s audience believe him?

Perhaps it starts with his laugh, a device he employs at odd moments and in a most peculiar way. (The public thinks that crying is the acid test of the actor, but in fact “laughing” is much harder — and Mr. Romney hasn’t mastered it.)
Listen to his laugh. It resembles the flat “Ha! Ha! Ha!” that appears in comic-strip dialogue balloons. But worse – far worse – it is mirthless. Mr. Romney expects us to be amused, although he himself is not amused. Freeze the frame, cover the bottom of his face with your hand, and study his eyes. There’s no pleasure there, no amusement. Genuine laughter is triggered only by, and is completely dependent on, shared perception. That’s why we say we “get” a joke.

But Mr. Romney is too busy working to share anything – like the vaudevillian tapping so desperately that he’s covered with what performers call “flop sweat.” In rehearsal, I once heard a director say to an overeager actor, “Relax, you’ve got the job.” Now that Mr. Romney seems to have wrapped up the nomination, that counsel may apply here.
Constantin Stanislavski, the patron saint of the Actors Studio, who preached that relaxation was the sine qua non of acting, would have thrown up his hands in despair at the sight of Governor Romney stalking stiffly onto the public stage. Mr. Romney’s not alone in this robot world. Two generations of politicians, political commentators, and TV personalities seem to have been instructed that no one will listen to them unless they accompany their remarks by locking their elbows to their sides and waving their rigid forearms about like marionettes being wielded by invisible strings.


SNIP......... VIDEO AT THE LINK.... ANYWAY TO LINK IT?


http://videos.nymag.com/video/James-Lipton-Advice-Mitt-Romney


He goes on with his 'favorite questions such as what do hate the most? Like the most .... with Romney answering from news video takes he did... it really is funny.

[grantcart]

1. brilliant and accurate, especially about the life.

[sasha031]

2. k/r rec.

brilliant

[pacalo]

3. Good find!

[Bluenorthwest]

4. Inside Actor's Studio....Lipton is associated with Actor's Studio

"The Actors Studio is a non-profit organization dedicated to the development of actors, playwrights and directors. It is NOT a school but an active studio where the members come to practice their art. Activities at the Actors Studio are for the membership only."
http://www.theactorsstudio.org/
The 'Guild' is Union for actors in film and television. It is now officially known as SAG-AFTRA.

Also, this OP is great even with the hair I'm splitting, thanks for it oh, so much.....

[Ichingcarpenter]

5. Fixed.... I had to walk the dog

I didn't really double check my work thanks

I still wish the video could be viewed here.

[hwmnbn]

6. Whoa, he nailed it...

He used famous acting techniques to highlight Romney's personal deficiencies. One has to be honest to be a good actor so Mitt can't even fake sincerity.