The Coach . . .

Vince Lombardi. The quintessential coach. . .he made the Green Bay Packers into something special. But that's football. Acting's not so different in that respect (in many respects, actually - but that's a story for another day). The Acting coach is a particularly valuable asset to the film actor. In two ways, maybe more.

First, there's the audition. Here's how it goes. The actor gets the sides, if he's lucky, 48 hours before the audition - often less. With time so short - and especially if the audition is for something major - the actor really needs another helpful eye. The coach looks at the scene, does an analysis - and helps the actor find a variety of emotional shifts in the text - to insure that the audition is going to be interesting.

Remember. Time is always of the essence and the actor never has enough of it The coach assists in making sure the actor's caught all the stimuli available in a scene that has to be learned in just a few hours. So the coach helps sort it out, flesh it out - gives the actor a leg up in trying to secure a call-back. Get the call-back first. Then get the part.

That's what I tell 'em. I also tell 'em - that if they don't catch the interest of the auditioner in the first 20 seconds or so, they've blown it. So the opening salvo has to be captivating. And we work on that, believe me.

If the auditions submitted by ePitch (electronically via email)I'll go with the actor to the studio where the audition's being shot, work with the actor, even go as far as to be the reader(the person reading the other character in the scene - often the worst dweebs in the universe in actual Audition World) to make sure he/she's dotting all the "i"s and crossing the "t"s. Done this twice in the last week - and it definitely provides the actor with an extra level of comfort.

If the actor does get the call-back, then we get back to work and see what else we can find, incorporating feedback received from the audition itself. Useful stuff like "faster." Kidding.

And there're other kinds of coaching. We work with kids seeking post-secondary training in actor training programs, helping them tune up the monologues required for possible admittance to the hallowed halls. Got 3 of those at the moment.

And then there's on set coaching. Some Hollywood stars won't go on set without their coach, again, looking for that objective eye that helps them flesh out their performance. And as I've mentioned elsewhere, many film directors admit they don't know much about what actors do and hire an acting coach to work on set with all the actors in the picture hoping to maximize their performances.

So - actors. Be smart. Use a coach. The key is finding someone who's on the same wavelength, who has insight and communicates, gets with you like butter on bread. Spread the joy. A coach. Don't leave home without one!