Catch Me If You Can
Dead Accounts
Big Fish
Wicked
"Bloodline" is a dramatic
thriller that explores the
demons lurking beneath the
surface of a contemporary
American family. The
Rayburns are hard-working
pillars of their Florida Keys
community. But when the
black sheep son comes
home for the 45th
anniversary of his parents'
hotel, he threatens to expose
the Rayburns' dark secrets
and shameful past, pushing
his siblings to the limits of
family loyalty.
Bloodline is basically about a large well-to-do family whose
lives change drastically once the oldest sibling, played by the
always incredible Ben Mendelsohn, returns home after years
of being the disregarded black sheep to everyone but the
matriarch. he’s the tip of a massive iceberg of talent. The elder
Rayburns, the moody Robert and graceful Sally, are played by
Sam Shepard and Sissy Spacek, respectively. Kyle
Chandler plays the emotionally repressed Detective John
Rayburn, Norbert Leo Butz plays the emotional tempest
Kevin Rayburn, and Linda Cardellini plays the romantically
distraught lawyer Meg Rayburn. Extended family includes
Jacinda Barrett as John’s wife Diana, Katie Finneran as
Kevin’s wife Belle, and Enrique Murciano as Meg’s longtime
boyfriend Marco. Then we have Jamie McShane and Chloë
Sevigny as Danny’s sibling friends Eric and Chelsea
O’Bannon. And everyone else who gets screentime? They’re
great as well.
Famous for his role as Danny Rayburn
in the Netflix series Bloodline, he is
also notable for his portrayal of John
Daggett in the 2012 film The Dark
Knight Rises, as well as for his
performances in the movies Killing
Them Softly and Animal Kingdom.
Early in his career, he appeared in the
television series the Henderson Kids
and won an Australian Film Institute
Award for his supporting role in the
1987 feature The Year My Voice
Broke. The son of Frederick Arthur
Oscar Mendelsohn and Carole Ann
Ferguson, he grew up with brothers
named David and Tom and spent his
childhood in Australia, Europe, and the
United States. His marriage to writer
Emma Forrest began in 2012.
She is an Academy Award winner and
three-time Golden Globe Award winner.
Spacek first gained attention for her role in
Terrence Malick's film Badlands (1973). In
1976 she played the title character in Brian
De Palma's iconic horror film Carrie, for
which she earned an Oscar nomination.
She won Best Actress for her portrayal of
Loretta Lynn in the 1980 film Coal Miner's
Daughter. She went on to receive further
Oscar nominations for her roles in
Missing (1982), The River (1984) and
Crimes of the Heart (1986). A six-time
Oscar nominee, she received her sixth
nomination for In the Bedroom (2001).
Her other films include 3 Women (1977),
Raggedy Man (1981), JFK (1991),
Affliction (1997), The Straight Story
(1999), Nine Lives (2005) and The Help
(2011). Spacek plays matriarch Sally
Rayburn in the Netflix thriller series
Bloodline.
American film and television
actor
best
known
for
television roles on Early
Edition and notably as
Coach Eric Taylor in the
television series Friday Night
Lights, for which he won the
Primetime Emmy Award for
Outstanding Lead Actor in a
Drama Series in 2011. He has
also appeared in supporting
roles in films like Super 8,
Argo, Zero Dark Thirty and
The Wolf of Wall Street. In
2015, he began starring in the
Netflix
original
series
Bloodline, for which he
received his fourth Primetime
Emmy Award nomination.
Finneran is perhaps best known for her role
of Sharon Tyler on the Fox television series
Wonderfalls. She was also featured as a
part of the cast on the Fox show The Inside,
in the short-lived CBS sitcom Bram and
Alice, and in many guest roles in shows like
Frasier, Sex and the City and Oz. In 2007
she was featured in Drive that starred
Nathan Fillion. In 2012, she co-starred in the
Fox sitcom I Hate My Teenage Daughter.
From 2013 to 2014, she played Leigh Henry
on the NBC sitcom, The Michael J. Fox
Show She has also appeared in the Netflix
series Bloodline.
Broadway: Big Fish, Dead Accounts, Catch Me If You
Can (2011 Tony Award, Drama Desk winner: Best Actor
in a Musical; Astaire Award winner, Outer Critics
nomination), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (Tony Award,
Drama Desk, Outer Critics, Astaire Awards, Drama
League Award winner: Best Actor in a Musical), Enron,
Speed-the-Plow, Is He Dead?, Wicked (original cast,
Fiyero), Thou Shalt Not (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer
Critics nominations), Rent (original cast, Broadway
debut). Off-Broadway: How I Learned To Drive, Fifty
Words, Buicks (Drama Desk nomination), The Last
Five Years (Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel
nominations, Drama League Award), Juno and the
Paycock (Roundabout), Saved (TFANA). National Tour:
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Cabaret. Alabama
Shakespeare Festival (four seasons), Repertory
Theatre of St. Louis. Film: Better Living Through
Chemistry (2013), The English Teacher (2013),
Greetings from Tim Buckley (2013), Disconnect
(2013), Higher Ground, Fair Game, Dan in Real Life.
Television: Series: “The Deep End” (ABC); Pilots:
“County” (NBC), “The Miraculous Year” (HBO)
“Bloodline” [Netflix] BFA, Webster University; MFA,
Alabama Shakespeare Theatre.
It is the oldest of the theatrical arts. THESPIS,
the first actor, was the author of the plays in
which he appeared.
From his name comes the word THESPIAN, another word for actor.
The average theatregoer can name many
actors...
The actor “presents” to the
audience in a form that we call
“presentational.” It is also called
“external” or “technical” acting.
The second notion comes from
somewhere “inside” the actor. It
is often referred to as “internal.”
Such classically-trained British actors as Olivier,
Guinness, Stewart and Gielgud.
 The actor works honestly and
effectively to “live the life of the
character.” To feel the emotions.
 It can be called “representational.”
 Actors of this school are often “method
actors” named for a “system” devised
by Konstantin Stanislavski
UNCLE VANYA at
Moscow Art Theatre
1918
"For... Stanislavsky said: "There is no system.
There is only nature. My lifelong concern has
been how to get ever closer to the so-called
system, that is, to get ever closer to the nature
of creativity."
According to an article in the
NY Times December 2, 2001
In the United States, the “method” was made
popular by the actor Lee Strasberg at the
Actors Studio in New York.
 In the 18th century, Denis Diderot discussed
the differences in his essay “The Paradox of
Acting”
 At the Moscow Art Theatre, Stanislavski
taught that motivation gives meaning to
action. And, as such, plays have subtexts
the actor needs to understand.
Almost all American teachers of acting pay
homage to Stanislavski and his “theories” of
acting...
Famous American actors trained in the method
include
Marlon
Brando
and
Marilyn
Monroe.
Greatness in acting, like greatness in almost
any endeavor, demands a superb set of skills
In order to play HAMLET, for example, the
actor himself needs to embody the genius of
the character.
To achieve this virtuosity, the actor must
possess two features
 An expressive voice
 A supple body
James Earl Jones
Glenn Close
Bill Irwin
Meryl Streep
Beyond conviction and virtuosity, great actors
possess “presence” or “magnetism” or
“charisma”
Actor training takes place in colleges,
universities, conservatories and private &
commercial schools
Like it or not, “luck” plays a
very big role in the world of
show business—and thinking
about it can drive you crazy.
Everyone would love some
assurance that fate is going to
deliver that career-changing
role any day now.
Unfortunately, acting is a
gambler’s business with
absolutely no guarantees of
success. That said, there are
a few common sense things
we can do to improve your
chances.
1. Get Better
2. Make Work
3. Network
The 10 Best
Survival
Jobs for
Actors
Johnny Depp remembers his first
acting gig: Working as a telemarketer.
“I marketed pens — on the phone,”
Depp recalled for the April issue of
Interview magazine. “But the beauty
of the gig was you had to call up
these strangers and say, ‘Hi, how ya
doin’?’ You made up a name like,
‘Hey, it’s Edward Quartermaine from
California.’”
Training is both
physical and
psychological
All training
requires practice,
not simple book
learning
 VOICE:
breathing,
phonation,
resonance
 SPEECH:
articulation,
pronunciation,
phrasing
 PROJECTION
 Dance, mime, fencing, acrobatics
 Relaxation, control, economy
 Strength and endurance
Imagination, and the
willingness and
ability to use it in
the service of art,
are major
components of the
actor’s
psychological
instrument.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Follow the working conditions
Collaborate with fellow artists
Be on time to calls
Stay well and healthy
Train your instrument in exercise or class
Memorize parts before they are due
Work vigorously to develop craft
 Describe the objective, task, goal, victory or
intention. Each character has a primary goal
and several minor goals in the play.
 Secondly, the actor develops TACTICS
necessary to achieve the GOALS
 Finally, the actor must understand the style
of given circumstances of the play and apply
it to the role
The goal of acting is to express your
character’s intentions clearly and honestly
within the given circumstances of the scene.
These include…






Relationship of characters
Age of characters
Educational level of characters
Time. When?
Place. Where are you?
Socio-economic-political background, etc.
A: Hi
B: Hello
A: What did you do last
night?
B: Huh?
A: What did you do last
night?
B: Oh, nothing.
A: Nothing?
B: That’s what I said,
nothing.
A: Well…
B: Well what?
A: Never mind.
EMPTY SCENES
EXPLORE…
Relationship
Time
Place
Situation
Given
circumstances
AUDITION
Now, the actor is aware of his audience...
The audience affects the actor’s timing, delivery and energy
Patrick Steward, Simon Callow and Ian
McKellan
 Stage actors must re-create their
performance over and over. Each actor
develops ways to adapt to the different
demands of various media
Dame Judi Dench in film and onstage.
 Actors are privileged people, they get to live the lives of
saints, sinners, lovers, rulers, the great and the meek
 Actors must know more than acting, they must represent
the human and therefore must understand humankind
 The proper study of acting is life: common sense,
observation, perception, tolerance and understanding
 Actors need to possess training, business acumen and a
realistic vision
 Very few are capable of a professional career in acting.
Those that do possess great talent, skill, persistence,
fortitude and luck!