I shall apply Chatham House Rules, where no names nor affiliations may be revealed, though discussions may be reproduced outside of the discussion room.
Q: How do you handle fame? It's so easy to get lost in ego and fame. Bon Jovi said: “Fame is a liar and a thief. I've seen it ruin people. It is what I do, and I do it well, but it does not define me. I have a family, a business, and tennis.” Fame can be so destructive.
A: Don't define your worth based on who takes a photo with you after red-carpet events, or how many followers you have on social media. Find the people you look up to, such as directors or other actors, and ask them for their feedback on your craftsmanship as an actor. If you believe your own publicity, then you will also believe the negative comments.
Q: do you think your roles represent you as the person you want to be? You have worn many hats – you have been an actor, a producer, and a director.
A: [chuckles.] That's quite a meta- kind of question. [pause] I bring my best self to work. I show up on time. On set, I give everyone the time of day: the AD (Assistant Director), the ADPA (Assistant Director Production Assistant), and the caterer. There are so many people on set. And, I like tequila, [audience laughs] but 48 hours before a shoot, I avoid drinking. If you can hold your liquor, that's fine, but that's how I conduct myself. I don't know if this behaviour represents my race, my ethnicity, and my nationality, but that's what I do.
Q: how did it happen? How did you get inside the world of [redacted]?
Yesterday was my first time attending a performance of Shakespeare's plays. I have read a number of his texts before (Othello, and The Tempest, just to name a few) but actors bring a new dimension to the performance. As my acting-lessons coach once said, “The text is dead. Actors have creative freedom to choose how they want to emote the words.”
Of course, the behind-the-scenes crew, and not just the cast, are outstanding in their individual and collective genius – time does not suffice to list all their luminary contributions.
Included in the crew are Rayann Condy (as Intimacy Director), and Matt Hutchinson (in the department of Puppets, Puppetry Design & Direction). And Lee Yew Jin (sound design), and Peps Goh (fight-choreography).
I would like to highlight the physical space as another actor in its (her?) own right. The venue is Fort Canning Park. As the sun lowered itself behind skyscrapers – which, in the blue light of dusk, glowed softly with a thousand electric lights – a couple of large birds (wildlife, not props) soared above the greenery. “Eagles,” my companion-for-the-evening said. What a strange sound they are making, I thought. I've never heard them vocalise before.
Part of an actor's work is finding scripts and today I received one.
It uses the gimmick of body-swap – once popularised in the movie, “Face Off”, featuring Nicholas Cage (1997) – but after reading it, I fear that I will be ashamed of the final work.
Games, and exercises, to build up confidence and reflexes.
stand in a circle. Next person asks you: “what are you doing?” That next person has to do what you say. For example, you might say: “I am playing soccer on the moon.”
enter a space. put in, or take out something. Exit the space. Then, the next person has to evolve the story.
Darren observed their performance once, and then told them to perform again, but with a game in mind – an actor's game. L's goal is to get H to look at her for more than three seconds. H's goal is to give L as little eye-contact as possible.
“invisible body”: What an actor does off-stage, which helps in his performance on-stage. Eg. Tai-chi, amateur boxing, basketball, soccer, marathon-running, stamina-training.