MEMORIZING LINES - LEARNING SCRIPTS - LEARNING LINES
© 2004 by Bill Breuer
So often actors are asked, 'How do you memorize all those lines?' Actors, (especially stage actors) are presumed to have a phenomenal natural ability in this area. Beginning actors often ask experienced thespians this very some question. We'll now try to clear up this mystery.
IMPROVE FOCUS - A How-to.
© Bill Breuer 2009
This has been a matter of some debate - especially in the age of multitasking, ADHD and a general bombardment of your senses, conscious and unconscious mind with more stimuli, intentional, unintentional overt and subvert along with a stream of constant interruptions.
So how does one sharpen/ expand one's ability to Focus? It is like a muscle that has to be exercised - and it can be done at any age. Some say practice "living totally in the moment" and using as many of your senses as possible...including smell. Shut off the inner dialogue. All this can help.
One exercise that has been suggested is to set a deck of cards in front of you and quickly turn over one card at a time. As soon as you see a Jack - lay it aside face up. Then when you come to a nine, place it to the side of the Jack. Then do the same with a six and then a three. Keep running the deck.
One really great way is what the various secret service, police and spy agencies teach. Train yourself to wherever you go to take mental snapshots. At first it's in still form. These are 'still' photos! If people did this every time they came in the door they would rarely lose their keys or cell phones.
First, actors as a rule do not 'memorize' lines (as in 'rote memory'). Actually it is a process and a combination of techniques. Most actors will relate what they do, but they don't realize the complete picture and their answers miss the mark.
It has been said we remember:
20% of what we read,
30% of what we hear,
40% of what we see,
50% of what we say,
60% of what we do,
BUT: possibly 90% of what we hear, see, say and do!
It is important that you have the same "blocking" -essentially have the same positions and cultivate the same gestures each time you do a scene. This is particularly necessary when rehearsals are based relatively on just weeks of practice.
Actors 'Blow' lines - Why?
I have seen actors come in TOTALLY OFF-BOOK, even having successfully done this show before at another location with someone else, only to end up with a problematic performance essentially sabotaged by a scene partner's lack of stage discipline and professional experience. This was a 'two-hander' show and the scene partner stood, sat, lied down on different parts of the show each time and broke the fourth wall to play to friends on a regular basis! Then the offending actor had the audacity to say the scene partner didn't know the lines!
Anything other than consistency will only serve to throw off your scene partners! Save the surprises for improv shows! The personal advantage is that it provides a positional cue to your partner's (and your own) subconscious mind to say a certain line at that time. Since a good actor reacts - she/he will also find that these are part of the cue for their partners reactions and delivery of lines. I have witnessed shows where an amateur destroys the performance of seasoned professional (especially on a short run) because they lacked the discipline to be consistent.
Another Example: one scene partner suddenly went to a different part of a stage, then rather than sitting as rehearsed just flopped down loudly on a couch - thus the other actor was suddenly searching into a level of conditioned cues to respond to the offender with lines from another part of the show. Even whole pages can be jumped (this has even happened to famous Broadway actors) do to this lack of professionalism or self control. Additionally, directors should try not to change things at the very last minute without the necessary repeated rehearsals to back it up.
We can learn from old texts from a century ago that teach methods of learning:
Improving the method of learning lines. Impressions are not stored away in the brain and afterward recalled, in an isolated state, or independently of one another. They are more or less intimately related AS they are learned, and recall always takes place through association of some sort. Whatever appears in the mind must be introduced first, and when it is introduced it is the associate of something already there.
Since any idea is recalled through its connection with other ideas, the greater the numbers and the closeness of such relations, the better it stands to be reproduced. Improvement in one's method of learning must consist mainly in increasing the number and closeness of associations among facts.
Early association with the principle ideas, or early recognition of the outline of thought, is perhaps the most important of these. One can proceed sentence by sentence or bit by bit, adding each fragment until the whole is learned. But the early recognition of the main ideas in their proper sequence is far superior!
Early attention to organization consists of taking idea the whole, then its divisions, then its subdivisions, then its sentences. Essentially it is better memory by better thinking.
Some claim that as one grows older, the organization of our knowledge IMPROVES and the power to reproduce it also INCREASES! It is a matter of 'how'!
Increasing the intensity of these items - such as coupling with emotions will also make a greater impression. In contrast, do not depend on mere retentiveness to hold information in mind. This is a disconnected way where information will often be quickly lost.
Another suggestion is to work on seeing the page in your mind - sort of taking a mental photocopy of it, the layout, important words and their positions.
Bodily ease and freshness as well as lots of sleep have much to do with the successful outcome. The repeated use of a snooze alarm can cause problems in sleep cycles and result in causing memory problems. That sleep bank needs to be restored/repaid.
Interesting suggestion has been made about underlining one's script. One instructors suggested using 'blue' - suggesting it worked better for learning. Most of the recent generations have had bright fluorescent yellow highlighters. Before that, people in the sixties had red markers to study with. Perhaps it's different for various people.
Suggestions on How To Increase Concentration for Learning Lines
STAY IN THE STUDYING MOMENT:
Eliminate Distractions, organize and clear up other projects and chores.
Neutralize anything that may preoccupy your mind. Write it down and put it aside you wont be drifting.
Relocate - Go to another spot!
Read in a 'ACTIVE MODE' and take time away from the material to process it.
Stop and reflect backward on the progress of the material - how things got to this point.
People are 'wired' to learn and respond either visually, by auditory means, or by kinetic (movement/mechanical) input. Most everyone is a combination of these in differing percentages. The emphasis of these three factors can change as one ages. A scene partner who may suddenly lie down on a sofa as opposed to sitting and listening to the other actor could cause a memory lapse or even a ‘jump’ in lines and scene! The offending scene partner can literally mess up the delivery of the lines for the other partner for the whole duration of the show's run!
An individual mental block may exist due to some hidden meaning in a line may exist and will try to come out triggered by that that momentary lapse in blocking. That needs to be recognized if it shows up in rehearsals and worked through as 'why?'.
Professional actors in a scene will respect the 'anchoring' methods of their scene partners who are may be predominately visual, auditory or kinetic. They will not make any changes during performance. To do otherwise is not only unprofessional but can sabotage someone's performance or even a show!
When one scene partner changes her/his movement, blocking, inflection, line delivery, facial expression and the other is truly acting (therefore reacting) it can throw off that partner's lines, make her/him 'go up' on a section or even destroy a scene. It could be subconscious, openly deliberate, habitual or accidental in nature - but it is destructive! It is worse than 'upstaging' it can make that partner's performance look bad. Beware of this if you are not the local favourite, the new person in the cast or if you just can't get along with that other actor!
When a director observes one actor having a CONTINUAL MENTAL BLOCK on a specific paragraph of lines (or trouble in general with a recurrent 'rolling block or rolling lapse') it is prudent to look at what the scene partner(s) have been doing. Are they or have they been changing blocking, expression, line emphasis or have they at heart a different interpretation of the story, scene or character motivations. This must be settled. (A 'ROLLING' MENTAL BLOCK is where an actor will have a lapse that reoccurs at different points during a scene each time it is run. It is a compensation to the aforementioned disturbances and she/he is trying to get immersed in the character.) Easy solution is to 'anchor/associate' each succeeding line to something physical in the area. If there is none - to hand gestures.
Some MEDICAL CONDITIONS can temporarily adversely affect recall and memory: Sudden Low blood pressure, electrolyte imbalance, high or low blood pressure, low or high blood sugar, lack of sleep or a change in circadian rhythm, and histamine reactions (such as insect/spider bites for example - the effects can last for weeks). Other culprits: some MEDICATIONS such as: antihistamines(Benadryl, Claritin for examples), some blood pressure medications, antidepressants, antianxiety drugs, antispasmodics, beta-blockers, chemotherapy, Parkinson's medication muscle relaxants, antacids-digestive aids (Zantac, for example), pain relievers etc. Even states of stress, depression or disgruntlement can affect it.
POST SURGICAL ANESTHESIA EFFECTS: Some actors have reported a 'Swiss Cheese Brain', 'foggy headed' and 'sluggishness' after surgical general anesthesia. This involves not only accessing and retrieval of information that's stored - but also can be a scattering of the quality of the information as it goes in. Time (sometimes many months), detoxification, and hard work on the role can change that.
While I'm not prescribing it for anyone, Ginseng has been said to help and so has a supplement of Biotin. Others suggest Choline or Thiamine (B1).
Here's an interesting one: some researchers claim that ingesting the spice "rosemary" can increase memory! Even smelling it!
Occasionally when there has been more than one version of a script published and one actor has previously learned a different version than the one being produced - sometimes there will be a "carry over" of some portions of one script onto the other script. Sometimes it will be the best of each - and hopefully your director will acknowledge this as an advantage to the entire production/performance.
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On-Stage Distractors: This is a big one. It can be a scene partner that suddenly changes blocking onstage, a change in a visual cue or even noises to which one is unaccustomed such as being annexed to a bowling alley active during rehearsals or performance. Note, general background sounds such as audience coughing does not have the same deleterious effect.
Perhaps there is something to the assertion that the creative mind has trouble with simplistic rote learning. If that's the case in some situations, nature seems to make things balance out. There are many famous actors who have extreme trouble with learning lines but their performances are so vivid it's worth the trouble. Some have even have their lines written on hidden notes on the set or even pasted to their scene partners in films.
For people who are auditory types, tape the cast reading if at all possible. When a scene partner asks someone to make a cassette tape, try to comply quickly. I know of one case where the future scene partners were cast but lived on the opposite end of the country and since one was auditory in nature - had a tougher time of it because the other actor was cavalier and never made that recording.
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For kinetic types: Make it physical! Associating specific gestures or a hand positions, a stance, certain movements to enhance the meaning or effect of lines can lock words into memory. This is also a good defense if you discover that your scene partner is going to be inconsistent in their blocking/delivery.
The Bottom Line:
SWEEP AWAY! (all the old crap)
CLEAN OUT! (anything in the way)
SHARPEN IN!(see only what's there)
FOCUS DOWN!(narrow to the words)
ABSORB!(grasp, infuse and assimilate)
We NEVER say 'Memorize' .....
- 1) Some say they go over and over each line in a section at a time until they know it by heart.
- 2) Some will write the lines out over and over until they are learned.
- 3) Some record all the dialogue of everyone in the scene and play it over and over. This is great if you do a lot of driving. Eventually make a tape of only the other character's lines, then use it to rehearse.
- 4) Some have to visualize the action before it 'sets in'.
- Others must actually recreate the movement each time and 'anchor' their lines to those motions, positions and gestures.
- Others make flash cards with the last line of the person preceding them with their own lines on the other side.
- 7) Occasionally one runs across someone who puts their lines to song, a mnemonic or some other 'memory device'.
- 8) Some can only learn lines at the point of working only with the same actors with whom they'll be on stage. Bad energy or differing attitudes between scene partners can affect lines.
- 9) Some just play with the lines - change the emphasis on each succeeding word.
- 10) Some use accentuated 'active listening' (be really in the moment) to respond properly to the line before theirs. Mark the script for cues in the line preceding your own for a phrase or word to which you would be responding with your line.
- 11) Write out the lines on a sheet of paper writing down only the first letter of each word. This previous sentence would read: W o t l o a o p w d o t f l o e w.
- SHUT OFF THE IPOD IN YOUR HEAD! Sounds silly, but for many people there's always music plaing in their head - as iff there were a sound track - even lyrics! Stop the music. Unplug the player. Feel the silence and then focus on the line. Feel its meanign and why it's being said. Work at repeating its meaning. With re-reads and repitition you can get all the words (use # 10 above)..
- - BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! A wonderful study has just been done by Noice & Noice who tested the general population (as well as actors) and published their findings in the 2006 Journal of the Association for Psychological Science. They confirmed the importance for sensory association (visually, auditory, kinetic) but found that the essential ingredient was specifically an element they termed 'Active Experiencing'.
- When the subjects were told to put all their concentration on meaning the words - that is use all channels to communicate the words to another - the best retention was achieved. The validity of this technique has been successfully tested across all segments of the population.
- Some neurobiologists separate the mind into Long Term, Medium Term and Short term memory. Often people who work with memory enhancement ask people to dissolve away these walls as only descriptive labels allowing for the practical concept where individuals dip down and move anywhere throughout the memory as necessary.
- There appears to be new evidence that shows the brain 'plays' items back to itself during sleep to further record impressions. This may be why people who sleep after study often do far better than someone who does not.
- April 2007: Scientists at Columbia University have found that in some people too much memory could make it harder for word recall ! They have too much memory making it harder to filter out information and increasing the time it takes for new short-term memories to be processed and stored.
- Yet MORE ! Think children have the advantage? A report in Nature Neuroscience shows that although the two groups have much in common, adults do better at remembering the rich, contextual details!
- ALSO: Researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia have found that the time of day influences your brain’s ability to learn—and that the human brain learns more effectively in the evening!
- Norepinephrine, more widely known as a “fight or flight” hormone, energizes the process by adding phosphate molecules to a nerve cell receptor called GluR1. The phosphates help guide the receptors to insert themselves adjacent to a synapse. “Now when the brain needs to form a memory, the nerves have plenty of available receptors to quickly adjust the strength of the connection and lock that memory into place.
- Some say, you can enhance line learning by reading a few lines each night before bedtime and as soon as you wake up. Over time you keep adding to what you've learned.
- FOCUS (staying in the moment): A useful hint for those for whom this is a problem- often an issue with new actors and many experienced but aging actors. Tip: Pretend that you are working with a dog (no offense to your stage partners!)... this frame of mind will keep your focus and stay in the moment!
- A general helpful rule is: Make the initial exposure to the information focused, strong and with as much impact as possible. No interruptions allowed!
- Final Advice: Make the words your own!
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