WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe This episode is a five minute rant from Milton about how we don’t find our lives interesting, which is why we often discourage the approach of “using our own lives” for a part. We fail to see the greatness in our own lives and the universal themes that run through them. We tell our own stories in a removed, almost clinical tone as if we were reporting the news. And so when using our li...
Dec 12, 2022•6 min•Season 5Ep. 112
You can avoid deciding in advance how to play something and marrying yourself to that performance by talking out immediately. But if the first thing you do is go to the words, you’ll be stuck with the words, and nothing but your initial interpretation of the words. Even if your instincts are right on, you run the risk of cementing yourself in a performance, and once that happens, it’s very difficult to make adjustments or evolve beyond it. Have an acting question for Milton? Email him at: questi...
Dec 05, 2022•14 min•Season 5Ep. 111
In this episode, Milton coaches Guilherme as he prepares the role of Portuguese Vampire from the 17th Century. He begins by suggesting specific images that will help his development of the character’s physicality and point of view. This eventually leads to a conversation about “objectives” and how using that word can actually get in the way of what’s really going on in the scene and the essence of the character. Have an acting (or Vampire) question for Milton? Email him at: questionsformilton@gm...
Nov 28, 2022•9 min•Season 5Ep. 110
One of Stella Adler’s fundamental exercises was a visualization exercise. This is something we can do anytime and anywhere— walking down the street, driving down the highway, standing in the shower. The more you train yourself how to see, the more specific your work will become, and the more the images will feed you emotionally. But this is not work you can do intellectually, deciding beforehand what the images are. It requires a leap of faith to be fully present and let the images come to you. ...
Nov 21, 2022•8 min•Season 5Ep. 109
This episode, an excerpt from Milton’s Script Analysis class, examines the importance’s of understanding the deeply human struggle of the playwright and how those struggles are infused into their characters. Using The Glass Menagerie, Milton talks about letting the “active facts” about a character seep into the actor’s consciousness over time, keeping in mind the enormity of the theme that the character represents. “One of the problems we have is that we don’t have a sense of our own personal st...
Nov 14, 2022•13 min•Season 5Ep. 108
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe One of the cornerstones of being believable is the ability to connect to the material. And we have to know what it feels like to be connected, so that when we’re not, we do more work to get there. But being believable is just one prerequisite. We also have to be interesting to watch and listen to. Milton shares a story about his former business partner, actress Lee Grant who came up wi...
Nov 07, 2022•18 min•Season 5Ep. 107
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe At the end of the day, the technique is there for those moments we feel absolutely panicked and lost, like we have no idea what we’re doing. Maybe we’re staring blankly at a script thinking: I don’t know how to prepare, or where to start. Maybe we’re on stage and have no idea why the choices that have been working for months suddenly have stopped. Or, we’re on set and the director is g...
Oct 31, 2022•12 min•Season 5Ep. 106
This episode features a work session with Kaleb on the character of Joe Pitt in Angels in America. It’s a rough one. But we’re not releasing this to abuse Kaleb any more than he already has been. We’re sharing this because so many of us make the mistake of inventing a backstory or past that has nothing to do with the facts of the play, don’t serve the play and therefore don’t help us ground ourselves in the reality of the circumstances as actors. When we invent an imagined past that is not conne...
Oct 24, 2022•14 min•Season 5Ep. 105
The reason we analyze text is so we can make discoveries that will bring us to life and bring depth to our work as actors. Gaining a deeper understanding of the play opens up a world of possibilities when it comes to our choices. However, we always want the play to dictate the choices we make. In this episode, Milton shares an example from Angels in America. Louis and Prior have been together for four years and have an incredible relationship. But no one where in the play is it mentioned how the...
Oct 17, 2022•14 min•Season 5Ep. 104
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe Most of the time, when we have a last minute audition, there’s no way we can accomplish everything. The best way to approach it is to pick a few things we want to work on. Sometimes it’s getting clear about the sequence of thoughts and making sure we have a specific relationship with everything we talk about. Sometimes we’ll choose to work on the character, or build the relationship wi...
Oct 10, 2022•11 min•Season 5Ep. 103
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe Welcome to Season 5 of I Don’t Need an Acting Class! Milton begins the season asking the class to reflect on their biggest takeaways and revelations. Among them: how easy it is to jump to a performance; how researching the time period and social circumstances helps our creativity come alive; how the more we know about the world we’re in, the more we're able to believe that world ...
Oct 03, 2022•15 min•Season 5Ep. 102
Hello friends, listeners, actors and artists. Today we're making a small request that you rate and review the podcast if it has helped you in any way. This simple gesture will help us return with a fifth season and continue the show indefinitely. Thank you in advance!
Jul 23, 2022•2 min
Dear listeners, We're gonna take a short break before we return with Season 5. In the meantime, please keep your acting questions coming. You can email Milton at: questionsformilton@gmail.com Thank you so much!
Jun 28, 2022•3 min
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe Whether you’re in an audition, in rehearsal or standing on stage during a performance, most of us know what it’s like to have a scene partner who gives you absolutely nothing. The unfortunate news is that we can’t blame our performance on our scene partners. The good news is: we can’t blame our performance on our scene partners. As actors, we have to take responsibility for every...
May 31, 2022•19 min•Season 4Ep. 99
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe This week, we take a break from script analysis, and Milton shares a private coaching session with a new student. He covers some fundamentals such as talking out in order to grasp the sequence of thoughts, and take ownership of the text so that everything you talk about is filled and you’re not just spouting empty lines. Have an acting question for Milton? Email him at questionsformilt...
May 24, 2022•15 min•Season 4Ep. 98
Tennessee Williams was keenly interested in outcasts, artists and wounded people like himself. He also wrote about the south and regardless of where his character’s find themselves, the mentality of the south looms large, whether they are holding onto their heritage or pushing it away. As Milton looks at his play The Glass Menagerie in this episodes, he allows himself to swim through it, giving us an example of how one might begin the process of working on it. “You have to allow yourself to wand...
May 17, 2022•19 min•Season 4Ep. 97
This episode begins with Milton giving general notes on plays, and then gets more specific to the work of Tennessee Williams. The world of Tennessee Williams is one of fantasy and escape because of the characters’ inability to face reality. The create and live in their own world because as Stella Adler said of Tennessee’s characters: “they are people at their end of their ability to cope.” Have an acting question for Milton? Email him at questionsformilton@gmail.com...
May 10, 2022•16 min•Season 4Ep. 96
In this episode, Milton walks us through the shift that took place in the late 19th century when writers began writing about real people. Plays became much more complex and based on the interior life of their middle class characters, as opposed to being centered around the aristocracy which was larger than life and less personally relatable to an audience. Therefore, a new form of acting was called for. Have a question for Milton? Email him at questionsformilton@gmail.com...
May 03, 2022•11 min•Season 4Ep. 95
When we first sit down with a play, it’s far too easy to rush through it and start getting preoccupied about how we're going to "play it." Our minds start racing, we get overwhelmed and we start making decisions too soon. We have to fight this impulse. Your first time reading through a script, you want to go really slow and just register first impressions. Then when you go back, you will start getting an idea of what work you need to do. Again, take one fact, or idea, at a time and explore it de...
Apr 26, 2022•13 min•Season 4Ep. 94
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe In this second part of ABCs of Auditioning, Milton applies all the concepts mentioned in the last episode to Teo’s audition for a police procedural, in which he was given two lines and no information. This is a practical example of knowing what world you’re in, understanding the function of your scene, having a relationship with everything so that every moment is filled, and havi...
Apr 12, 2022•21 min•Season 4Ep. 93
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe There are certain fundamental steps we can take when analyzing sides or preparing audition material. These concepts will help you understand where to begin, determine what work you need to do and inform the choices you make. This is a two-part episode. Next week, Milton will apply these techniques to a specific piece. Have a question for Milton? Email him at questionsformilton@gm...
Apr 05, 2022•15 min•Season 4Ep. 92
WANT MORE? Become a subscriber for bonus content! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/actingclass/subscribe This week, Milton talks about the importance of having a clear impulse for all of our work so that we “earn” the text. Nothing starts from nothing or nowhere. We’re always somewhere, in a particular circumstance, with something going on which gives us the impulse for the scene, the monologue, the entrance, the first line, what have you… A great way to get clear about your impulse...
Mar 29, 2022•14 min•Season 4Ep. 91
This week, Milton addresses a frequently asked question: how much information do we need when building the past of a character? As individuals, we may desirer (or require) different facts or details or tools. However, there are some “indisputables.” It’s vital to be able to differentiate what information is essential in order for us to play a role, and this is a skill that develops with experience. When doing a play, especially a great play, the text will tell us what we need to build. And the d...
Mar 22, 2022•17 min•Season 4Ep. 90
Last season, Milton suggested that one way we can go about developing a character is by asking ourselves, “who is this person most?” In this episode, he reconsiders that idea. (Can you imagine? An acting teacher admitting they might have been wrong and changing their mind? Who’s ever heard of such an anomaly!) But as his own understanding of character work progresses, Milton questions whether asking this question forces us into a box. After all, no one is just one thing. In the end, asking the q...
Mar 15, 2022•10 min•Season 4Ep. 89
Learning to act is not something you do in one year. It takes a lifetime. In the same way, doing a play isn’t something you can take on in one night. It’s a process. Stella told a student once that if she could learn one new thing a year, she’d be on the right path. Stanislavsky likened doing a play to going on a journey and making many unexpected stops along the way that added to the overall journey. These lessons remind us that the creative process is never linear or finite. With each project ...
Mar 08, 2022•10 min•Season 4Ep. 88
The lineage of this podcast is derived from the teaching of Stanislavsky and Milton’s teacher Stella Adler, who, among other things, taught her students to aspire towards the big ideas we communicate as actors, (ideas which are far bigger than us.) This is the thrill of acting— entering a different universe, a different skin. It is always a chance for growth. “Your attitude shouldn’t be: oh, I have to build that ,” says Milton, “but rather I get to build that . Every fact of a play affords you a...
Mar 01, 2022•12 min•Season 4Ep. 87
Very few directors speak the language of acting or have any real idea about what we do. So most of them give us “effect directions,” such as: “play it angrier,” or…”the scene needs to be more intense.” But if we play “anger” or “intensity” or any result, we’ll end up playing a cliche, an idea of an experience that we’ve absorbed from watching film and television. Therefore, we have to be able to translate a performance note into something doable. Have a question for Milton? Email him at question...
Feb 22, 2022•13 min•Season 4Ep. 86
When breaking down a script, a profoundly important question to consider is: how does the time period in which this play takes place affect my character? It’s not just something you want to understand intellectually; it has to affect you experientially. The time frame is an enormous part of the given circumstances and we must take the time to consider how it influences our characters’ behavior. In this episode, Milton applies this concept to Bernie Dodd in The Country Girl, and how the 1950’s at...
Feb 15, 2022•12 min•Season 4Ep. 85
This week’s episode is an excerpt from Milton’s current script analysis class which gives us insight into how we might begin to approach a play, or any piece of text. Using one of his favorite examples, Clifford Odet’s The Country Girl , Milton introduces some fundamental principals of script analysis: the playwright writes out of his social circumstances; the playwright has something to say that is a reflection of the times in which he’s living; It’s our job to figure out: what is that reflecti...
Feb 08, 2022•11 min•Season 4Ep. 84
This week’s episode begins with an analysis of Aunjanue Ellis’ performance in the film King Richard and why it’s an example of great acting. Her interior life is so complete and rich that we, as an audience, are able to see (and more importantly, feel) the character’s struggle without any dialogue to reveal plot or exposition. How do we bring this level of depth to our work? One way is to talk out. Talk out your character’s past, talk out their unconscious struggle. This makes our work go beyond...
Feb 01, 2022•13 min•Season 4Ep. 83
