How do you navigate these nail-biting showbiz waters without shattering the confidence of the actor, coming off like a bad guy and trying to remain fair to the entire cast and impress upon the teamwork family concept of “if one fails, we all fail”. The show must go on and go on as ONE!!!
First let’s look at the problem. Does the problem lie with self-confidence to perform or external distractions? For the most part I have cast wisely with a few exceptions. How they performed in a club environment and how they take to the stage are two sides to the actor. I have found that most of the distractions have come from external forces such as lack of sleep, homework stress, family problems, finding it difficult to balance school, work, and performing. Let’s remember we are not psychoanalysts and often we don’t see it coming because we are focused on the show. When we realize there is a problem, it smacks us in the face. At this point in time, we just want to pull our hair out and walk away from the whole darn process. We come to grips when we think of the other cast members that have worked so hard. Is there a better way to deal with this? Yes…
I need to work on this section for my next play. Before you even have the actor or parent of the actor sign the commitment form, have a 1:1 sit down with the actor. The actor could be saying “yes” to you because 1) They are loyal 2) They really want to be in the play and do enjoy the whole process of performing 3) It is their social outlet and want to be around their fellow cast members 4) and/or other reasons.
When you sit down with them, have a strong conversation about the schedule and expectations. For example, “Joe, we talked about your class load and although you are telling me no problem, I’m looking at 21 college credits this semester. That is a lot of work for someone who isn’t as heavily involved in extracurricular activities”. Best bet in a situation such as this, a very small part or keeping them involved like working the house on performance night, concession stand, etc. or giving them the time off they need.
If they choose to take it on, you may have to give them a grace period. If you see it is not working out, make the decision for them and take the pressure off.
What if they are just not ready for the role you cast them in. This in my mind is worse because you cast them thinking they are ready for it. Letting them go is earth shattering and talks about a blow to self-confidence. You have two choices here.
You can be the one to give them the graceful out. You may find they feel they are not ready, too intimidated by the veteran cast, uncomfortable with their part, etc. They were hoping to have this open discussion and both director and actor can agree that they need more time and prefer smaller parts or more time in the classroom learning.
The other issue is they do wish to remain. When this happens, you must give a firm timeline regarding improvement. It is easier earlier on with rehearsal; however, I would give no more than two weeks to see something progressing. Keeping that in mind, start thinking of an understudy to take over, flipping of parts or if you are fortunate enough where you are the playwright or working directly with the local playwright, start making some dialog changes or begin to hand off sections of the performances to other actors. When you are dealing with author rights/royalties’ changes such as this cannot be made. (That is why I write my own works!!)
Other than that, what I offer is patience. When we say “yes” to the job of directing, this is all part of the job. Just remember THE SHOW MUST GO ON!!
