There are countless stories—some of them mythical at this point—about actors who go the extra mile and stay in character. We think of Daniel Day-Lewis taking a musket to Thanksgiving, Nicholas Cage eating cockroaches. Forest Whitaker stayed in character during the filming of The Last King of Scotland, even when he spoke to his wife on the phone. The question is: does it make you a better actor? If you’re wondering if you should stay in character, read on.
To stay in character is to immerse yourself in a role. It can be hugely beneficial if the role requires significant physical transformation, such as costuming or make-up, and can positively affect your ability to maintain a vocal presence or accent. Staying in character can also help your performance emotionally and psychologically. It can place you in the mindset of a character whose means and methods might differ wildly from your own. However, staying in character doesn’t guarantee a good performance—particularly if it stands in for other acting work that hasn’t been completed.
The ability to stay in character is, like so many aspects of the craft, a tool. It can be learned, improved, it can be horribly misused. Like all tools, it may not be the right fit for the job you’re doing, or the way you like to work. But it’s a fascinating facet of acting, and as you read on through this article, you’re bound to find something you can fold into your process for exciting results.
Why Stay in Character?
There are a number of reasons you might keep yourself immersed in a role. If a role is physically or vocally taxing, for example, you may find it best to maintain that aspect of your performance between takes so you don’t need to ‘find’ it again. It could be a matter of energy. You may want to maintain the momentum of a performance on set as cameras reset and the flow of a scene is interrupted. Jack Nicholson’s immersive method on The Shining is both a terrifying and effective example of this (see below.)
A lot of actors find themselves staying in character because it helps maintain the given circumstances of a scene. These are the foundational who, what, where, when, why and how questions that keep performers grounded. If these are challenging due to the nature of the script, or you’re acting against a green screen asset standing in for the real person/alien/tsunami/tentacle, it can be easier to find yourself in the circumstances and stay there.
Is Staying in Character the Same as Method Acting?
In short, no. But method acting does require some immersion into a role, so it’s easy to see where people get confused. Method acting originally referred to the system (0r “method”) of acting devised by Russian theatre practitioner Konstantin Stanislavski. His work was a reaction to the naturalist and realist movements of the late nineteenth century which reflected audience desire to see ‘real’ stories and interactions onstage. However, Stanislavski’s work evolved and was modified by his proteges; what we think of as method acting today can refer to any and all of these teachings.
Method acting has a bit of a dangerous reputation. A lot of this comes from people’s perception that to be a method actor you have to ‘live as the actor, feel what they feel and get lost in the role.’ In truth, method acting is about approaching acting with a system for unlocking emotion and creating truthful performances—not becoming possessed by Hamlet. Method acting also has a reputation for being a ‘selfish’ way of acting in an ensemble: actors such as Sir Anthony Hopkins has decried method acting and staying in character as “A pain in the ass.”
Admittedly, there are some prime examples of this. But if method acting, or even staying in character can help you do your job better, everybody on a production wins. Just don’t think you’re missing out if you don’t stay in character. And don’t use method acting as an excuse to be a bad co-worker.
Ways to Stay in Character
We often think about staying in character as an all-or-nothing exercise: a total immersion into which you might throw yourself and never climb back out. The truth is, there are multiple ways to stay in character that you might find hugely beneficial to your process as an actor. Let’s look at some specific tactics you can fold into your process as an actor—if you’re not doing these already:
Voice and Accent
The vocal quality of a character can be extremely difficult to find, let alone maintain. The same can be said for their accent—which often requires an actor to find and maintain a different vocal posture with their tongue. Maintaining your character’s voice and accent can help you normalise this and feel more natural in your performance. It may also help you unlock interesting tactics of performance in regard to the rhythm and pacing of their line delivery.
Posture and Movement
As with voice and accent, maintaining the physicality of your character can immerse you in the role, as well as help you discover their innate qualities. If your character is confident and headstrong, you might try leading from the chest to match their bravado. This may, in turn, affect the choices you make elsewhere in your performance to better align with their personality.
Costume
We’ve talked elsewhere on this site about the power of costume. You can try on your character’s clothes or shoes for the first time and, just, kinda, find them. Tying your performance to a few items of clothing isn’t as crazy as it sounds. The very feeling of them against your body can give you insights as to how your character lives, moves and thinks. Use this to get into their physicality and mindset.
Energy
If your character is in an emotionally heightened state, you may wish to keep them there on set or in rehearsal. This relates back to our discussion on the given circumstances, and can also help you retain a sense of continuity between scenes or takes. To do this, consider the moment before the scene begins: what energy/emotion/baggage/wants is your character bringing into the scene with them?
Relationships
This is a famous aspect of method acting and character immersion. If your character dislikes another character, you might try carrying that over into life between takes. If your character is a solitary figure socially, you may wish to skip a party or two and feel that sense of loneliness. The only issue here is not to take things too far: your actions ‘in character’ can extend negatively to your acting colleagues. And they didn’t necessarily consent to being part of your process. Approach with respect, and talk to your castmates about your approach.
Emotion
Feeling the emotions of your character, or using your own to fuel their journey in a story, is nothing new. It’s called emotional memory, and is actually an important tenet of Stanislavski’s early teachings. However, steeping in the emotions of your character should come with a firm warning. It can be dangerous to sit in heightened emotional states for a long time. And it’s worth noting that Stanislavski actually abandoned this aspect of his early methodology when he got older.
Think Like Your Character
Finally, the character work all actors should do. Think about what your character wants: their objective in the scene. This is the reason your character shows up in the first place, not to mention the reason the writer who wrote them brought them into being. Determine your character’s objective and sit with that—don’t ever forget it, don’t ever let it go. This should sit with you throughout the entire process, as your job as the actor is to help them achieve their objective against all odds.
It’s also worth thinking about your character’s actions and adverbs. These are how (the action, or verb) the character acts, and in what manner (adverb.) Sometimes a character’s path forward is simple enough: they have to threaten X to get Y. But in playing this, you may find the character has no stomach for violence or intimidation. How does your character feel about the pursuit of their wants?
Are You a Better Actor if you Stay in Character?
At the end of the day, it’s up to you. If staying in character works for you, then go for it. If any of the strategies outlined in this article sound interesting or helpful, then why not give them a go?
Character immersion can help you find an affinity with the character you are playing. This is especially important if the character is villainous, or their actions and motivations don’t ally with your own. However, staying in character is a methodology, same as any other you might employ in your craft. Find out what works for you, use what’s helpful and leave the rest.
Acting is a complex art form. It asks you not only to constantly develop your method, but to challenge it with new and conflicting ideas. Take from every style and process whatever you can. Use what’s effective. And the minute you find yourself comfy and confident … challenge yourself again.
Good luck!
