If you haven’t heard of sense memory, it might be
worth looking into! When it comes to maintaining a healthy emotional life
while still being able to perform as needed, sense memory seems to work for a
large number of talent.
The basic concept behind sense memory work is that
sensory cues such as touching your skin in a certain place and manner can cause
a specific emotion to be readily available. For example, one of my actors
can cry on cue by gently rubbing her bicep. Sounds weird? Well, our
major senses are readily connected with our emotional life!
Other techniques find actors so far into character
when they are at their best performance-wise, that they struggle to get out of
character in their personal lives. If you are in Leave It To Beaver, that
might be nice for everyone around you, but goodness forbid you have a character
who is cynical, negative, or downright violent! The bottom line is that
talent who can find a way to separate their professional and personal lives
(and personalities) will have more healthy and longer lasting friendships . . .
and maybe even better publicity.
This technique may work for some, and it may not
work for others. Like most crafts, talent need to try and experience
various techniques to find what functions best for them overall. In smaller
markets, it may not be a well developed craft or idea just yet. To find
out more about sense memory workshops, google it and start asking around in
your area.
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