Every actor has a different process for learning their lines. I alone have a few different styles which I use depending on what I have to learn.
If it is quick dialogue, short responses, I usually just work on memorization and then I move to playing with my fellow actor to get the beat/rhythm of the dialogue.
If it is longer dialogue, full sentences, conversations etc. I tend to learn it in sections. Reading mostly but still heavy on the "line drill". Again working with fellow actors to get rhythm.
For solo shows, I am constantly running it with my director and tying the movements to blocking. Thus the lines start to fall into place before I think of memorization/learning.
For Asher Lev, I have monologue after monologue. Quite extensive, most of the play is me talking. I was unsure how to approach this much solo work, as the other actors are on stage and integral to the scenes, so the director can not focus with me as in a one man show. I thought about it for a few days and decided to try something new. I would simply read and read and read some more. Constantly reading this play.
Well as I moved to line drill I realized most of my lines were in a great place and ready to go. I found something new, or found it again as I had forgotten it, the more you read a piece, the deeper the understanding gets. With this in mind, I began reading even more frequently. In doing so I am finding Asher Lev as a person, which makes it easier for me to move him out of my head and onto the stage. It is an interesting process delving into a character this way, one that I am enjoying.
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