To Hear or Not to Hear?

This summer I helped a friend shoot a documentary film.  One of the tasks he asked me to do was be the eye line for people he interviewed.  This seemed like such a simple task; however, it proved to be one of the hardest things I did all summer and one of the most rewarding.

The catch to being an eye line is that you need to engage the interview subject.  You need to respond with body language, nods of the head, smiles, quizzical looks etc. By doing so the interview subject becomes more lively more engaged and in turn more camera friendly.  This simple job is an important one.  On the surface it seems so simple, sit in this chair and visually respond to the person talking so they feel you are taking them in. But what if you couldn't understand a word of anything that was being said?  That is the problem I faced - all the interviews were in a foreign language.  Initially it was very hard to stay focussed, to even stay awake, I had no idea what was being said, it bored me, I was at a loss and then I turned it into an acting game.

Listening is one of the greatest actor tools.  To truly hear what your scene partner is saying, to receive it with vulnerability so that you can respond with truth in your line is a necessity to doing this job well.  Being corny it is the question To Hear or Not to Hear?  So as I sat there listening to the gibberish of the second interviewee I was reminded of the gibberish acting game.  Two people get up with different objectives and through made up gibberish and sounds try to communicate what they want to each other.    (Side bar - there is a great TYA play, Tete a Tete, by Robert Morgan, that does this wonderfully and sends a poignant message about our environment) This acting exercise always fails until someone stops fighting to be heard and changes the tactic to listening.  And so I began to listen.

I was reminded that listening is more than hearing words; it is about hearing the tone, the inflection, the pace - it is seeing the body language and following the flow of the speech.  It is about engaging someone's eyes and looking into their soul as they share their story. As all this came to me, as I took in every foreign word I began to understand passion, hurt, love, joy and an on going myriad of emotions from these wonderful people answering questions I knew nothing about.  All of a sudden I was awake and engaged, all of a sudden the interviewees became people rather than talking heads.  It was such a rewarding experience to sit and be the eye line for these people.  I had the chance to observe people tell some of the things that move their souls and although I do not know the details I know they were moved and in turn so was I.

So looking back on this I am reminded that as an actor if I listen, to everything my fellow actor tells me,  as they say that monologue for the millionth time, and if they listen to me, then we will engage, and there will be energy and flow and the play wrights words will come to life and so will the audience.

LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN

DO!

In the immortal words of Master Yoda

"No! Try not! Do or do not. There is no try." (Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back)

More to read in the coming days.

Asher Lev X: Closing

And so another show comes to the end.  Our last two shows were sold out, we had wonderful reviews in the Jewish Tribune and the North York Mirror (reposted in my last entries), our cast, crew and director were happy with our work.

What does it feel like to have a show close?  It is always different.  There is a commonality though, a bitter sweet mix of joy and sorrow.  Joy that the show is coming to a close and that it is time to move on to another project, another challenge.  Sorrow that it is coming to a close and it will not be done again; that this run is finished and so the story and characters lie to rest.

This show in particular for me is a strong mix of those emotions. As the run progressed, as is always the case, I understood Asher more and more.  His story rang true with me, or was more engrained in my psyche.  The words that flowed through me had that much more power, it was that much easier to convey the message to those watching.  This message, this story, for me personally, is a universal truth that I loved telling.  In addition to that, the role was phenomenal.  I was supported by a fabulous cast including Mark Albert and Tracey Beltrano and I could not have done the show without their great talent.  With that said the piece is written to highlight and put weight on Asher, or the actor playing him.  It was fabulous to have a role of this depth and meat.  Long powerful monologues, in which I visibly brought audience members to tears, moved and challenged thought processes, and overall got to shine as an actor.  It is one of my quintessential roles.  I will miss it.

This role also has value as it is a mile stone for me.  I joked with cast and friends "Ten years ago I was hired to hold a spear on a stage, because I wasn't good enough for dialogue!"  So true.  This piece tangibly marks my growth and hilights all the training, work and dedication I put forward as an actor.  Thank you universe for this gift.  

On to the next project.  Stay tuned.

Asher Lev IX: Another Review

 The North York Mirror / InsideToronto.com
Nov 15, 2012  |   

FRONT ROW CENTRE: Teatron brings ‘Asher Lev’ to North York stage

MARK ANDREW LAWRENCE
 

    

The struggles faced by all artists have inspired many books, films and plays.

In My Name is Asher Lev, the title character is a young man whose passion for drawing arouses the ire of his traditional Hasidic parents. They are particularly aghast when after a visit to a museum the boy becomes fascinated with drawing nudes and images of the crucifixion.

Adapted from Chaim Potok’s 1972 novel, playwright Aaron Posner has Asher narrating his own story, thereby allowing Geoff Kolomayz to portray Asher as an adult as well as a teenaged boy. Kolomayz is terrific in bringing the teenaged angst to the forefront. His delivery is natural and heartfelt, and whether talking directly to the audience or addressing other characters, he gives a charismatic performance that sweeps the viewer into his world.

We are on his side from the beginning and this makes his ultimate success a particularly moving development.

Posner’s script is designed for three performers. So Mark Albert must create four distinct characters of contrasting views that help underscore Asher’s internal conflict. He is Asher’s stern father – a man who is unable to understand art, and therefore not accepting of his son’s artistic leanings.

He also portrays Asher’s uncle and the Rebbe who encourages Asher to study with an established artist, Jacob Kahn. As Jacob, Albert instructs the young man: “As an artist you are responsible to no one and to nothing, except to yourself and to the truth as you see it.”

In the triple roles of Asher’s mother, benefactor and model, Tracey Beltrano displays her multi-faceted talents. She brings a touchingly forlorn look to the role of the mother who spends hours staring out the window waiting for her husband to return from travels across Europe building Yeshivas and saving Jews from Russian persecution. She is effective in showing her tough side as she commands Asher to have respect for his father: “Kibbud Ov.”

Ari Weisberg has designed and directed the show to play on an open stage that serves the multiple locations effectively. He has also worked with his trio of performers to create affecting performances, and the production is enhanced by Noam Bergman’s incidental music and Poe Limkul’s evocative lighting.

Weisberg can also claim credit for allowing Toronto audiences a chance to see this play so soon. Earlier this year it was presented at the Long Warf Theatre in New Haven and as Teatron’s production was opening, another production was starting previews in New York with an official off-Broadway opening set for later this month.

Teatron’s production of My Name Is Asher Lev plays in the Studio theatre at the Toronto Centre for the Arts through Sunday, Nov. 18. For tickets, visit www.teatrtontheatre.com or call the box-office at 416-733-0545.

Asher Lev VIII: Review

A scene from the Teatron Theatre play My Name is Asher Lev. (Photo: Suri Epstein)

The Jewish experience in 20th century North America was often a battleground between the forces of tradition and modernity. My Name is Asher Lev, the 1972 novel by Chaim Potok, examined this conflict through the story of a young gifted artist whose creative drive leads to heartbreaking conflict with his strict Chassidic family.

The Teatron Theatre’s latest offering is Aaron Posner’s stage adaptation of Potok’s landmark novel. With its outstanding acting, stark set and realistic wardrobe, My Name is Asher Lev is a gripping production that hooks the audience with its pathos and tension until its wrenching climax.

Set in 1950’s Brooklyn, the play follows the internal and familial conflict experienced by Asher Lev starting from his early childhood. Young Asher sneaks visits to the art museum, where he secretly sketches Christian-themed paintings. His father’s discovery of his sketchbook threatens to completely destroy the delicate equilibrium of this fragile family.

The talented Geoff Kolomayz as Asher Lev, intersperses scenes and monologues, which relate this painful struggle between his deep attachment to his traditional family and his artistic calling. Kolomayz deftly slips back and forth into scenes of Asher Lev’s family and professional life as we watch his struggles grow and poison the relationships in his family. Kolomayz’s portrayal is riveting as it seamlessly incorporates expressions of innocence, passion and confusion.

Asher Lev’s father Aryeh is played by Mark Albert, an accomplished actor with three other roles in the play. As Asher’s father, he travels the world in service of his rebbe, and is incapable of understanding his son’s burning artistic passion.

“There are similarities to the Fiddler on the Roof theme,” Albert told the Jewish Tribune. “The challenge is where can you depart from religion and remain and keep your faith.”

Asher’s mother Rivkeh, played by the talented Tracey Beltrano, tries to support her son, but is ultimately limited by the fact that she belongs to a community that is completely removed from the individualist ethic of the 20th century artist.

The anguished Asher Lev, meanwhile, is torn between love for his family and the demand of his artistic genius. He describes his gift as ‘demonic but divine.’ Explaining his inability to communicate with his father, the tortured young man cries out to his mother, “it’s like explaining colours to a blind man.”

“This particular play fits right into our mandate,” said Ari Weisberg, Teatron’s artistic director. “We are the only theatre in Canada that not only focuses on Jewish themes but also does that while preserving Jewish values.”

My Name is Asher Lev will be at the Toronto Centre for the Arts from Nov. 7 through Nov. 18.

Article Title: Play Tackles Forces of Tradition and Modernity

Taken from the Jewish Tribune, Nov 6 2012.  Suri Epstein, Correspondent