Playing Someone You Hate In Amateur Theatre

Sorry I've been away...

It's been a busy couple of weeks. Those of you who read this blog will know that I've been involved in Codsall Dramatic Society's latest production, "The Memory Of Water". 

Now this has been very draining, for reasons that I haven't made clear, because it would have been a bit of a spoiler. The reason it was more draining than usual is because I couldn't stand him!

Look at this guy! Eugh!

The character was that of Mike, a man who's been two timing his wife for the last 5 years.

I'll just let that sink in for a second. This man has been cheating on his wife for 5 years! With the same woman! But his wife's ill so thats ok. Wait, NO IT'S NOT! That's worse! I seriously could not stand this man. His every line had an agenda, it was sickening to even think the lines, never mind speak them!

Now, this is an inevitability. At some point, you will have to play a character that you don't like. That doesn't mean I have to like it! So I'm going to rage for a little bit on how much I hate playing characters like this. Then maybe next week when I've calmed down, I'll be able to see some silver lining on this thunder cloud...

Getting into their head

Managing to get into the head of someone you despise is very difficult. Now thankfully with Mike, he seemed to have some personality. It's just that it wasn't a personality I'd ever want to be associated with. He is aggressive when he doesn't get his own way, resolute in not budging an inch, and more and more throughout the play comes across as spineless. Now I'm not saying that he has no redeeming features, it's just that they were buried under layer after layer of issues. Getting into the mind of a character like this is grueling. It's nigh on impossible. No one would ever like to imagine themselves like this. Some characters are simple. Those that you don't like are among the hardest to play. It's physically and emotionally draining.

The Lingering After Effects

Mike as a character stuck with me. Challenging as he was, in order to make him believable, I had to bury myself in the character. I had no choice, there's only certain ways you can do this. This makes you hate even yourself. I looked in the mirror, and he looked back, with his smug, womanising grin. I couldn't stand it. So what did I do? I shaved. I got a hair cut, I vowed not to wear that suit jacket until the look of it no longer reminded him of me. That is the lasting effect. It makes you doubt yourself. By getting into the character, you start to associate yourself with him. Sure, in a few weeks, I might look like him again, but by then I hope I'll have moved on and forgotten. 

Grrrrrr...

I might have calmed down in a bit. I think maybe I'll go and have a drink, a hot bath, and maybe next week, I'll be able to come back to this in a different light.

Chris is an active member of Codsall Dramatic Society. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter, @CodsallDramSoc.