Memorization Advice
Memorization Advice
Memorization Advice#0
Posted: 1/24/05 at 10:21pm
Hey all...
I got a pretty big lead (yay) in my school play, but I'll be honest and say it's the first time ever that I've had more than about 10 lines....my question is, how do you guys memorize large amounts of lines?? I seem to be able to remember them pretty well, but I keep panicking every time I think about dropping a line on stage....any advice?
re: Memorization Advice#1
Posted: 1/24/05 at 10:24pm
Congrats!
Advice:
Don't panic. The more nervous you get about it, the more likely you'll be to mess up (however, don't be overly confident either... that will also make you mess-up). If you drop a line, it happens. The show will go on. Just concentrate on what's going on, the scene, you're character, and don't worry too much about messing up!
re: Memorization Advice#2
Posted: 1/24/05 at 10:26pm
First off, congratulations on the role! Keep us posted on how thats going!
Yeah my advice is to not panic and get overwhelmed by it. Memorize it in portions and take small breaks so you arent overloading yourself with info. If you're tired then sleep so you'll have a fresh eye and just read over it. What sometimes helps for me is to stand in front of a mirror and practice saying it out loud a bunch of times. Just dont try to cram it all in at once or you will get very overwhelmed with all the new info. Good luck!
re: Memorization Advice#3
Posted: 1/24/05 at 10:43pm
thanks guys...that really helps...
oh! and "loud" welcome to the board..try not to get sucked in too far...
re: Memorization Advice#4
Posted: 1/24/05 at 10:47pm
thanks guys...that really helps...
oh! and "loud" welcome to the board..try not to get sucked in too far...
re: Memorization Advice#5
Posted: 1/24/05 at 11:17pm
Repetition is your best friend in the whole world! 
The better your lines are memorized, the less nervous you will end up being when showtime comes. (What play is it, out of curiosity? Congrats no matter what, though!)
re: Memorization Advice#6
Posted: 1/25/05 at 3:30pmmy acting teacher taught me to memorize by wrote? i dunno if thats someones name but anyway.. its basically saying the lines in monotone with no punctuation or any feeling.. just as if you were saying the pledge of allegiance.. works quite well with memorizing monologues, but i duno about plays
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/11/03
re: Memorization Advice#7
Posted: 1/25/05 at 5:12pm
To my way of thinking, if the words are memorized in monotone, it would be pretty difficult during rehearsals to break from that beat and not sound like you're reading out of a science book, no?
That's just my opinion... different methods work for different people. I think the sense memory advise is the best so far. Not only are you finding ways to learn the material, you're also working on character development in the process. It's like a win/win situation.
~Stewart Gilligan Griffin
Joined: 12/31/69
re: Memorization Advice#8
Posted: 1/25/05 at 5:15pmMy partner uses a technique favored by many who are more responsive to hearing than seeing - he records his lines and listens to them over and over.
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/14/05
re: Memorization Advice#9
Posted: 1/25/05 at 5:24pmDGrant - my wife does something similiar - she tapes her cues and leaves space to deliver her lines. It works for her.
Broadway Star Joined: 7/5/04
re: Memorization Advice#10
Posted: 1/25/05 at 6:16pmBreaking up my lines into smaller sections and then writing them a bunch of times helps me. It's also great to make sure not just to memorize your lines, but also to really memorize your character. That way, in the event that you do forget specific lines, at least you know where you are, and what you want so if you have to make something up, it works.!
re: Memorization Advice#11
Posted: 1/25/05 at 9:33pmI wouldn't break the lines up. Begin at the beginning and read the entire scene all the way through. Then start again at the beginning. (When you memorize a song off the radio, you don't listen to it in bits, you hear it all the way through several times). What happens when you memorize in chunks is that when you get nervous, you'll remember your lines up to the drop off point and possibly freeze.
re: Memorization Advice#12
Posted: 1/25/05 at 9:40pmnever work on your lines sitting down ... practice you lines on your feet ... walking, pacing, etc.
re: Memorization Advice#13
Posted: 1/25/05 at 9:41pm
I know this sounds crazy, but writing out the first letters of each word helps a lot. It works best once you think you know the words; you quiz yourself writing out the letters. It's extremely helpful with long monologues.
=
Iktsc, bwotfloewhal. Iwboytyktw; yqywotl. Iehwlm.
Broadway Star Joined: 12/19/04
re: Memorization Advice#14
Posted: 1/25/05 at 9:45pmI think that sometimes people can get overwhelmed because they get stressed about memorizing every single word. Go over it with the other actors until you can read through it with out stopping. Dont get hung up on every word being exact, because it will feel more natural coming out if you focus more on why you are saying it. It will also be easier to improv on the spot because you will be more in character. My confusing two cents.
re: Memorization Advice#15
Posted: 1/25/05 at 9:49pmYou gotta be careful though. Some material (Mamet, Stoppard, LaBute) does not leave much room for improvisation. Most writers don't like cutting lines or reciting the "relative idea" of the lines. I think respecting the artist and memorizing word for word is key. Who knows, that word or phrase you possibly may be skipping may be the key to your character.
Broadway Star Joined: 12/19/04
re: Memorization Advice#16
Posted: 1/25/05 at 10:17pmI completely understand that. But I think that often times you can butcher lines far more by trying to get every single word accurate. Like "Oh..........no you cant punch..oops i mean..hit him...." I dont mean paraphrase at all, I just mean like mabye accidentily switching a word around or whatever. I think that its better to be in the moment and get the lines almost perfect, then be totally focussed on getting every "the" into the line.
re: Memorization Advice#17
Posted: 1/27/05 at 1:29pmMarkCohen, that advice may work for tv or film, but not for the stage.
Broadway Star Joined: 12/19/04
re: Memorization Advice#18
Posted: 1/27/05 at 1:37pm
Haha i think you are interpretting my advice a bit differently than I mean it. I don't mean paraphrase at all.
It's just cause I've watched or work with a couple actrs who got so stressed over getting exactly every line right. I'm just saying that the odds of a lead charactor getting every single word correct in a 2 hour play where they are on stage all the time is pretty small i think.
re: Memorization Advice#19
Posted: 1/27/05 at 1:40pmNot true at all, Mark. In fact, it's their job to get every word right.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/26/04
re: Memorization Advice#20
Posted: 1/27/05 at 1:48pm
IveGottaBeME - the word is 'rote'. Dictionary definition: A memorizing process using routine or repetition without full comprehension.
An actor friend tells me that the word FULL above is the key. He believes in arriving at the first rehearsal with all the words memorized - even if you don't understand the scene. He says that will come with direction and rehearsal. He's not saying blind memorization - just don't sacrifice learning the words while you're trying to learn the scene on your own.
A click for life.
mamie4 5/14/03
Broadway Star Joined: 12/19/04
re: Memorization Advice#21
Posted: 1/27/05 at 1:51pmOh yeah, for sure in a professional production they are going to have all the words right. But the person asking was talking about her school play...thats what I was giving her advice for.
re: Memorization Advice#22
Posted: 1/27/05 at 2:17pm
Learn lines AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. I learn each scene I blocked that night when I go home. That way, you can pound the lines in your head but still have ample rehearsal time to get it right and to understand the entire work better and to work more with the beat of the words so you CAN use the proper script and make it work for you.
Don't rehearse with the book in your hand, all you can do from a book is read.
re: memorization advice#23
Posted: 1/27/05 at 2:24pm
i swear by huge amounts of pot during the pre-production and the early rehearsal process augmented by alcohol in the last weeks and then adding the opiate (if it says hydro-codone or oxy-codone on the bottle you're on the right track) of your choice during performances.
but seriously, i always used a combination of all those methods and never reallly knew my lines until i had my blocking and could rehearse it over and over again with the movement and at least some idea of what we were trying to accomplish in the scene. now, i know, "but i don't have a whole set at home!" just minimize your movements so that you're at least approximating where you're going and what you're doing so that rather than trying to think about what you're doing and why and what you're saying and where you're supposed to be onstage, you can let your body kinda feel where it's going and allow the things you're doing to occur more naturally. that way the lines become part of the whole rather than trying to just memorize words. 'course, i still made a tape all my lines and listened to it all the damn time and changed it around a lot so that it didn't always have the same rhythm.
but the drugs are always an option.
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re: memorization advice#24
Posted: 1/27/05 at 2:27pmThe drugs are a large part of papa's legend.
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