Opinions Wanted: Directing and performing in a show at the same time

There have been many, many theater productions and films for that matter that have had a director actually star or co-star. Yes it's been done successfully and yes they have a right to do it as long as it's been agreed upon with the producers/creators of the piece or if the director *is* also the producer/creator of the piece.

If the latter is the case then the director can do whatever the hell he wants.

Updated On: 12/16/14 at 04:14 PM

Let's say I'm directing a local production of Nine and I cast myself as Claudia. If you were a woman who nailed "Unusual Way" at your audition and wound up in the ensemble, would you feel slighted? I guess that's part of what I'm trying to figure out.

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Well there's a difference between casting a show and thinking you would be best for the role, and casting a show knowing that you are going to be the role. I think that it would be unfair to refuse to see anybody else for the role, and it is a better idea to care about the show most.

Yes, tazber, I realized that after I posted it. I should have said "not cast at all" instead of cast in the ensemble. Sorry!

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A director needs to a have a wide perspective of the whole show, which can be tough when you are in the scene. I also think that it has potential to get kind of toxic to be sharing a scene with someone and also be directing them. It might create a kind of unbalance when rehearsing the scene.

Having said that, if a director/actor feels up to it, and is professional about it, it can definitely be pulled off effectively. As for the "moral" question, I think when you get to it, that's just show business for you. People cast people they know, and sometimes they cast themselves. It can be a problem if the director is not right for the role, but again, that's "the biz" for ya. If nailed "Unusual Way" and they cast the director instead of you, and least you know it wasn't your problem.

My favorite example of this gone horribly wrong was this director who cast herself as Kim in Miss Saigon. She was pushing 35 at the time. Not very applicable for a character who is supposed to be 17. THAT bugged me.

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There have been some famous success stories (Anthony Newley musicals), but I agree with JBroadway that it's generally a bad idea.

One of the reasons I stopped acting and started directing in my late teens was that I realized that even while on stage, my mind's eye saw the entire production, not the viewpoint of my character.

Acting and directing are simply different points of view.

Again, as has been previously stated, and to offer a slight spin...

Casting is never fair, casting is ALWAYS subjective. There is no "best" for a role. There is right for a role, there is wrong for a role. There is right for a production / ensemble, there is wrong for a production / ensemble. The idea is to cast the person who is right for the role AND the production / ensemble.

As far as perspective, yes... a director has to have one POV, the actor a completely different POV. Some people are capable of having one and understanding the other. Some people can have one and no understanding of how to formulate the other. A lucky few can operate with both, and even fewer can maintain both in the same production. It really depends upon the person. Sme people can manage both incredibly well, as a general rule.. For some people, they may be able to do it, but only for one particular show.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a director casting themselves in a production. The same standard applies to to them as to casting anyone else... Serve the show. And, I would assume and hope, the director would be far more strict and hold themselves to higher standard than anyone else on stage because they want the company to see that it is not merely an act of vanity.

"Let's say I'm directing a local production of Nine and I cast myself as Claudia. If you were a woman who nailed "Unusual Way" at your audition and wound up in the ensemble, would you feel slighted? I guess that's part of what I'm trying to figure out."

Sure, particularly if the director isn't delivering in the role. And the same if the person not delivering what I did as Claudia wasn't the director, but the director's friend, or a perennial favorite in the company, or, for that matter Nicole Kidman!

But that's show business.

Indeed. Also Chaplin, Keaton, Olivier, Truffaut, Allen, Branagh, Brooks, Rock...

Updated On: 12/17/14 at 01:20 PM

Anyway, I've done this. It wasn't a smart move. I got away with it because it was a low-budget production of a one-act play where I was onstage the entire night, done with minimal technical demands. I also wrote the damn thing. It was...about as close to close to a mess as you can get without something actually being a mess. There's an inevitable loss of perspective which can very much damage a show, and your own performance. There are exceptions to the rule, but it's a bad idea.

Even though it's obvious, it bears noting that most of Henrik's examples are film directors, who have the benefit of playback on set, and with the exception of Welles and Olivier I don't think many of them directed themselves onstage. (Branagh has, but I think usually co-directing with someone else