There is no question that the majority of people wish to avoid a state of conflict and drama. It can inevitably lead to anxious feelings, fear, and chaos. However, when it comes to acting auditions, conflict is necessary to a successful reading. In order to have a good audition, it is necessary for an actor to find the conflict within a story and within a character.
Perhaps one of the most common conflicts, internal conflicts are those that consist of the psyche battling between opposing desires and feelings. Persons and characters can also experience conflict externally with fate, the environment, the world, and God. And, of course, relational conflicts exist as well. Typically, an actor is only given the dialogue, a brief outline of the character’s personality, and a story overview when they are asked to read. Some form of conflict always exists in a story and personality. It is the actor’s job to find the hidden conflict and give it life in their audition.
Instability is always exciting regardless of how uncomfortable or stressful it may be. Conflict provides an element of depth and movement to a story and character. Once the desires and needs of a character have been discovered by the actor, obstacles are inevitable. That is life. All lives have hurdles which must be shaped and worked with until they cease to be difficult obstacles and become helpful participants. For example, consider “Midnight Run”. In the film, Robert De Niro is a bounty hunter who has the responsibility of finding Charles Grodin’s character. Jack, played by De Niro, needs to collect his bounty by bringing in Mardukas, played by Grodin. Jack is met with a number of conflicts including his personal insecurities, rival bounty hunters, and the infamous Mardukas.
The script may very well not have all the answers you need in order to create great conflict and emotion. To strengthen your acting audition, you may need to create a character yourself, one that has conflicting desires and needs. In this way, you will be more likely to grab onto and hold the auditor’s attention and make the performance more real for the viewer. There is nothing worse than performing a one-dimensional reading of a character with no emotion and conflict. With these skills, your auditioning skills are sure to improve.
Keep in mind that conflict typically has more than one dimension. The typical person has numerous inner demons that are in constant turmoil. Using this to your advantage during an audition will make for an exciting reading. Creating a character’s personality is far more important than the lines that are being read.
Although your character may be the only live person in the scene, there are doubtless other hidden forces affecting his or her life. Being able to bring these hidden elements to life is what will separate you from the other actors and make your audition a success. Another thing to remember about conflict. Conflict should always be slightly comedic. Levity is a part of even the deepest conflict. Neglecting to add comedy will make the reading unwatchable. With both conflict and comedy combined, your reading is sure to be a success.
Kirk Baltz has been a acting coach los angeles for more than 15 years. Kirk helps actors of all levels get the roles that they desire. You can read more about acting auditions at the actor’s intensive website.