THE WHELAN RECORDING TECHNIQUE – GETTING STARTED
WRT - BASIC
Central to this idea is the fact that there are three basic moves an actor can make, and that they are a response to the emotional content of the line. In acting, the emotional content of the line will move you in relation to scene mates,
1: AWAY FROM----REPELLED
2: TOWARD----IMPELLED
3: TO REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE----COMPELLED
I call them. RIC's and will go into more detail about them later.
To begin using the technique, take a recorder (digital is best) and any number of actors involved in any script, for any medium. In our case here, two actors and a three-page script will be used
Sit the actors around a table and have them read the script to get all of the major Given Circumstances. Then actors read it again, only this time, audio record the read. In those cases where you’re handicapped by time just give the actors their major Givens (They can pick up the other givens as they go along). After givens are given have actors immediately record the scene. As quickly as it is recorded, have the actors get up and act it out to the playback of the recording they just made. That's it. Tell them not to move their lips. It is, and it isn't, that simple. Actually, I've spent the better part of the last 20 years developing and refining this technique. What follows is the result of that work.
A writer in Miami subtitled this, "The don't-move-your-lips technique." I wasn't too thrilled with that, but had she called it the, “Get-out-of-your-head technique” I wouldn't have minded.
The script should be experienced simultaneously:
Physically,
Intellectually
Emotionally
From Character, immediately.
Think PIE, like a nice big slice of your favorite PIE. Hoping not to get too cute, the PIE feeds RIC. All these networks operating simultaneously create the impetus for and the energy needed to fulfill the Repels- Impels - Compels.
The concept of the Physical, Intellectual and Emotional networks ( PIE) runs throughout this work. A true understanding of these various Networks and how they interrelate will greatly fortify your knowledge of, and confidence in, the MAS approach. What you are doing with this technique is integrating many aspects of character that traditionally were psychologically-intellectually broken up into little pieces and then put back together later. That method often succeeded in spite of itself, only because actors worked so hard. This way, it (PIE) all develops at once. The process is highly integrated and very organic.
From here on I'll be doing a very detailed step-by-step guide. It may be too detailed for some. I'll ask that you go through it my way this first time, and then play with it any way you want. I don't follow this format all the time, but it will be useful for you to get many of the major points at once. In this example, I will outline a first rehearsal with two actors doing a 3 page scene, working for about two hours. It's time for the first recording for run-through.
SET UP FOR FIRST RECORDING
The first time actor’s record it should be in front of cast or class, if one exists, or a friendly third eye. Depending on the experience level, actors will often feel some degree of wanting/needing to make eye contact. They mustn’t do that; they must keep their eyes on the script at all times. This can be overwhelming in some, and even though they have been warned against it, it's another thing when you’re in combat. This conditioning (attempting to make eye contact) is strongly ingrained in experienced actors, but it has to be broken and a strong monitor is almost a necessity at this beginning stage of the work.
If you're actors, without a monitor of some sort, you must be vigilant that your eyes do not leave the script for any reason. Should you slip, give yourself a mental slap and get back as fast as you can to doing the exercise. Actually, a little physical slap would set the conditioning quicker. This is the time for your Visual Learning Modality to do its job. Don’t reject it or interfere with its process. It is not only you, but everybody you are working with that will pay the price and that price is greatly reduced creative possibilities.
If you're a director/teacher, should you see this happening, position yourself where the actor will see you when they look up, and firmly point to the script or just walk over and put your finger on the script. Side coaching such as, well what can I say, "Keep your eyes on the script," should help the actor out of that dilemma in short order. Remember that this is a Learning Styles based acting system and this is a very important step in the use of the Visual Learning Modality. Don't kill the system, it will work for you. Play by the rules.
It will also be useful that all actors see the first run-through. I say this here because, as you get deeper into the system, actors are often sent off to work on their own, or at least to record on their own. They don't always see other actor’s scenes. Witnessing any Side Coaching that may take place and any short discussion that might follow the run-through will help the recording of the rest of the group. It will also begin the training of all of the actor if they are instructed to watch to see that actors take all of the emotional impulses they receive. Did they deny a RIC? Did they lose concentration, i.e. break character?
Just be sure if one of the group wants to comment after the scene is finished, that whatever they say to the actors, if it even remotely sounds like, “I would have done it blah blah blah” cut it off immediately. Explain that if there is a moment in question, it should be presented as a question, such as does the actor recall what they were feeling at that moment? If it turns out that they don't, well then they don't, forget it and go on.
Actors should realize that once they get a part the character is in control, they are hitchhikers, along for the ride, but without any control over how fast, slow, turns, stops, starts etc., whatever the character’s impulses might lead him/her to make, you just go with it.
So now go over:
BASIC RULES FOR RECORDING While there are several rules for recording and more in relation to the run-through, they are quickly absorbed and need only be referred to the first few times you do this. The logic behind them is fairly obvious and that makes them easy to remember.
Black out stage directions. (Notes in the script, in parentheses, telling actors when to sit, stand, or smile.) That was the past, another director, another actor. It's your part now, do it your way. If a stage direction said cry and you laughed, you weren’t “wrong.” You may never laugh on that line again, but if your impulse at that moment inspired you to laugh, you did the right thing. You allowed it, you explored, you took a chance. Good for you. The only way to be wrong is to force something that you, as an actor, decided would be cool to try. Though this is not always wrong, in this case it is definitely a violation.
Put the recorder (microphone) in a position so that all actors are cleanly recorded. Get a recording that can be heard from any part of the playing area. If you are in a theatre that has a house system, do the play back through it.
Do a sound check.
Record three or four lines and then play it back to make sure you're recording. Technical mess-ups happen, and too much time gets wasted when you go through the whole thing, only to find that for some reason you weren't recording. Do this every time you record. I've had it work perfectly three times in a row, and on the fourth it didn't record. So sound check every time. Digital recorders and a few small speakers are more than ample for most spaces.
Only do one take.
If you mess up a line, no big deal. Keep on going. If you stop to fix that line, your partner is going to demand a second take on some line of his/hers till you waste a great deal of time on something that should not be in your head right now, i.e. performance. This is first day, first time, one take, that's the rule.
Don't rush the reading while recording. Be emotionally correct, but the natural tendency of an actor approaching a new script is to rush it. If you walk past an audition, and you see an actor beating his head against the wall, walk up to him and say, ”You rushed it, didn't you?” (90 out of 100 times you'll be right)
Stay on the script.
You’ve heard this but hear it again. This is a very important part of the Learning Styles program. The visual learning modality is in full force here and must be accommodated 100% in order to achieve maximum effectiveness. Read every word just the way it's written. Don't try to make eye contact; just read what is on the page; stay on the script. By the way, never say a word unless you know what it means. If there's such a word in the script, look it up, or ask the director, teacher, casting agent, whomever you’re reading for.
Don't try to act
Acting, as we’ve known it, is a Preplanned cognitive function and destroys any potential for spontaneous, intuitive behavior, such as humans are want to do. Don't force anything. Don't deny anything, but don't work for anything. Just read it and let it happen.
Never use the same recording twice.
Always use a fresh recording because, whether blatant or subtle, in doing the scene the actors grew in awareness of their character and the relationship. That growth will manifest itself in the next recording.
FINAL PREP FOR FIRST RUN-THROUGH
Remember that you, the actor, are a hitchhiker, you are along for the ride but you don't have any control over how fast or slow, when turns are made, stops, starts etc., wherever the character’s impulses might lead him/her you just go with it. You don’t borrow somebody’s car and then ask them if they want to go with.
You have your recording, and whatever you've got for set and props should now be in place. It's important that you make some attempt to at least fake a set and scrounge, if necessary, some props: three chairs can be a wall, a single plant can be a forest or a garden, a stick can be a gun, etc.
You're ready for your first run-through, but you must know that there are rules here too. Don't memorize these rules or take a test on them before you do it, just read them and go.
BASIC RULES FOR RUN-THROUGH
Don't perform. You are not to consider what you are doing as being important to anyone except yourself and your partner. Don't force anything. Don't deny anything, but don't work for anything. Discount performance 100%.
Don't move your lips. This is so important and it seems to give some actors a great deal of trouble when they first encounter the technique. What you must understand is that the whole point of the technique is to have you fully focused on the character and her relationship to the other characters at that moment in time. Sometimes actors move their lips without even knowing it. This is a sure sign that they are not in character, that they are in their heads as an actor.
They are not only out of character, but they are in the past as an actor, trying to remember what they said so as to lip sink it in the future. How could anything honest or interesting happen when an actor is so far away from what is going on at the moment? Directors must watch for this and stop it quickly. Actors, when you are working without a director and you see your partner moving his lips, realize you're up there by yourself and it makes no sense to continue. It's like playing tennis with yourself. You hit the ball but there is nobody there to hit it back. Gently make the other actor aware of what is happening to him. The best way is to triple your own involvement with the moment. Usually that's enough to get the other actor back on track. If that doesn’t work, hand them this book and ask them to read that section again.
Don't negate any impulse unless it will make the other actor bleed, or walk funny.
Note: I would never want to do or say anything that would restrict an actor’s spontaneity, but how far that goes is something the actors discuss before they start the work. To put it another way, spontaneity is not an excuse for sexual harassment. Beyond that, if you're in a scene that is confrontational, anticipate possible physicality and resolve it beforehand. A stage combat class should be an early part of any actor training program. If you’ve been taught how to fall down etc. without hurting yourself you might just keep from busting your butt should you be intuitively, spontaneously, inspired to do so.
Don't put any obligation on yourself, other than responding to the emotional stimulus of the script from as much of the character as you have at that point. When I say as much of the character I’m recognizing that actors will get ideas about character as they read. This has to happen, and it is all you have to start with. Beware/be aware that that conception is very superficial. It has to be, you just got the character. Once you start acting out to the recording, the contact with the other actor/actors will almost always change the character's emotions from the way you saw her while reading. In other words, the character you "meet" while reading may be very different from the character you meet once you're on your feet. Let go of your original intellectual impression and go with what you're feeling at the exact moment you look at or touch that other actor. It's not as obvious as it sounds, or as easy. Guard your concentration. Stay in the moment.
Don't stop yourself from eating, drinking, smoking, sucking on a lollipop, or anything that would normally keep you from talking, just because you are talking on the record.
Note: During a Miami workshop, a student working the technique took a long drink of whiskey while his voice was speaking on the record. During the discussion, after the scene finished, a student said he couldn't do that. The scene was far enough along that I knew the actors could hit most of the dialogue, so I told them do it again right away. When they got to that point in the script, since they were running with dialogue, the actor of course could not drink. However, the tension of a man wanting a drink very badly was in the actors eyes, hands, back, and feet. It had not been there before he had taken the impel/impulse to drink while WRT-ing the scene. The situation went from passive, i.e. not drinking, to active, energetically suppressing the desire to drink. Changing Passive to Active choices is an important part of an actor’s awareness and will be explored in a deeper fashion later in this book.
Do maintain contact with your partner: eyes, hands, feet, with props (light a cigarette, pour a drink), with the set (look out the window, throw pebbles in the lake).
Don't be literal in expressing the RIC's. Let them explode. Impulse is art. Follow it blindly in rehearsal, and discipline it in performance, but never negate it. Negating creative impulse takes so much energy that you will appear spastic.
What do I mean by non-literal RIC'S? Let's say you're playing a shy guy, who somehow gets invited into the apartment of the girl of his dreams. All of a sudden he gets the impulse to scream, bounce off the couch, and tackle and kiss her. Do it, as long as it doesn't make her bleed or walk funny. The fact that the character's personality would only let him respond to that impel with a few halting steps in her direction is what makes him him. If however you fulfill the impulse, physically and emotionally, letting it fill you completely, later when the more dominant aspects of character start to control the style of the characters movement, the audience should see beyond those few halting steps in her direction. The audience will see the dynamic tension of his denying the desired impulse to bounce off the couch, tackle and kiss her. Keep in mind that her impulse may be to slap you silly.
Focus on your emotions.
How do I feel saying that? "How do I feel hearing that? Let the emotion move you. Repel-Impel-Compel.
Guard your concentration.
With all this newfound freedom you might be tempted to think about what you did, or what is coming up, instead of what you're feeling right at the moment. Don't! No third eyeing yourself!
Do make hand and body gestures, verbal sounds without speech. Feel free to laugh, cry, grunt, stick your tongue out, point, whistle, scream, etc. But be careful, don't get so loud that you can't clearly hear the dialogue coming off the recording.
Don't stop for any reason once you start the recording. Stay in character until it's over.
ACTORS ARE NEVER BOUND BY ANYTHING THAT IS ON THE RECORDING
It is of utmost importance that actors fully understand this point.
The following story should make that point crystal clear.
MET STORY
Sometimes actors miss an all-important point regarding how they are to respond to the voices coming off the recording. This is as good an example as you're ever going to get of the proper way to understand how to work with this aspect of the WRT. It came out of a demonstration of the WRT I was doing at the Met Theatre in LA. I'd been trying to get some actors I knew who were on the board there to take a look at the WRT for a few years. I finally got it set up and one of the actors who was going to demonstrate it gets a feature in Arizona. . The other actor has some kind of a problem and I replaced her with Angela West, a wonderful actress from my building. I replaced the male character with a guy getting in a car in front of my building. When I yelled, “Hey, you an actor?” he said “Yeah” and we were off for the theatre.
The scene I planned to use for the demonstration was a very heavy emotional scene. I don't remember the name, but some of you will know it immediately. It is a social worker talking to a woman who had lost her child because she and her boyfriend had abused him. The last abuse being holding the kid’s hand on the burner of the stove until the child had severe burns.
I explained the process while the actors went to the green room to record the scene. They finished recording and came out, we set the scene and ran it. The actors found a few rich moments, which is all you look for the first time through. They went back to record and I talked some more and answered a few questions. The actors returned and we ran it again. The scene was much more energetic and the actors were starting to connect. They went back to record and this time the energy coming out of the green room forces me to comment on it. It's loud and it sounds like things might be falling down. People from the theatre are looking concerned. The actors finished this noisy recording and came out, we set it up and this time, something really lovely happened.
There is a section where, on the recording, the social worker is screaming that the woman will never see her child again, ever! We could hear them recording these lines and on the recording she is screaming back at him wildly and then he screams back at her. When they get to that part of the scene where the social worker says she'll never see the kid, it all changed. The actress was way into the character and when she looked at him as he said she would never see her son again, though she was screaming a response on the recording, she collapsed in a way that only a mother could. Every ounce of energy drained from her, she sank to the floor, wrapped her arms around her legs, buried her head in her knees, and started crying softly. She is screaming on the recording, smashing things, but the actress being fully in the moment found an overwhelming truth from the character. What happened next was equally as powerful. The social worker, looking at this distraught woman weeping on the floor, though he was ranting loudly on the recording, walked slowly over to her, knelt down next to her, took her head gently in his hands and started rocking her sensitively back and forth while stroking her hair softly. I cried. I'm serious, it was a moment of pure theatre.
So, it's what is happening at the moment, and not what's on the recording. You have no obligation to what's on that recording other than to get the lines from it. The truth is that each recording provides clues to character that come out in the voice with each succeeding recording. Those clues, along with the emotion of the moment, will usually break through for any character. We were still early in the work and the characters changed with each successive recording. The actors never replayed that moment. However, the value of using the freedom WRT allows to explore any impulse was deeply ingrained in the actors and I believe everyone there. Creatively that moment had previously been played with great harshness and stridency, full of anger from both sides but, thereafter the new colors of despair in the mother and compassion in the social worker were present and contributed greatly to the advancement of the scene.
FIRST RUN-THROUGH
WRT – BASIC
There was one rule I forgot. Actors must always pick a first emotion to start with, and take a moment before the tape starts to sink into it. It may change in a heartbeat, but we can’t wait until the curtain goes up, or the camera goes on to start our involvement with the characters emotional life. With WRT, and the spirit of experimentation it demands, that emotion can be wildly at the extreme edge of probability of the characters true emotional state within the given circumstance. Picking a new first emotion is just another way of investigating the character, and is totally appropriate for this work. Remember too that that first emotion can change the second that the scene starts. We can’t be in two emotions at the same time. We can vacillate faster than the speed of light, but we can only be in one emotional state at a time.
This first WRT run-through is simply the recording of the scene and a run-through following the rules established above. When the scene has finished this is what you do.
BETWEEN FIRST RUN-THROUGH & SECOND RECORDING
Generally I join actors on stage after a first run-through of a scene, after that we are into variations and discussion isn’t allowed until after the integration run has been completed. Even here we don’t talk much, but I will always ask, “What was good?” Actors often try to point out a problem they had and I stop that right away. We don’t care about what didn’t work; What Was Good? Did you feel connected to your character at any moment during the scene? This usually gets a positive response, but if it doesn’t it’s not a big deal. I would probably ask if they felt connected to the other character(s) in the scene at any time. Same situation as above if they say they don’t remember or say no, just move on, but if the audience saw some and you saw some, a question might be in order, the question most appropriate to this work would be, “Do you remember what you were feeling when you said...?.” When that happens the actor will at times remember a moment and describe it with enthusiasm. Each actor gets to share their experience for a few moments, but you have to know when to cut them off. They are actors and they are talking about themselves.
The main thing is to get them on their feet again as soon as possible with a fresh recording so that any discoveries that they made, whether they noticed them or not, don’t get lost in talk or waiting time.
Actors-Directors/Teachers, just a reminder,
Never fall in love with the way something was said. (a line reading).
Never fall in love with the way something was done. (a piece of business)
That should give you a solid start with this technique, but there are another 26 variations of how you can apply it in your classroom/ at your rehearsals. Keep in mind that the WRT is only a part of Mosaic Acting, there is so much more to Mosaic Acting that you can get and use, but for that you will need the book.
Info on ordering Mosaic Acting, the book/ and/or the set of two DVD’s, in which I demonstrate, with the help of six actors, the beginning and advanced applications of Mosaic Acting, can be found here. To order information click here.