SILENCE IS GOLDEN

The film, THE ARTIST, pays homage to the golden age of silent film. And this film, except in a few well chosen places, is devoid of spoken words.

It depicts the booming career of a silent film star whose flicks kill at the box office, until a pretty new ingenue, one whose career he unintentionally launches, inches him out of the picture with a new talkie.

But it is not just about that. It's about commitment to principles and to people and to one's own art.

Most amazing is the fact that the audience sat spellbound, laughing, cheering, even crying, at events that went without words, proving that the face and the body can communicate beautifully.

Often, when we are asked to speak, our bodies freeze, and we lose the natural connection nd congruity between emotion/thought, words, and physical expressiveness.

Here is some advice for those who experience "the freeZe."

First, look into a mirror , deliver your text in your mind, and make your face act out, in an exaggerated way, every word, every phrase.

Second, tap into your breath. If asked to breathe mad, you will not only be able to do that instantly but your face and body will show evidence of the angry emotion, amaking any word you say sound "mangy." Smile.

The same is true for all the emotions. Breathe sad, and your body and face will show sadness. Breathe glad, and your physical self will exude buoyancy. And so on.

So, take your script. Write the emotions you need to feel next to certain lines and paragraphs. Then breathe the emotions. Take time doing so. Then add the words. In this way your body will be totally expressive, in sync with the words and the emotiOns.

Third, try to communicate with your face in the silences. After a pause, look at the audience with your face showing the emotion you what them to feel. And bounce your eye contact from one to a few people so that the whole audience can see what you are feeling, evidenced by your facial expression.

More about this later.

But see THE ARTIST. My theatre audience gave it a resounding ovation both times I saw it.