Last week, I concluded my Commercial Improv class with Shirley Sender. I am sad that it is over and I hope to continue my studies with her in other classes, etc. This class was such a HUGE help!
More and more at commercial auditions, I am being asked to quite literally throw away the script and put it into my own words. This can be a bit intimidating when operating under audition nerves, but Shirley taught me that it's quite easy to get the main points across if you focus and breathe. And of course, practice makes perfect!
It was also an on-camera class, which helped me to monitor any "ticks" I have when I'm stuck, when I'm being a bit too big, not expressive enough, etc.
Lucky for me, the class was smaller than usual, which meant I got to practice a lot! Shirley would give us commercial copy and tell us to throw it away and put it into our own words. She would also give us entire situations and have us improv them in front of the camera.
The last week, I got to work one-on-one with Shirley through a stroke of ridiculous luck! Boy, was that a treat! She kept giving me tons and tons of copy and then coaching me on it. Of course, I got to improv, too!
By the end of the course, I feel much more confident about how I approach commercial improv, as well as how to approach copy!
THANKS, SHIRLEY SENDER! :)
Her class actually tied into my Voiceover 101 course last night with Diana Lote of CESD. I looked at the copy and found things that many others in my class glossed over. It made me feel great to know that I was applying it all and comfortable enough to play with the copy.
Diana has great energy and is a fantastic wealth of voiceover knowledge. She made a great book with all the basics of the voiceover business in it. She also had us read a lot of copy and gave us one-on-one feedback, which was immensely helpful.
She told me I have a nice, clean voice that has just a hint of Midwestern warmth to it. She also liked the range of my voice...that it went up when it needed to go up and went down when it needed to go down. She was impressed, which made me feel great! :)
I'm so glad I got the chance to work with both of these ladies who are well respected in the business and that they have both been so encouraging.
I will be taking more classes over the summer...a Meisner intensive, a commercial class with David Cady, etc. Once you start, you can't stop!
As an actor, you should always keep studying! You're a student of the world!
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