Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Just Sayin'
It really bugs me when directors refer to the actors they're working with as "my actors." Albee does it a lot. Even if it's not what's intended, the language conveys a sense of ownership and a general misconception about the nature of the relationship. It's like you can't own a cat. Really. They tolerate you and in some cases show you great affection. But it's a mistake to think for a minute they're yours.
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4 comments:
I definitely see your point, but if Albee was the one who hired them and they're performing his play, how would they not be his actors. A boss refers to his employees as, well, his employees. Saying "the actors" makes it seem very impersonal. I say, "My friends, my company members, my daughter, my mom, my cat, etc." If I used "the" for all those things, it takes away the humanity of the whole thing.
Agreed. "The" doesn't work either. I guess when you (or me since I've never heard your voice) - when I say my daughter, my mom, my dog (don't have a cat) it sounds different to me than when I say my actors. Actually, I can't stand hearing myself say it. I'm not sure I could say my employees either, if I had employees (which is probably why I don't).
There's something about that relationship that makes me uncomfortable. I'm trying to communicate what it is and this is as close as I can come - I know my daughter, my friends, my dog are separate from me. Saying my actors, my employees feels like I'm collapsing or denying them an identity separate from me. For some reason it doesn't seem to communicate the same thing.
Also: this is thinking too precisely on words is coming from a character in the play I'm writing. Plus my thesis also requires this sort of splitting of hairs-type lingual nonsense. I'm finding it hard to get out of this mode. Everything is seems suspect right now.
I'm guilty, absolutely, of the "my actors" thing. And yet, when I say it, I always feel a little weird for all of the reasons you state, E. The feeling that I'm taking possession of them in some way - who am I to say/do that? Plus, I'd rather that they were working *with* me, not *for* me - and the possessive makes it into that employer/employee relationship. And yet. And yet: "the" feels very impersonal to the intimacy that happens (or doesn't) in a process.
Susannah:
It's tricky, huh? There's no way to really be personal other than using names. I think I usually say something like - well, take you for example: I'll say your name or your first and last name if I'm talking to someone who doesn't know you, and then the qualifiers come - who's devising this role, or who's playing this role if it's scripted work, or who's working with me on x. And then I usually have to repeat myself, 1 or several times, so the person I'm talking to can get it all straight. It's not very efficient but then neither is working together (I don't mean that personally).
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