who what where why when ; Guide to stanislavsky

Sharon had taught us the seven main rules that Stanislavsky went by when analysing our characters.

1.)  who am I?

You have to think to yourself who your character actually is. Picture what they look like too and that can help mould how you play them. You need to get a good idea what social class they have, that can affect the status they have over other characters. But thinking of who your character actually is will make it easier for you to play the part of them because you will have a rough idea how they act. 

2.) Where am I?

close to the first one, but knowing where you are situated around the world will help a lot when playing your character. a person acts differently from where they come from. Family values may be different and how they act around family and friends depending where they are geographically. People from England live differently to those do in America or Russia, so knowing this information will help you play your character true to life. 

3.) What time is it?

knowing the decade when your character comes from will also be very useful when coming to playing them. people from the 1960s or 1980s appear to perform differently to those who live now in present day. They will have dressed differently with different materials and things that were popular to that period , than what may be the in thing now. They would have spoke differently, slang in the 1960s would be a lot different to the street slang used today. for example during London around the time of the 50s and 60s, cockney rhyming slang was used but it still exists today just not across some youth groups, but when adlibbing in a piece of drama if your playing a chap from the 60s you may sneak a little of that in to the play you're doing to make it seem that more authentic and true. But my main point is that knowing the decade is key because that alters how the character behaves and looks.

4.) What do I want?

In other words, your main objective. your characters back story may be that their an alcoholic. Their objective may be to get over their addiction or give in to it. A more subtle example could mean that that want to find love so across the whole play, their super objective, could be that the end up married at the end. My point is that you need to know what your character wants to know why they actually wants otherwise their point in the play is irrelevant, all characters want something , some wants may be explicit and some may be vague so you need to dig deep with in depth analysis of your part.

5.) Why do I want it?

When you've discovered their wants, you then need to know why your character wants what they want.  linking back to my previous example, that someone may want to find love; do they really want to be loved perhaps because their parents never showed them any form of love or is it just so they have nothing better to do? when you realise why they want it you can think of ways to play them differently than first imagined or how you should really play them true to word. 

6.) How will I get what I want?

This is built upon the characters actions. They may commit a murder to get want they want or even theft. Or they could be shown to be hardworking and determined to get what they want. You also as an actor must think how your character will get what they want because it must also suit the character. You don't want to do something out of character that would have probably been done by another that isn't yours. you want to keep in character throughout, and its little mannerisms including actions that make up your character, so you must show this through the strategies to their wants. 

7.) What must overcome  to get what I want?

Are there any obstacles in their way preventing the character you are playing to get what they want. For example if they love someone else but is already in a relationship and they're trying to get to that person they will have to come to terms with the affair and the obstacle may be emotion as well as the anger from the other person, because trust has been lost. Another example is if they want be big in life, but their social class and financial state may get in their way , even though they shouldn't give up and should aim high.