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FIRST YEAR MEISNER ACTING PROGRAM
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Meisner Training After the BA Acting Program
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The Meisner Summer Acting Programs at the Maggie Flanigan Studio include an acting program that introduces serious actors to the Meisner Technique of acting. In this interview with Katie, Maggie Gough talks about how the program is different from the training she received as an undergraduate in a drama program.
Meisner Summer Acting Programs Maggie Gough – Maggie Flanigan Studio
Maggie Gough: The Meisner Summer Acting Programs After College
Q: Maggie, what did you think of Meisner training before you started, the six-week summer intensive at Maggie Flanigan Studio?
I thought that it was a lot of just doing your research and analyzing the scripts. Then coming into rehearsal rooms and honestly, just playing around, having fun, figuring it out in the room.
Q: What do you think it is now that you’ve completed or almost completed the six weeks?
Yes, I think I have realized from the six-week program, just how much work it takes. It’s a lot more than the scripts and playing around in the rehearsal room. It takes a lot of work outside of it, and you have to work your b*** off. It’s a craft, and it’s a real art form, and I feel like I’ve gained a lot more respect for that. Just how hard it is and how much work it takes. Yes.
Q: What happened over the six weeks, that changed your perspective from what you thought it was to what it is now?
A lot of it has to do with Charlie and just how hard he pushes you, and the expectations that he sets for you. He doesn’t let you get away with many things; you have to work your b*** off and come in prepared and ready to give it you’re all. I don’t know if there’s a specific example that I have. Sorry.
Q: Was there a part of the work where it started to sink in?
Yes, I guess just with doing the activity, feeling like okay, maybe I think I got it this time and I’m bringing an activity and still not being good enough. It was very frustrating and working through that frustration and continue working outside of class to see what else I could bring in. Then bringing in something that finally did work, and it was gratifying. That shows just how much hard work you have to put into it.
Q: What did you learn about yourself over these past six weeks that was a surprise?
Just how sensitive and how vulnerable I can be because a lot of this work is just really opening yourself up and getting yourself to take things personally. It’s easy to be like, “I already do, take things personal in my everyday life.”
Taking this class helped me realize just how often in life, you push things away and don’t let things affect you. Then this class gives you that opportunity to take everything personally and be vulnerable and make things change you, at the moment.
Yes, that is something that I explored with myself, even outside of class too just your point of view on everything and everything that everyone ever says to you.
Meisner Summer Acting Programs – The Meisner Summer Intensive Begins
Q: This is your first time working with the Meisner technique?
Yes.
Q: What’s the thing that’s resonated with you the most about it?
I think what I love so much about it is, it’s a lot of just being in the moment and working off whatever you’re feeling in that moment and whatever you’re getting from your scene partner. It doesn’t necessarily have to be anything based on the script or the text or what you’re saying, none of that matters.
What matters is, whatever you’re feeling and whatever you’re getting from the other person and go off of that and go with that. I think it just allows so much freedom and opening yourself up to more and getting out of your head and going more with your impulses. I love that work. That resonates with me here.
Meisner Summer Acting Programs Maggie Gough – Maggie Flanigan Studio
Q: There are a lot of Meisner summer programs all over the country.what made you decide Maggie Flanigan Studio was the place for you to study this summer?
Honestly, I had a friend that took it before and she just absolutely raved about it and raved about Charlie, specifically. Then I looked in my research and saw that it had great reviews and after my phone interview with Charlie. I just really liked the conversation that we had, so that was why I like Maggie Flanigan.
Q: You have studied previously to coming here?
Yes.
Q: What has been the most significant difference with Maggie Flanigan Studio compared to the other places you’ve studied?
I think in college you can get away a lot with just relying on your talent, showing up and doing the work in the room and having fun and playing around and relying on whatever you already had and relying on yourself. With this pushed me to go outside of that and push myself further and work even harder and find things, explore things inside of me that I didn’t know I was capable of.
This six weeks has helped me gain more respect for how much of a craft it is that you have to work on. Where in college, it was I feel like more about, I don’t know I guess just like doing this script and-
Q: Or maybe more general.
Yes.
Q: Or just much more specific. I know that’s my experience too. How do you feel or how would you describe Charlie as a teacher?
Charlie is scary and intimidating in all of the right ways; he will push you, and at least me personally, he might scare you a little bit. At the same time, he does it in a way that it’s because he genuinely cares about all of the students, and cares about you. You can tell that he does want you to learn something and he wants you to get better. He cares about you and cares about how you are growing in the class, but he’s also not going to allow any BS. He’s very straightforward with you, and honest with you, and will push you hard.
He can see right through everybody. He doesn’t care about any of your excuses which is good; I think he challenges everybody in the room.
Q: What would you say to a prospective summer student for next summer that would say, “Oh I have my BA or my BFA, I have enough training do I need to commit to this?
I feel like I have talked to a few people that I went to school with, and several are thinking about it. I would say that I believe whatever college you went to, it gives you a very technical, groundwork for acting and analyzing your script and all that.
This was so much more teaching you how to be just like a living and breathing human being and going off of your actual responses of how you feel, which I think is sometimes hard to learn that in a college class setting. It’s just so much more specific, and I think it’s a good add-on work on top of what you- the groundwork that you’ve already gotten in your BA program. It’s different, it’s more specific, and it’ll give you even more tools when it comes to bringing a character to live.
Meisner Summer Acting Programs – Maggie Flanigan Studio – Call (917) 794-3878
Learn More About The Meisner Summer Acting Programs at the Maggie Flanigan Studio
To learn more about the Meisner Summer Acting Program and acting classes at the Maggie Flanigan Studio https://www.maggieflaniganstudio.com/, visit the studio website acting programs page. Students that have questions about enrollment in the studio acting programs can contact the studio directly by calling (917) 794-3878.
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