The Stage and The Page: Inside the Process of the Actor/Author (Guest Post by Serena Chase)

I’ve been crafting stories for as long as I can remember, but I’ve also been performer of some sort for most of my life. From learning to record myself on a cassette while singing along with an Olivia Newton-John 8-track at three years old, to childhood dance recitals and children’s choir performances, to high school musicals, plays, speech contests, and variety shows, to singing at weddings and special events and performing in community theatre productions as an adult, I’ve always been drawn to the stage. But it wasn’t until an approaching book deadline kept me from participating in my local community theatre’s annual production that I recognized a link between what I craft on the page as an author... and what I bring the stage as an actor. 

The director of our small community theatre called to ask if I would consider attending a rehearsal to offer constructive criticism to the cast. The performance was only a couple of weeks away, she said, but it wasn’t quite “clicking” together. She thought hearing the outside view of someone still considered “one of our own” (due to my past involvement with the theatre) would be welcomed by the cast. I was flattered, of course, that she would value my opinion, but... hesitant. What did I have to offer these people, these friends, who had been putting in hours and hours on stage while I’d been at home, chained to my computer? 

Maybe nothing. 

But maybe... something. 

While watching the run-through, taking notes, and then addressing the gathered cast at the end of rehearsal, I recognized a link between the character-building skills I’ve learned—and am still learning—as an author and what an actor can build within the character they are bringing to life on the stage. The critiquing experience yielded several valuable insights for me as an author and an actor, but the most profound among them was this: 

No matter how small the role, every character has a life beyond this scene.

Every person in the scene deserves—and requires—a story. If the scene is to be believed by the audience, each person on the stage (or page) has to possess a unique identity including a reason for their existence in that scene and a motivation to continue existing (or to die, if that is part of their purpose!) beyond the scene. Until you understand why that character exists, you can’t know who they are. And until you know who they are, you cannot bring them to life within the scene.

As an author, this story—the character’s name, purpose, and motivation—might remain in your head or notes, a detail that never hits the manuscript page. But for an actor, whose assigned part may be as small and seemingly insignificant as “chorus,” that unique identity should present itself to the audience through your facial expressions, body language, and in how you approach the words you sing or say. Your character has no name? Pick one!—something that fits the setting. If it is unclear why your character is on that stage (or page) other than to fill negative space or increase choral volume, imagine a reason that makes his or her presence vital—or, at the very least, justifiable—to that place or situation at that time. 

Regardless of the power-position of a singular character within the work as a whole, or the size of the audience to whom that work will be presented, you cannot allow any character to just show up, do the thing, and disappear. You need to know who your character is in order to not only validate their existence, but to do so in a way that supports the lead actors (or protagonists) and the progression of the story arc. 

I’d like to think I am a better author because of what I’ve learned through stage performances. But I know I’ll be a better actor the next time I hit the stage due to what I’ve learned about character development as an author.

| | |

We are starlight on snow. The reflection of something already beautiful—absorbed, reflected, and remade into something . . . more.

And this kiss . . .

This kiss is everything I’ve needed to say . . . and longed to hear.

Sixteen-year-old Faith Prescott eagerly awaits the day she will exchange her small Iowa hometown for the bright lights of Broadway, but her success-driven parents want her to pursue a more practical career, labeling “artsy” people—including their daughter—as foolish dreamers worthy of little more than disdain.

When Faith meets nineteen-year-old Noah Spencer she discovers someone who understands her musical theatre dreams . . . because he shares them.

Faith’s mother despises everything about Noah—his age, his upbringing . . . even his religious beliefs—and she grasps at every opportunity to belittle his plans to study theatre and pursue a stage career. When those criticisms shift further toward hostility, resulting in unjust suspicions and baseless accusations, an increasingly fearful stage is set for Faith at home, where severe restrictions and harsh penalties are put in place to remove Noah Spencer from her life.

But Faith has never connected with anyone like she has with Noah, and no matter how tight a stranglehold her mother enforces to keep them apart, Faith will not give him up. Behind the curtain, Faith’s love for Noah continues to grow . . . as does her determination to hold on to her dreams—and him—no matter how high the cost.

Intermission is a heart-wrenching contemporary YA romance set against a backdrop of musical theatre and family drama. With coming-of-age themes that honestly explore gray areas of moral dilemmas, this novel traces the path of one talented teen girl as she crosses painful thresholds of first love, faith, and betrayal to take the necessary steps toward adulthood, independence, and the dreams that set her heart on fire.

SERENA CHASE is the author of the critically-acclaimed Eyes of E’veria series and a regular contributor to USA Today’s Happy Ever After blog. A lifelong performer who sometimes speaks in show tunes, Serena lives in Iowa with her husband Dave, teen daughters Delaney and Ellerie, and a 100-pound white Goldendoodle named Albus, who is the biggest star of her Instagram account. Connect with Serena Chase by visiting her website and signing up for her newsletter, “like” her official Facebook page to stay up-to-date on new release news, and enjoy her sometimes poignant, but more often chuckle-inducing random observations of life on Twitter.

| | |

RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY FOR INTERMISSION

a Rafflecopter giveaway