Boy, Can She Do Shakespeare!
TABLE TOPICS™ training inspires a role reversal.
By Angie Palmer, DTM
ShareThis
Some actors say that auditioning is one of the most excruciating experiences in life. I say it’s just another TABLE TOPICS™ Speech Contest. Yes, it’s nerve-racking not knowing what the casting directors will ask. Will they ask me to talk in an accent? Will they want me to perform a different monologue? You don’t always win, but the unexpected can also be fun and lead you out of your comfort zone.
Giving Shakespeare a Go
Last November, I went to an audition for Romeo and Juliet staged by the Rosebriar Shakespeare Company in Columbus, Ohio. I performed one of Juliet’s monologues; however, the director promptly informed me he had cut out most of that scene. He handed me a script and asked me to read from a couple of other scenes on the spot. I had no time to prepare. Talk about TABLE TOPICS skills! As long as I appear confident and keep going for about two minutes, I should be good, I told myself.
Five days later, I was offered several roles in the play. Here’s where the unexpected fun came in: Two of the roles were male characters – Tybalt and Friar John. (Several cast members played multiple parts.) Who would have thought the director would want me, a woman, to play a guy’s role – and to have a swordfight with Romeo, as well? I was so in!
The play was a thrill to perform, and we received a strong review from a local Web site. For me, personally, it was definitely challenging to play a man. For one thing, I had to lower my voice to deliver my lines. And as the sword-fighting character of Tybalt (Romeo’s rival), I needed to stay fit and healthy throughout the production’s two-month run, so I could fight well – and look good in the character’s tight aerobic pants!
Toastmasters Provides the Spark
After I joined Toastmasters five years ago, the Communicating on TV (Item 226J) manual was immensely helpful while doing Web and TV reporting in New Mexico. Later, my Toastmasters training played a vital role as I started my own public relations business in Ohio two years ago.
Clearly, the communication and leadership skills we learn as members are important in the business world. Little did I know these skills would also come in handy when I delved into one of my childhood dreams: acting.
Angie Palmer, DTM, is a member of the District 40 Toastmasters in Ohio. She is the owner of Skye Public Relations and can be reached at www.skyepublicrelations.com.