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You know, comedy’s hard. With drama, you have a responsibility to the emotional truth, but with comedy, you have emotional truth and you have technique on top of it.
Comedy is one area of television which hasn’t been hit by the recession. Sitcoms are still being made, being greenlit, and filling the schedules.
Everyone needs to laugh, even more so in these depressing times! Acting in comedy is tough, but if you get it right then there are plenty of opportunites out there for you.
Top Tips for TV Comedy Acting
Here are our top ten tips to help you to succeed in television comedy, sitcoms, and comedy castings:
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Whats so funny about you?You need to know what is funny about you before anyone else will find you funny. Start examining what makes you laugh, and what makes others laugh about you.
Really begin to explore your sense of humour. What made you laugh as a child, who made you giggle till it hurt? Was it your uncle, your father, your teacher or your best friend at school? What TV shows made you laugh out loud as a child, as a teenager and today? Examine how your humour has evolved. Look at how you learnt to be funny, did you mimic and reel off Victoria Wood sketches, did you recite David Brent’s lines from The Office? Is it stand-up which turns you on? Look at the different types of stand-up which work for you, are you freewheeling like Eddie Izzard or Russell Brand, or are you more kitchen sink observational like Michael McIntyre or Peter Kaye?
Once you know what makes you laugh you, and what influences have shaped your funny bone then you are closer to understanding your comedy strengths. -
Explore your comedic skillsStudy, study, study! Comedy like any other skill needs to be practised to make perfect. Look around for acting classes which focus on comedy.
Any opportunity you can get to practise in a safe environment will help your comedy skill and sense of timing to grow.
When you get a laugh make sure you have a think about why or what you did was funny. It isn’t just a fluke, comedy is a science and you need to get your lab coat on and examine what you did and why you got that response. -
Find you Comedy CharacterWhen you know what makes you laugh, and when you know what you do which makes others laugh you should have an understanding of your comedy qualities. Knowing these will help you to understand your comedy character. A comedy character is your ‘casting type’ in the sitcom world. Once you know where you fit in, your comedy future suddenly looks a lot brighter.
Reading this book you will identify your sense of humour and your casting type in one of these types. By focussing your comedy skills in this niche, you will begin to master your own comedy. -
The script is GodComedy acting when done well is like a skilled musician playing a piece of classical music. They stick to the music as it is written by the composer, the beats, rests, crescendos and softer moments are there for a reason. So you too, as an actor, need to learn to appreciate the script as it is written, and stick to its rhythm, timing and pace.
Follow the script exactly as written, don’t add your own words or drop words. Stick to the punctuation, it is there to help you, a full stop is there for both the end of a sentence and the end of a thought. So often I have seen actors change a full stop to a question mark, or simply skip past it.
Apprecaite what is written, the comedy is there already in the script, take your time to find it. -
Break down the script“The Eight Characters of Comedy” will not only help you find out which of the comedy archetypes you are, it will also help you to break down the script and understand the fundamental laws of comedy.
Good comedy is made up of conflict, desperation, and unpredictability. Understanding these will help you to understand where the laughs are coming from in a good script. You will find these themes in the storyline, in the characters, and in the jokes.
Your ability to take a script and identify the different types of gags will help your immensely when auditioning for comedy. -
Polish your Funny BoneNow that you know your comedy archetype, and you have more of an understanding of comedy scripts you now need to really hone your craft and delve deeper into what is funny.
Begin to identify the more subtle jokes in a script. Look for the ‘operative word’, which is a word that is used again and again in a scene, identify the ‘callback joke’, a joke which is repeated again throughout the whole script, begin to even be able to identify where the writer has used specific words to enhance a puchline or even specific consonants which maximise the comedy of the dialogue.
As you get more practised in taking a script and breaking it down and then examining it you will find this easier and easier. My scripts are often covered with underlinings, asterisks, and side notes, all helping me to get to the juice of what the writer has written. -
CommitmentComedy acting is no easier than straight acting, it requires the same level of commitment.
You and your character must believe fully in what you are doing and saying. Any shame, embarrassment or faking it will immediately ruin the comedy. The easiest way to ‘die’ as a comedy actor is from lack of commitment.
When playing a scene you must have nothing less than 100% commitment to the dialogue, the physicality, the jokes, and especially the character. Think about the comedy greats and their commitment to their art. -
Stillness is a virtueAs a comedy actor you need to know how your actions can distract from the comedy. Like all TV acting, stillness is really important, any ‘leakage’ of movement be it a roll of the eyes, a stretch of your neck, or a scratch of your thigh can actually throw a joke.
You don’t have to stand there like a statue but you need to be aware and in control of your movements and actions so that you do not pull focus.
This is especially important when you are playing comedy as there will be times when you need to allow space and time for laughter, this can be really hard as an actor but you need to be able to stay focussed and still, and be able to hold your intention until the laughter dies down and you can then continue the scene. -
Learn from the MastersStudy can be fun! Watch DVDs of sitcoms from the past and today.
Just like a straight actor must know their Chekhov from their Pinter, you need to know your Reggie Perrin from your Victor Meldrew. Study some of the old greats such as Yootha Joyce, Leonard Rossiter, David Jason, compare them with modern stars like Miranda Hart, Martin Freeman, Caroline Aherne.
Most television comedy is actually fimed in front of a live audience. Watching these comic actors perform in front of the audience and for the camera is different from working a crowd in a theatre. Pay attention to how they differ.
Watch them for entertainment and enjoyment and then watch again and learn from what they do. DVD gives us the added help of DVD commentaries often you can hear the writer and director discussing their decisions and as a student of comedy these can be absolute gold mines. -
Remember to have funAll of the above might sound a bit like hard work, and not what comedy is all about. However, I guarantee you that when you have done your homework, found your character, perfected your technique, and commited to the givens of the text, you can then go into a casting, rehearsal or class, and begin to have some fun.
With the safety of all of your pre work behind you, it will be easier to start taking some risks.
Be confident in being funny and having fun. The casting director, the writer, the producer and the audience all want to have fun with you, so allow yourself to have some fun and you are halfway to fun-ny!
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