Acting . . . Actors . . . Actresses . . . Theater . . . Thespians . . . Sets . . . Scripts . . . Wardrobe . . . What do all these words have in common?  People and objects depicting a story that is not themselves.  For instance: You don't really believe that these knock 'em down, shoot 'em up action heroes are just happened to be filmed at a normal days work . . . do you?  Of course not.  Actors and Actresses are role playing for what people call entertainment. I can tell you from personal experience that acting in a play is GREAT fun!

Minneapolis Vocational High School Technical Institute

I got interested in Theater Arts because I am not a natural athlete.  Sounds strange huh?  I was way too light for football, didn't have the skills for a good baseball player, didn't have the interest is Chess.  I found out I loved being someone I wasn't. Whooooo .... wait up buddy!  No, I liked acting. I like performing.  Minneapolis Vocational High School and Technical Institute was a pretty old building as you can see by the cars along the curb.  It was a four sided building that took up a whole downtown city block.  In the center of that structure that had classrooms on both sides of the center hallway was an abyss...a useless and unused space.  Some time before I started attending in 1962, they filled that space with a state of the art theater.  It was awesome.  The seating was more than enough for the complete student body, staff and plenty of guests.  It had a very large balcony and really nice theater seats.  Of course the lighting and sound system were the latest and greatest, top of the line in the industry. In a word it was WONDERFUL!

Charlie's Aunt (middle) Charlie (me) right

Grand view of what the audience saw

Scene from Charlie's Aunt

Main set

I had the opportunity to try out and attain parts in several of the plays. The Miracle Worker (my first play...I was a shadow in Helen Keller's eyesight...or lack thereof), Mr. Roberts (I was a crew member who got to play Waltzing Matilda on the hatch cover of the ship), and I got to play in Charlie's Aunt.  I was Charlie. The star was a tall lanky Post Grad student...he was my "Aunt".  To say the least, it was a comedy.  It was also a lot of work, but a tremendous amount of FUN.  The total cast was well put together and were enjoying the opportunity as much can be imagined.

In deep thought...
"How are we going to get out of this mess?"

Cast of "Charlie's Aunt"

The biggest and funniest part of the whole play for me was when my Aunt was trying to escape being caught in the situation, you see, because my Aunt was not a lady...she was a he and  . . . .  well you will just have to see it to believe it.  Now the actor was about 6 foot tall and weighed maybe 175 lbs.  I however, was 5'5 and weighed 115 lbs.  The script called for me to carry him on my shoulder at least half way across the stage from the back right corner to the front left corner as you are sitting, watching the play.  We practiced and practice and then practiced some more.  We finally found the balance point to where if we hit it, I could carry him down the block and around the corner without breaking a sweat.  Got it made!  The first night of the play the point came up.  He started running away.  I blocked his leaving and with a running tackle picked him up, threw him on my shoulder and MISSED the balance point by "this much".  My knees started to buckle, I started to wobble, and the two of us ALMOST fell down.  The audience was laughing, nobody got hurt and for me, it was the highlight of the show!  Such small rewards when failing, turns to fame!  By the way, we hit the balance point for our other three shows, but that was really ok....my back appreciated the lack of stress.

Rehearsal and encouragement from
Drama Teacher/Director Mr. Robert Turner
(dark suit, auditorium floor - right)

Play acting is great fun and a lot of effort.  The reward is that your skills in being someone you are not is enjoyed by a paying audience.

Now, after quite a few years of real life, I see a lot of folks that live a life of acting out who they really aren't and I wonder why?  Some folks go to great lengths AND expense to be someone, if given a chance or an opportunity, they would like to be themselves.  I think that they are afraid to open up to people because of fear.  Fear caused by a lack of confidence in themselves. Confidence to step out into the unknown and try something different.  Get a job or at least go to school to get the training to better themselves.  "Oh, I'm not smart enough for that job."  or "They will never hire me, I have a problem they wouldn't hire me if they knew that."  Who knows what is in their minds.  SO how does one get self confidence back when they lose it?  How do we as their friend or acquaintance help them out?  One way might be to just be a friend with words of encouragement. Maybe work through some roll playing events that will calm them down.  Maybe offer them a ride to put in an application or to stand with them as they fill out the forms for that tech. school course.

I have a friend that I helped by encouraging him to hang in there with some pretty tough coursework in an online class he was taking.  Gave him some suggestions.  Later we were talking about that assignment and he told me some suggestions the instructor gave him.  We worked through that, and he got a very good grade, and I could tell by the tone of his voice, his confidence had returned and he was ready to tackle the next assignment with a positive and bright attitude.  That's what friends are for.

We are all actors to some degree, aren't we?  Some are better at it than others.  I know my wife thinks I'm a lousy actor, because she can see through my deception every time I try!   Maybe she's right, but then maybe she knows me too well...after all 46 years of marriage tends to open your partners "quirks" a little bit, doesn't it?  There are a lot of folks that are real good at fooling others for ill gotten gain. Then there are the good actors that some call salesmen, that fall for the easiest cons around. We buy anything that sounds, looks or tastes good!  But that's another story.  Did you know that God can see through anything that you put up as a deflection of reality to others?  God sees right through that stuff. Did you also know that GOD is waiting for YOU to visit with Him?  He can help you through all your insecurities, even if you don't admit to them right away, you might as well admit to them soon and get through it.  Listen to God's guidance and whatever troubles you have can be worked though with the help of God.  Talk to him...without acting.  I can imagine some of the things I used to think I could get away with and then imagine GOD sitting there laughing at me and my silliness!

Acting is fun.  Community theater sounds like it would be GREAT fun. Being someone you really are not...for a while.  But God wants to have a relationship with the REAL You.  Won't you let Him into your heart.  Take my word for it . . . God has more time than you do.  I found God fairly soon in my life, and then re-found him again later on, then again later than that.  Get my meaning?  God has been here with me the whole time. It is ME that drifted away time and again.  Thankfully not all that far that I couldn't find my way back....then I found out it was impossible to drift that far, and was I GLAD!

So be an actor, put on a facade....a false front.  That will fool somebody, but not God.  There is a church in your neighborhood that is there to help you. If you are not associated with one, go check one out.  There may be something they can offer you that you can't refuse.  God takes you as you are, then will adjust you as you are willing.

til later, remember, Keep singing, Keep praying, Keep smiling.

Blessings.
Gary