ACT IV: It’s All About You

The New Year starts with a BANG in - err - February? January is just for those New-Years-Resolutioners and we can’t be bothered with that “one-month-a-year” crowd!

We have a date! The ACTion Collective’s ACT IV will be February 18th at 7:00pm at 440 Studios (440 Lafayette St., Manhattan). As we have always promised, this event is free, free, FREE!!! *maniacal laughter* And we will bring some refreshments (read: a few beers, some wine, crudite if you’re good).

To recap what we’re asking for ACT IV:

  • Write a scene of not more than 5 minutes. Brevity = Soul of Wit.
  • Keep the character list small but the parts BIG. You’re writing for actors, so give them a gift.
  • Make it fantastic or make it sub-par. Just make it.
  • You can direct it or you can be in it. It’s all about you.


So that brings us to the question:

How’s your scene coming along? Mine is coming along just fine, thank you for asking.*
*I wrote this a week ago - I do hope that things are actually going “fine” by the time you read this. When I wrote this I only had 3 lines written.

For those of you who haven’t written anything yet:

You should probably reply to this email right now and say you’re coming. That way you’ve gotta get started, unless you want to disappoint me…

For those of you who have cranked out a page:

Congrats! Keep hammering away, you’re doing great!

For those of you who have finished:

WOWZA! Do you think you’ll try to cast some people to rehearse it with you?

For those of you who have yet to find that inspiration, we thought we could offer you some fodder:

  • Listen to your favorite album. What appeals to you about it? What stories is it trying to tell?
  • Perhaps you can start with an interesting conflict.
  • Check out our fans on Facebook for — yes — faces to get characters going.
  • Don’t shy away from simple stories - it’s only five minutes.
  • Oddly enough, I found that this article on masterpieces made writing seem less daunting.
  • And if you just need a little kick in the pants to get you going - go here to get inspired.

Let us know if you’re coming, either by email or through our Facebook Invite.

And as always: ACT more! (And, uh — write some, too…)

A recap of ACT III

Jeff, pied

From Jeff’s blog - Odin’s Aviary

ACT III: Nyuck Nyuck Nyuck

Our third event is on! It’s scheduled for Thursday, December 17th from 8:00 - 11:00 at 440 Studios (440 Lafayette Street) in Studio 4A. They say comedy happens in threes, so it seemed appropriate to make this one about comic acting.

Here’s the game:

If you’re in, next week we’ll email you examples of several short, two-person comic scenes - some famous ones, some less so.

At the event, you’ll come in with a familiarity with those scenes, but unrehearsed.

  • Two will start us off
  • At the end of the scene, one will remain on stage and the other swap out with a new partner.
  • The new partner will decide whether to stick with the previous scene, or have a new one selected at random.
  • And so on and so forth…

As usual, this event is totally free, and we’ll provide some modest nourishment and libation. If you haven’t been yet, this will be a great one to join in on (we had a ridiculous amount of fun in ACT II). If you have been and are returning, please remember that we’d love to have you bring along one person with whom youlove to work.  Respond, if you please, by Thursday, December 10th, either way.

Bonus:

If you’re really quick, you can submit suggestions for favorite scenes to us, and we’ll find them and use them.

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ACT II: A Tale of Two Screens

We’re doing it again! Mark your calendar for The Action Collective’s “ACT II” on Monday, November 16th, 7:00 - 10:30 at 440 Studios (same as last time).

We weren’t sure that we could come up with an idea for ACT II we were as excited about as we were for ACT I (formerly known as Free Fun for Actors…!) until we thought about our favorite part of the first event: The people. So we’ve asked everyone who came last time to bring someone they want to work with, and we’re going to bring short, quick scenes to play around with.

It’s going to be much the same as last time - we’ll bring some beer and wine and you can bring what you would like to enjoy. We still want you to enjoy the work and one another, to relax and play hard, in whatever proportion you may need. We invite you to do what you love, to act, with people that love the same thing. And we’re excited to get to do that again!

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ACT I: Free Fun for Actors! (on a Thursday)

Jeff Wills and Andrew Elliott are hosting an event on October 22nd from 7:30-10:30.  We’re calling it “Free Fun for Actors! (on a Thursday)”. The name might change, especially if it ever happens on another day of the week. Jeff and Andrew are inviting actors they’ve enjoyed working with and I’d love for you to be a part of it.  The plan is to have a small, relaxed meet-up for a few hours with people who are really interested in the craft of their acting.  We’ll bring a little bit of food and drink (and if you have a preferred beverage, please bring it along) and we’ll all do a little of what we love; we’ll act.

This idea started when we got to talking about how there’s never as much time as we’d like to work on the work itself during rehearsals, and there’s no real way to tell who you want to work with when you meet your fellow actors in the real world.  Essentially, we want to bring together people who are good to work with, who appreciate the work, and who are also good to spend time with as people.  You know: what everyone wants. So, the details:

  • WHEN: 7:30pm October 22nd, a Thursday; to go no later than 10:45
  • WHERE: 440 Studios - 3rd floor (across from the Public Theater, below Astor Place)
  • WHAT: A gathering, with readings of short texts provided by you.

That’s right: We’re asking you to bring a text (I guess nothing’s free, really) and as many copies of it as there are characters.  Some parameters:

  • Short - in the range of 5-6 pages
  • Small - 2-3 characters, no more
  • Simple - no elaborate blocking, or huge chunks of descriptive text
  • Start’n’Finish - as best you can, something with beginning-middle-end potential

Make it something fun.  Make it something you’d like to hear, but also would like to be in.  When we get to the “work” bit of the evening, we’ll cast the 1-2 other people in the scene from the assembled crowd, and you’ll have a little time to review, and then give a reading.  We may not use everyone’s piece, but everyone will be performing something.

Take Flight: A solo act

Record yourself performing a text related to “flight” and send it to me by 12/16 to be part of a live soundtrack!

A band, Black Yodel, has approached me asking for material for a live, improvised soundtrack they are performing over a silent film entitled “Flight.” Their concept is to incorporate multiple layers of prerecorded text about flight through pedal effects (fuzz, reverb, loops, etc). The text can be anything that relates to the idea of flight: descriptions of birds, airplane technical manuals, a Superman comic, re-telling a flying dream, etc.; it can be work you find, or work you make. They are looking for it to have a sense of “found material,” so you don’t even have to concern yourself too much with sound quality.  The performance is in Pittsburgh on 12/18.


This is for no pay, but you’ll probably have fun doing it and you will be credited. We’ll make sure you can have access to a copy of the performance.

Four or five minutes is a good place to aim, but there is no length requirement.

“All of this sounds great! I have absolutely no idea how to make that happen.”

You have a few options:

Then just attach it to an email and send it to me!


And if any of that seems too complex - you can just leave it on The Action Collective voicemail!

  • Just call, wait for the beep and read, hang up when you’re done.
  • Please call again afterward to tell me who you are (so we can credit you properly).
  • Don’t worry what time it is, this is just a machine - it doesn’t ring a phone.

For the phone # or email address, please send us a Facebook message or tweet us @ACTionColl.

Good show, and enjoy!

-The Action Collective