Playing Dress Up: What Is Your Character Wearing?

Me and my big sis playing dress up...

I am certainly not a qualified authority when it comes to teaching the craft of acting or the performing arts, but, for some reason, many of my readers have great trust in my voice. And I couldn’t be more grateful. That said, I’ve learned that acting is probably one of the hardest subjects to teach - how can I teach it to the world when the talent of acting, of embodying someone else’s soul, the character’s movements, the character’s being - is an ability that, many would argue, can’t be taught?

Well, to a certain degree, I believe that we all act, or have acted at one point or another in our lives. It’s almost like drawing. We can all “draw” but can everyone create a pictorial masterpiece with pencil and paper or paint and canvas? I don’t think so. So, as I sit here in this Italian restaurant that I frequent very often to write, I’m quite puzzled about where to start with this little acting demo. Really. How can I teach this acting lesson?? 

So I think I’ll start with sharing one of my very first acting lessons with all of you, and hopefully you learn a bit, too!

Okay, so - my first acting lesson wasn’t in some hip-over-the-top-expensive-studio, on set in a big-budget movie, or even in the good graces of some major mega-movie-star, but, and I truly hate to burst your bubble, it was in the backyard of my grandparents’ house......playing dress-up. Yes, I loved to play dress up and would so look forward to visiting them every summer so I could drape myself in pearls, costume jewelry, and all of my Nana’s fabulous clothes. Unfortunately, nothing’s really changed, and I still love to dress-up and embody any character thrown my way!! (I would eventually become a personal shopper for high end women’s retail and a certified personal stylist...) ;-)

Yes, I love to play dress-up, and figuring out the perfect ensemble for my mood, my energy, and aura is so much fun - this little skill-set, though seemingly frivolous, has served me greatly in the realm of acting. One can tell so much about a person, or character, by their clothing choices, ways of dressing, or, for that matter, undressing. What would that character wear in a good mood? A bad mood? A sexy one? You can get really specific with these questions - for example, what is your character’s daily style after growing up in a house full of incredibly strict conservative diplomats? Or what would your character’s style consist of if she, or he, grew up in an incredibly liberal house full of prostitutes? Or women who weren’t afraid to bare all? You see, the sky is the limit with this particular process and you can get exceptionally creative!

Like I said, acting is an incredibly hard subject to teach, and everyone has their own techniques but, for me, I teach by example. When you watch my creative process, I can teach you everything I know. So, in that case, watch me work...

Say I’m portraying a character with the following little backstory:

*Female

*Youthful - early 20’s

*Grew up in a family of wealth - With one parent super stingy/cheap and the other a little more lenient and generous with the abundance of finances

At this point, and the character is in her early 20’s right now, what would she wear? How would you see those particular parental issues in her style? She’s certainly not new money, but maybe she feels like she doesn’t deserve the wealth she has. So what would she wear??

I say she has an abundance of colorful choices, detailed accessories, and beautiful pieces in her wardrobe, as well as ones that are super bland, meek, and boring. Sometimes she mixes and matches these colors with the more muted tones, while still making a statement. You see, the clothes she wears, even if drab in color, always make a statement. It’s impossible not to make one with the type of early influences she’s had, teaching the world that muted tones are not a bad thing to enjoy, and you can still make them fun!

So for a daily style - she probably likes a dark wash jean with a bright top and statement necklace. Even though as she’s getting older, she’s losing that interest in the over the top jewelry, yet still loves it!, and opting for colors in her clothing choices to pack a punch rather than relying on jewelry to make a statement.

I could keep going and going and going, but wouldn’t wanna bore anyone - SO, I challenge all of my fellow actors or performing artists to come up with three different ensembles for any character of your choosing. Ask yourself, what would this character wear? Why would this character wear this? And what is the character’s daily style?

Let me know, and please don’t be shy - hopefully this taught you a little something!!

And I kinda want to elaborate in another post, actually...

AND THANKS FOR READING I LOVE YOU x