I'm learning how to be ready for day one of rehearsal. It used to be to simply show up with my lines highlighted (preferably). But with so little time in the professional world and the fact that I'm now a, uh, professional, this has changed.
1. Come with lines memorized. Scratch that, come with lines LEARNED. Know what you're saying, but most importantly understand why your character thinks the way he does. Learn the thought, not the orientation of the words.
2. Know the mise-en-scene. Know the who, what, when, where, why and how. Know why you enter and exit for each scene. Know who each person is in the scene and how you're connected to them. Understand WHY you do the things you do.
3. Have a good/clear sense of who your character is and how you will play him. The director will be a great help to you, but don't put it all on him. Have your picture file homework done. How does he handle himself physically? Where's his center? What is the major aspiration of the character? What does he want?
Rehearsals are for smoothing and refining, not for building from the ground up. Directors are there to make a beautiful production, not to tell each actor how to play the character.
Come prepared and you'll be that much further ahead.
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