Authentic Facial Expression: It’s About Doing, Not Being

 

I was a child actor.

 
Not the kind who robs a 7-11 in their 20s.
Just the kind that does a lot of plays and makes a little money, but never gets even locally famous.
 
 
One of my most valuable lessons came not from my professional work, but from my high school acting teacher.

While we were rehearsing for Steel Magnolias, she told the cast to try to “be sleepy”.

We stretched, we yawned… and we overdid it.

But when she told us to try to stay awake, it was a different story.

As I watched my cast-mates shifting in their seats and fighting to keep keep their eyelids from drooping, I didn’t doubt their sleepiness for a second, even though it was mid-morning on a Saturday.

So where did that authenticity come from?
 

Expressive Is As Expressive Does

Who we are is the result of what we do.
A friendly person is someone who does friendly things: says hi, asks if your cold is getting better, etc.
 
But when we discuss stage presence, we talk about states of being.
We say that we want to “be expressive” or “look intense”. And so we focus on the concept of an emotion, like happiness, sadness, etc., rather than on the actions a happy or sad person might take.

But just like we can’t authentically make ourselves “be sleepy”, we can’t make ourselves “be heartbroken” or “be entranced by the clarinet”.

 
When we try, it comes out looking awkward and cartoonish.
(You’ve seen quite a few “Dina faces” and “sultry faces”, haven’t you?)

The audience can tell that we’re putting on a mask, not letting our faces reflect our authentic feelings.
 
And that is a violation of their trust.
 

Why Is the Face So Important?

The audience is there to feel something.

They’re not there to see your fabulous shimmy, or that combo that took you a month to master.

They’re there to ride the emotional rollercoaster of a good show.

Your face is what draws them in and convinces them to get on board.
 
But that connection is based on trust.

Before they put themselves in your hands, they have to believe that what’s on your face is really in your heart.
 

So How Do You Make Your Expressions Authentic?

Easy: silently “talk” to the audience in your head.

This sounds silly.

But carrying on a silent conversation with your audience creates believable expression.

When you motivate your dance with that conversation, your face follows along automatically.

It will authentically reflect what’s going on in your body and in your heart, rather than what you think you should display to the audience.

And the audience will believe you.
 

But I Don’t Know What to Say!

Almost any statement will create an authentic expression, as long as you direct it to a member of your audience.

But you’ll get the most authentic results from statements that are related to your performance, and that you make in your own words.

Here are a few ideas to get you started.

 
You can talk about the audience:

• Hey, it’s you! (this works even if you’ve never met them before)
• I’m so glad you came!
• You two make a lovely couple!

You can talk about yourself:

• I am the best dancer you’ve ever seen
• I am an elegant princess
• I am a nice girl from the village

You can about what you’re doing:

• Look at that shimmy go!
• My hands are just fascinating
• Wasn’t that last move cool?

You can talk about the music:

• The rhythm is so yummy
• I love the sound of the clarinet!
• This song is about lost love

 

Summary

In order to be authentically expressive, we need to focus on “doing”, rather than “being”.

Focusing on states of being encourages us to paste on a false expression, which alienates our audience.

“Speaking” to the audience silently creates an authentic expression that helps you make a genuine connection.
 

Next Steps

Take some time to compose your own list of statements in your own voice.

Then put on some music, and give it a try!

With a little practice, you’ll master it so thoroughly that even my acting coach would believe that you’re a nice girl from the village.
 

Your Turn

Do you have any favorite statements to “say” to the audience?

Are there any statements or ideas that you’ve found especially effective?

Share your thoughts in the comments.
 

Need more hand-holding?

A guided version of this exercise is featured on Expression in Improv, which you can get on DVD or download.

But it’s also available (cheaper!) as a bonus when you order the premium version of Improvisation Toolkit Volume 1: Movement Recall. (Also available on DVD or to download.)

p.s. The photo on this page is courtesy of I Can Has Cheezburger