Acting is a group activity. We train with other people; we audition with others and we spend most of our working lives with others.
And then lockdown changed all that. For most people, anyway. I’ve been working on training myself for a while now, and that’s been predominantly alone, but for the majority of actors this is a brand new experience.
People have been coming up with creative solutions to hone their craft, keep their instrument in tune and create connection even while apart. And I’m here for it.
Enter TikTok
If you’ve not heard of the platform it’s a short form video social media site, that’s garnered a lot of exposure in recent week as president Trump has threatened to ban it in America. I’m still not quite sure why but presumably it’s due to the activism and information spread by a number of TikToks users.
TikTok offers a lot of fun features, including the option to ‘duet’ with a video on the site.
Anyway, if you’re not on the site, I think you’re missing out because the levels of creativity are truly wonderful.
Take @ElianaGhen for instance.
She’s an American actress who’s created a TikTok series of acting challenges.
The Blue Line
She performs one side of a small scene or sketch and writes the other side in a blue line on screen for you to perform with her.
She covers drama and comedy and all of the exercises are less than one minute.
Some of them I’ve found really challenging; all of them I’ve enjoyed.
So, will you be the blue line?