Mid-July 2017:
I’m going to be really honest with you guys, I’m not just tired, I’m exhausted. As I write this I find myself fantasizing about my bed and when I can get back in it. My eyes feel bleary. I know I’m grumpy because I lose my patience with inanimate objects. Seriously, guys, I just yelled obscenities at my desk phone. I got angry at a pad of post it notes. My pen stopped working and I almost wept with frustration.
I’m stressed because what if I never get those lines right and… do I even know what I’m doing in that scene and… I have no idea what I’m fighting for there and… where is the love here and… I have this project at work and… let me just recite these lines real quick and… the phone and… oops I forgot to eat and… wow, I NEED A NAP.
Like myself, many of my actor friends work a full time job and do theatre at night. It means our day begins early and ends late. Some of us also have children and animals and significant others. It’s easy to get exhausted. Especially during tech week, amiright?
Get Your Vitamins We all know we should try to eat well even when we aren’t stressed and tired. But let’s face it, sometimes we all give in to fast food on our way to rehearsal because we think we have no time to consider anything else. Try to limit that because seriously, that stuff is garbage and can actually make you feel worse. Try eating smaller meals more often. Take a multivitamin, eat fresh when you can and drink a lot of water. Besides, according to the internet, salads make you smile.
You would never know these people are exhausted.
Power Nap Like It’s Your Job A 20 minute power nap can literally change the trajectory of your day. If you work a day job, take some time at lunch to go into a room alone and crawl under a desk. Power naps improve your performance, alertness, memory processing and mood, not to mention your heart rate and your hormones. We often lose sleep when we’re working a day job and in rehearsal. Power napping can help to reverse the damage of a sleep deficit. I’m not making this up. IT’S SCIENCE.
This doggo is heckin’ improving her brain function. She’s a good doggo.
Move Your Body As actors we all know that stretching is fundamental. It’s even more important when you’re body is tired and stressed. Stretching increases blood flow to your muscles which can help alleviate those knots and kinks you get in your shoulders or back. Stretching also pumps blood to your brain which makes you less grumpy. Even the most minimal stretching can alleviate a lot of tension and stiffness. Stretching also helps you sleep better.
Yoga kitteh is heckin’ stretchin’.
Free Your Mind Did you know that meditation can improve your productivity? It increases your attention and focus, boosts your memory and helps you with multitasking (which is essential during those tough weeks of rehearsal and work). It also increases your immune function and your ability to manage pain. Most importantly, meditation can give you perspective and help you to clear your mind. The benefits of simply sitting quietly still and focusing on your breath can alleviate a lot of those negative thoughts that plague us when we’re really tired. Btw, Henry Bolzon offers free Meditation For The Actor classes at ASC, so if you need some guidance with technique, feel free to sign up!
Christy Arington is an actor, director and theatre educator. For the last 13 years, she’s been a company member with Lakeside Shakespeare. She received her MFA in Performance from the University of Georgia and works as an office extraordinaire at Acting Studio Chicago. She does a lot of theatre and often gets tired.