There really are extreme highs and extreme lows involved in being an actor.
When you work on a job that fulfils you artistically and if you’re lucky financially as well, the world seems like the sun is shining on you at all times.
Confidence is high, acting muscles are nicely honed and you feel like anything is possible.
On the flip side however, there are the dark times, when work and even auditions are scarce, and the world feels like it’s crumbling around you.
The ups will always outweigh the downs. Even if you only get a hit, sporadically, from the drug of acting – it can keep you going for a long time.
It’s important as an actor, or I believe any freelance artistic type, that we find something else that we can get enjoyment from and pay the bills.
Getting stuck in a job that bores you, with people who don’t understand what we do, can be extremely detrimental. Although sometimes the jobs might have to be a bit dull but as long as they are flexible with auditions etc.
Finding outlets for our artistic needs is also an absolute must. As well as taking class regularly I often get together with a group of friends to read a play, usually Shakespeare and usually with a slap up roast dinner thrown in.
Little things like this help us to keep focused and never stop feeling like an actor, ever!
And then when the work comes and the highs hit we feel ready and complete and grateful to be in this wonderful business, full of wonderful people and wonderful experiences.