Qualities of a Great Actor

What makes a great actor? The answer seems to be quite obvious: talent. But is that the only condition of becoming great? I guess not.

Some people think that an actor’s life is a never-ending entertainment: he does what he likes, he goes to parties every night, he has fame, fans and money. But in real life it is absolutely different. Acting is hard work. It requires all the strength a person has and boundless devotion. And still very few become really great actors. Why?

I believe that an actor – I mean a real one – should be intelligent. Once I heard a very famous actor (to my shame I don’t remember who) say that it wasn’t a matter how good an actor was. The audience feels what sort of person he is. For example, if he is malicious he won’t be able to be kind on the stage. This point may be controversial but in general I think it’s true. That is why intelligence is important for an actor.

I’m sure an actor cannot be great without perfect acting techniques. There is no doubt that an actor should be a professional.

We always admire an actor who has a hold over his audience. I guess it is not only talent that attracts us to an actor, but his personal charm as well.

The greatest actors are those who are bright, I mean that when they come on the stage you just can’t possibly take your eyes off them. It is like sorcery, and you don’t want it to stop. This doesn’t concern only heroic parts: some villains are equally charming . . . The best example of this is the part of Diaghilev, who is considered to be the villain in the play Nijinski. But the actor Oleg Vavilov is so magnificent that I couldn’t possibly perceive him this way.

Psychologists say that an actor should be a bit vain. He should be eager to be a success, to be liked by the audience. If he is indifferent to the effects of his work, he will never strive to become the best.

Of course, all these factors matter. But haven’t you noticed that people usually know and love those actors who play heroes? Does it mean that parts influence actors’ popularity? I think they do. We all are searching for something better, we all (at least the majority) like dreaming, and in heroes we find these dreams fulfilled. Since we don’t often meet heroes in real life, we just associate an actor with the hero he plays. In the play Kean IV by Grigory Gorin, the main character Edmund Kean, a famous English actor, says that it is not an actor the audience loves, but the character he plays. I think in most cases that is really true.

Who are the great actors and actresses nowadays? Luckily, I’m not a theatrical critic, and my point of view is quite independent. There are several actors whom I respect and consider to be really great. They are Alexander Lazarev, Mikhail Kozakov and Igor Kostolevski. I always admire their acting, and when I go to their performances I’m sure that I won’t be disappointed.

Of course, there are other great actors. On the one hand, I understand that that there can’t be a lot of great actors. But on the other hand, during a performance I often think: “Oh, he (or she) is just amazing, great!” I can talk only about the actors I myself have seen act. But there are so many I haven’t seen, and I’m sure that some of them are also great. I think I’m really lucky because I’ve got a chance to admire the acting of these and other talented actors and actresses.

By Tanya Ignatova, 2nd year student