Why Do Actors Act?

Posted on 28. Nov, 2009 by Gary Ploski in Acting, Blog

I’m going to stretch my “frozen rubber band” imagination and answer the extremely common question, “Why do I act slash why do I like acting?”

Ask a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle what their favorite pizza is and you won’t hear the same thing twice. Mathematically it is probable that you will get the same answer from actors if you asked a large enough sample. Let’s say you didn’t? “You didn’t.” Awesome! Let’s try this then…

Ask an Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle what their favorite pizza is actor why they act and you won’t hear the same thing twice.

I believe the answer to this question should be concise. I guess it could be a long concise sentence. Hmm.

Eeek, the collective just chimed in: “Well…?” OK. Ok. Okay. Why do I like acting in #… @… !… (look at your keyboard)

I love creating (temporary and permanent work), impacting people’s lives (for the better hopefully), learning about myself (human nature), and meeting new people (Hi Everybody! – I used parentheses for the other three).

The answer is easier to answer now thanks to years of studying and experience.

In the early days I acted because it was: fun, time spent with friends, quirky, something different, new, exciting, scary, a challenge, an ego boost, local, free, inspiring, competitive, communal, etc. In other words, I didn’t really know why I was doing it. I never stopped to ask myself “Why am I doing this?”

My hubris is comfortable being an actor recognized by few, many, or everyone… The ‘Why’ is what it is. My abbreviated parentheses free version: