Playing For Real Actors on Playing Real People

"For the last two decades theatre, film and television have reflected a growing obsession with the real throughout the world... Established actors and newcomers report that they are increasingly offered parts based on persons of note... Is it possible to identify differences between preparing for and acting a real person and preparing for and acting a fictional character? What are the specific challenges of playing a real person as opposed to a fictional one... All of the actors interviewed approach their roles in different ways... three major areas... provide useful frames for consideration: researching the part; acting strategies; and performer and audience... Playing a real person brings with it a specific sense of responsibility both towards the subject and the spectator... The actor's need to be able to justify their portrayal to themselves seems to inform their process in terms of a commitment to exercising a greater control over his or her own ego or imagination... These actors speak of a finely balanced combination of careful research and conjuration." -- Introduction.