acting

Take the bow

March 23, 2026

I used to find bowing at the end of a show kind of weird… it’s like this old fashioned custom that only exists in a few strange contexts.

It wasn’t until an older actor explained it to me that I got it. He said that the bow is an act of generosity.

What? Me bowing for people to clap is generous?

Yes.

This is their chance to thank you for the performance you’ve just given.

It’s like if you gave someone a gift and didn’t give them an opportunity to say thank you- kind of a stink thing to do, right?

You can’t short change the audience. You can’t quickly bow and rush off.

You have to take you bow. It’s not for you; it’s for them.

Are there other areas in your life where you aren’t taking the bow?

The two show day meditation

March 22, 2026

We’re doing a matinee and an evening show today and I’m reminded of a lesson I learned from the school of doing the same show for 9 years…

The only show that matters is the one you’re in now.

At the beginning of the matinee today I caught myself imagining the next show.

It’s the theatrical equivalent of trying to eat the entire elephant (and then another later on)

You simple can’t think of the next show; it’ll happen without you needing to.

Stay in what you’re in, then be in what you will be in.

Your masterpiece

March 6, 2026

Actors choose verbs to play in scenes.

They might ‘press’ another character. Or they might ‘interrogate’ them.

It occurs to me that we unwittingly have verbs in life too. The words we choose dictate how we show up in the world- just like an actor in a scene. Actors are very intentional about it, but in normal life we aren’t.

Are you ‘getting through’ the day or ‘dancing through’ it?

Are you going to the office to ‘slog it out’ or are you going to ‘play’?

There’s power in this kind of intention. Don’t leave it to the actors; make your life a masterpiece of a play, written daily by you.

Ouch, growing!

February 28, 2026

Isn’t it a wonderful trick of the universe that growth requires resistance?

For a muscle to grow, it needs to meet something that is too heavy.

As teachers, the hardest days are the ones that form us.

As actors, the hardest audiences make us the strongest.

It’s easy to say this, of course. But it really counts when you’re in it. And if you’re in it. Know that you are growing.

Revisit

February 26, 2026

Do you fall into this trap too?

I love learning new things.

Sometimes I feel like I have an insatiable appetite for new information that I can apply to my life and work. The problem with that is things can remain surface level.

I’m recently enjoying revisiting things. The book you read 6 years ago is kind of a different book when you, as you are now, read it.

A simple foundational exercise has oceans more to be learned when we come back to it again and again years after the first time.

More is not always more. More with the same thing, on the other hand. Well yes, that is probably more.

Super Objective

February 20, 2026

As part of preparing for a role, an actor has to choose a super objective.

And it’s not just an objective wearing a cape. It’s a through-line of desire a character has. It’s what they ultimately want, what they are trying to do. All their actions, then are in relation to and in aid of that.

It’s such an genius system to re-create the psychology of a human. It’s over simplified, sure, but in it’s simplicity lies it’s applicability; it’s super easy to apply.

I often wonder what my real life super objective is. In acting, they say a character can’t choose their super objective- it’s an unconscious pull.

In real life, we do get to pick our arcs of desire. Often in my work I return to the same question.

What am I trying to do here?

I’m not just paying the bills or trying to look cool. That’ll run you on empty quick.

What’s the super objective that has you yourself wearing a cape and moving mountains?

It’s an honour to live the lives we do and it’s an honour to affect change in whatever way we choose.

Best worst

February 16, 2026

My acting mentor has a great phrase he often uses when directing.

He’ll say: “Show me your best worst version of…”

And then he’ll add whatever he wants me to try out.

Your ‘best worst’ means to do the best you can at the worst version of the thing.

It lowers the bar, it asks you to be bad and gives you permission.

In acting, like many endeavors, you have to start somewhere… and that somewhere is probably not going to be Oscar winning.

So don’t try and be awesome. Just give me the best version of the worst version you possibly can.

It might, be good. But it better not be, I asked for best worst!

Authenticity

February 12, 2026

One of my favourite things about acting is we have to make something that isn’t real feel authentic.

You don’t do that by being really good at lying, by the way. You do that by being really good at being real.

Actors aren’t liars, they’re truth tellers.

I’m amazed at how authenticity cuts through. I watch a video of a thought leader I really respect and I can feel their words, I understand them not from their words, but the heart behind the words.

Authenticity cuts through. We can get caught up in trying to make things slick or perfect but at the end of it all, if your intentions are pure and in congruence with what you’re trying to do. It’ll come through.

It’s the great gift us humans have. We don’t need you to be perfect, we can feel you.

We’re made of blood and bones and our hearts are running all the time.

We can feel you.

The action

February 9, 2026

People talk about the importance of the journey as opposed to the destination.

As actors we’re encouraged not to play a result but to play action instead. What comes as a result of that is not our business.

It’s a hard one to grapple. But I think there is a lot of peace we can all gain by attaching ourselves to and falling in love with the action and not the result.

Fall in love with providing outstanding educational opportunities for your students.

Fall in love with creating amazing value for your clients.

Fall in love with being the most alive and attentive parent.

The action is the thing we can control. The result is not… so it’s not worth the heartache.

Fall in love with the action. Then you may get some pleasant surprises along the way.

Setting the table

February 7, 2026

Every night in the show Mrs Krishnan’s Party we have the guests set the table with plates and cups.

Approximately 10 minutes after that they have to move it all so Mrs K can dance on the table.

Of course it’s scripted this way. We know she’ll end up on the table, so everything on the table will have to be moved.

So why set the table in the first place?

That’s a little detail I love about the show. It’s thousands of moments like that which build the illusion of reality.

In real life sometimes you do something only before needing to undo it.

So that’s why we do it in the show.

JUSTIN ROGERS

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