Ron Burrus Studio - Interview

Originally trained as an actor, Ron Burrus evolved into a teacher through mentoring and apprenticeship with Stella Adler in the mid-1970s. After ten years alongside Ms. Adler in the classroom, Mr. Burrus opened his own acting studio in Los Angeles for film and TV actors. Presently, his teaching, directing, and coaching work is divided between L.A., New York City, and international seminars. In 2008, Mr. Burrus will mark thirty-five years of working with learning actors.

Who has been most influential in how you teach?

My mentor, Stella Adler, and the students I teach.

I was with Stella Adler ten years, every day. She was impeccable with the principles of acting. First--that every time is as if it's the first time. Then, for realism, supplying the life underneath the dialogue. Next, the flame of the actor's talent is justification. And the most moving for me is the ability to live a private life onstage or in film, as a created character.

Have you changed the way in which you teach acting?

Stella used to ask me, "Why do they keep coming back?"

I told her, "Because you do what you say." Therefore, as a teacher, you reshape what you teach according to the current students.

Stella is often quoted as saying, "Talent lies in your choice." But she meant a stimulated choice. It must come from you. The actor has to experience that choice, and it must be doable. All exercises are focused toward that goal.

When I moved to California, I adjusted the technique I teach for working in film. And boy, does it work in film! When the camera moves in close, it's all about what's moving inside you before you speak. You have to make slight adjustments but the essence of what you have to be able to do is the same, regardless of medium.

It's vital for the actor to not just hear and memorize a technique, but evolve his own process. To learn more than just what it takes to get a part--to have a technique that will serve him for the rest of his life. The key is to get an actor to slow down inside.

Do you stress the importance of voice/speech and body work of the actor's instrument?

If an actor isn't physically or vocally connected, he's unable to connect emotionally. Vibrations will not get through if there is a tightness. Technique leads an actor to physical and mental relaxation. The actor's job is to "vibrate" under pressure. It's a skill to have a tone full of feeling and life. Language is a partner to the body and the voice. "Playing" in the present is the "key" to the reality of repetition.

How should an actor begin to work on a role?

The first time an actor reads a script is the freshest it will ever be. An actor has to allow the script o speak to him. Allow it to move him and then begin to work with it. Be able to sum it up in two words. Find the theme, or you won't know where to put the pieces. Especially in film. All the pieces are shot out of order. It's the actor's job to reassemble the pieces.

Do you place an emphasis on the actor understanding the playwright and the world of the play?

Not as much as to why the playwright wrote the play, but the play itself. I'm looking for what's universal--what the writer is saying to the world. If you work on a period play, it takes place at a different time; it could be a different country, its' best you do research. And if you're interested in playing a character (not just your own character), it's up to the actor to rise to the material, instead of bringing the material down to your size.

Actors can only play a projection of themselves for so long in TV and film, and even 'personality actors' have edited their persona so that we see a selected side of them. There are exceptions--those actors who fight for the chance to show a very different side of themselves. It's a matter of finding a 'key' into your character's world. The understanding of the human condition is the actor's responsibility.

When I watched Bertolucci's "The Last Emperor," there is a scene when the emperor is at the train station, with his guards nearby. And he couldn't tie his show. He didn't know how to. This was the genius of Bertolucci and the writer to allow us this understanding of his character. Of course, he was raised that he never had to tie his shoes. He was dressed everyday. That's a key to showing what the actor has to look for, to get in. Once you do, then you can run.

How important is imagination in the actor's work?

So much of the preparatory work is in the imagination. Probably 85 percent. Imagination has powerful, ironclad rules that you must adhere to. If you're tense, it shuts off. Imagination can be very ethereal. But it's the actor's job to make it doable. Your technique is there to help you release it.

I use an exercise: The actor has a tennis ball in his hand and in front of him is a wastebasket. I say, "For one second, let the ball and the basket tell you how to throw the ball into the basket. Trust yourself enough to slow down inside and allow it to happen."

How valuable is your unique presence to the work that is actually occurring in the classroom?

It's a matter of plugging into the students' energy--they always tell me what has to be said. It's paramount to me to give the actor tools he can use to bring to life the words on the page and practice those tools once he leaves the classroom.

Excerpted from Acting Teachers of America: A Vital Tradition
by Ronald Rand & Luigi Scorcia © 2007.