LJ Idol, Week 31: "The Argument Clinic"

[dslartoo]

I won't go so far as to say that I deliberately set out, all the time, to do the opposite of what I am supposed to be doing -- that sort of thing would be childish and stupid -- but I can't deny that it's a lot of fun to do the unexpected, to act in ways contrary to those that others may consider normal, and especially to find "strange" or "

Comments

[notodette]

I'd have given you full marks, too. Without the attitude!

[dslartoo]

I suppose he saw plenty of hams and people who were convinced each quarter that they were better than him or knew better than him: "If you're so good and know so much, how come you're only a college drama teacher?" I didn't quite feel that way, but I was pretty convinced of my own cleverness and didn't listen to the warnings for that second sketch. My own fault. :)

Thanks for chiming in!

cheers,
Phil

[imafarmgirl]

Too bad you flunked the second time. I'm into the sciences and right now I'm taking a music class, and it's kind of painful.

[dslartoo]

Well, since he did give me plenty of warning, and I deliberately ignored his instructions, it was really my own fault. I can't blame him for it. I still wound up with an A for the class anyway. :)

Thanks for dropping by!

cheers,
Phil

[the_day_setup]

I can see why your prof failed you the second time-- assignments are made to teach specific lessons, and if you ignore the requirements of an assignment then the lesson can't be learned. But simultaneously, I'm still bitter about the time that I successfully solved a bunch of rather complex math questions in first grade, 30 years ago, and was punished because I didn't use a computer to solve them as assigned. :)

Also, I did a lot of Python sketches during my stints in high school speech / drama team (although I wasn't brave enough to go it alone!). The strength of the material alone earned a lot of praise on the basis of performances that didn't deserve them. That material is about as timeless as the freakin' Beatles.

And I'm sad you didn't make better use of the wine, not like I haven't had numerous after-the-fact EUREKA moments myself.

[dslartoo]

Oh, don't get me wrong, I definitely admit it was my own fault for not following instructions. :) I got an A for the course anyway, since the rest of my performances and writings and whatnot were all top-notch. Chalk it up to a learning experience, I guess.

You're right in that the Python material itself may have helped me get a higher grade even if the performance itself hadn't been that good. Excellent source material always helps. :)

I wondered for weeks afterwards if I was just imagining her interest in me. I'm still, to this day, not quite sure whether I made it up or whether that really had happened that way.

Thanks for coming by!

cheers,
Phil

[m_malcontent]

I have about 20-25 acting credits...but my only training was a High School drama class run by an English teacher who was more comfortable having us memorize definitions instead of putting something on the stage (even though the classroom itself had a mini-stage), so I can't speak to the usefulness of dramatic training.

I will say that a director is unlikely to cast based on credentials instead of an audition.

If I were directing a play I would make you use the actual script we are performing, I think, at the audition. But if I did use prepared monologues, Argument Clinic would be as good or better than any of the other things you mentioned since it shows a little bit of range.

I am glad you had fun with the class I think it's good to have a class or two that isn't directly related to your major.

[dslartoo]

I had fun with a couple other classes that weren't directly related, including a couple of honors English classes and a philosophy class. I really should have gone with Bachelor of Arts, but I thought Bachelor of Science would be more useful. Of course, I haven't actually used my degree since graduation, except to the extent where the fact that I possessed a degree helped me get better jobs. It figures....

I had a good time in the class despite that one flunking grade. Got an A for the course anyway because I did well at the rest of it. I wouldn't have done so well if I hadn't really enjoyed it.

Thanks for dropping in!

cheers,
Phil

[fourzoas]

That was fun and a reminder of something I've often thought about the value of a college degree: it shows future employers that you can follow directions and stick with a task...

[dslartoo]

That's very true overall -- except I'm not sure how well it showed that I could follow directions in this one case, since I got flunked on that assignment for NOT following directions. Oh, well. I did still get an A for the course overall. :)

Glad you enjoyed the piece, and thank you very much for stopping by!

cheers,
Phil