How can I improve my acting?

Question:I was tryig to do an immittion of Kelso from that 70's show. When I try to do his lines, I keep laughing because they're funny. How do I keep myself from laughing? How can I improve my acting skills?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I was tryig to do an immittion of Kelso from that 70's show. When I try to do his lines, I keep laughing because they're funny. How do I keep myself from laughing? How can I improve my acting skills?

Do it in front of a mirror, and then in front of your friends. The more you practice, the more you'll be able to see your trouble spots and correct them.

Your friends can help you out too.

Erm...dont laugh?

Try some excercises with friends. Like, games and stuff. For example: This game is called Freeze. It starts with two people improvising about anything they want to be or pretend to be, a.k.a. ACTING. Then, anyone in the audience can yell freeze and the two actors/ actesses freeze. The person who yelled freeze has to tap one of the two people and have to take the same position as the person they tap. Then, the person has to start a completely new topic, and scene. It's really fun, especially
if you have a great immagination. The more people the better.
Enjoy!

Just try not to laugh.Practice it over and over agin.

Do what I did to get my american accent for a play back in school look in the at your self in reflection and say lines from movies I did it with "Top Gun" and more american movies trust me it will work.

When I first started acting, I had this same problem with funny monologues. I would lose focus when I heard the audience laughing and I would start laughing too. Try watching funny movies and shows and not laughing. Sometimes it helps, if you have lines you can look over ahead of time, to read through it so many times it's just not funny to you anymore. And always remember, to be a good actor you really have to be the character, and a funny character like Kelso often doesn't realize he/she's funny. Kelso's usually dead serious. Just remind yourself that to Kelso, it's not funny.

1. Keep saying the lines over and over again until you are sick of doing it as the more you recite them, then the least funny they become, the joke becomes a bit thin when youve heard it a million times.
2. You can try to record someone reciting the same lines, such as you mum, or some one with a serious voice like a traffic warden. who may not think its at all funny, and then play it over and over again for about an hour, I guarantee that you will turn it off well before the hour is up and probably destruct the MP3 along with it.
3. If all else fails, think of an unpleasant experience whilst you are reciting the words. (a word of caution don't try anything to drastic as you could end up crying instead)
I was told by my drama teacher that laughing is the same as crying in theatre, you could try diverting the action in a subdued way to hide your laughs.

How you improve your acting skills ?
This is very impotent, sorry I mean important !
Remember acting is what it says on the tin, 'acting'
The best acters are convincing to others as they litterally live the part, take Sean Connery for example, he does the part so well that every body considers him as James Bond.
Study carefully the part you are playing and research the person. Get DVDs to study the accents and mannerisms.

1. Always learn by the professionals, someone like your favourite actor. Get DVDs or MP4 samples, that way you can study the actions as well as the words and timing, Yes timing is crucial in some scenes.
2. Rehearse all the time, if you can't get to a proper rehearsal studio then you can use a device such as a MP3 or better still a video camera set up on a stand. Record your actions and then play it back, I was once told I am my worse critic and that was what worked for me, I thought before I had great carisma and stage presents, when to others I looked like a puppet on strings and acted more like the tin man from the wizard of Oz.
3. You can practice in front of a huge mirror, that should prove interesting
enough for the visual aspects, what about spoken skills ?

You can't always have the time or the space, but nevertheless you have a deadline for a performance.
1. Speak the lines into a voice recorder MP3 or similar, use a friend to help you by speaking other parts, that would act as a prompt for your lines. As you hear it, speak your lines at exactly the same time as you hear them said, that way you would have the timing as well.
2. you can take your device on a train or as a passenger on a bus or car, and use headphones and learn your lines, you can adopt the same method as in 1, and speak your lines at the same time. (a word of caution don't speak them too loud or other passengers will think you are quite mad as you will apear to be talking to yourself)
3. Sleep learning (the chinease swear by this) use your device to play the performance through a small speaker as you are about to drop off. The idea is that your brain absorbes information whilst you are asleep. (don't set the volume too high or otherwise it will keep you awake, it is wise to only do this when you are sleeping alone or otherwise your partner might think you are seeking a divorce at worse or at best think you are trying a new tantric sex method or have totally flipped altogether)

Finally you are only as good as the amount of work you are prepared to put in and the production you are performing in

Well the best of luck and I will look out to seeing your name up in lights or on Broadway, and I will be proud if any of this has truly helped you. Remember as Elvis once said: The world is a stage and each must play his part.
MIK

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Don't think about what your saying. Just do it.