Often, everything we see on stage, sitting in the theater, or on the big screen of a movie theater, crunching popcorn, is very similar to real life. Incredible fascinating plots, sincere stories, scenes, dialogues that strike to the heart, and most importantly – a lot of characters from whom it is impossible to take your eyes off.
It is interesting that some actors play very similar roles in each movie. And others try on countless images. What does it depend on? Why does someone get the role of a prince on a white horse, and someone has to play this horse all their lives?
This is where we come face to face with the concepts of type and role. What is it and why do we need it?
What are type and role?
Each actor has his or her own unique set of external data, distinctive character traits, depths of inner world, and all sorts of other things that define their type and role. The wisest mother Wikipedia can tell us that an amplitude (from the French emploi “occupation, role”) is a certain kind of roles that correspond to the actor’s external and internal data. Well, it doesn’t seem to be so scary, and even a little bit understandable. Let’s look into it further. What types of roles are there?
Types of roles
It’s worth noting that this whole mess with the classification of actors was brewed back in the days of ancient Greek theater. Back then, there were two main types of works: tragedy and comedy. From this we get two main types of actors – tragedians and comedians. Hmm, that sounds suspiciously simple…
But years and centuries went by, the world changed, and theatergoers wanted to change. And then bang! In the days of classicism, European theater defined about 17 types of male and female roles! Phew, that sounds more like the truth, but why so many?
Don’t worry, we won’t list all these types of roles for you, if only because they are no longer relevant. Now, as then, the world does not stand still. Luckily for you, theatergoers of our time are not so bored and decided to simplify this system.
Well, nowadays there are two main groups of characters: dramatic heroes (including lyrical and tragic ones) and character heroes. The dramatic group includes the Hero and Heroine. The main roles usually go to these types.
What does the Hero look like? A tall, handsome man with broad shoulders, masculine features, and (a headshot for young ladies) a velvety low voice. Just a glance and love for life.
The heroine must match her Hero. Tall, slender, aristocratic features, piercing gaze, languid voice and luxurious long hair. Men see her in their dreams.
He is in love and she is in love. Here, everything is a little more mundane. For a man, tall height is no longer so important, his physique and voice can be average, his facial features are not so masculine, and his plastic is mobile and soft.
A girl is light and dreamy, with an average height and a higher voice. You don’t have to look far for an example, Romeo and Juliet are perfect.
There is also a role that is on the border of the two groups – Neurasthenic. As a rule, these are the roles of painfully nervous people who are experiencing severe mental anguish and personal crisis. For example, our favorite Jokers are Nickleson, Ledger, and Fairy Godmother!
The second group of types is character heroes. This group includes people with bright, mobile facial expressions, special facial features that stand out from the gray mass of people. People with sunshine. You’ll be a great character if, for example, you have lush curly hair, freckles, or you’re a little doughnut and you don’t like to be sad. Such people are very relaxed, freely control their bodies, and have vivid gestures. These characters are often comedians.
Everything is clear in theory. But what about in practice? Is the role an important component of the full disclosure of the character’s image or do actors face certain limitations?
Roles in contemporary art
The classical 17 types of roles began to be gradually abandoned in the twentieth century. Nowadays, people don’t need any restrictive concepts and frameworks, especially creative geniuses like actors. Talent knows no bounds, so nowadays all these classifications are being erased. From this we get a clear field for creativity and synergy between the director and the actor.
If you are a pure character by description, but you have the pain of a lonely heart in your soul, then you can safely become the main character of the world’s saddest melodrama. And vice versa, if you look like an aristocrat, but your sense of humor is your Siamese twin, then it is quite possible to try yourself in a comedy role.
The most important thing for an actor is talent, and he cannot be chained to any type or role. He is free, just like you are in your game. Don’t limit yourself to anything. Maybe your most brilliant role is the one you’ve never tried on? Try it, look for yourself. It’s incredibly cool to create without limits.