Letter From John Wahl
Mr. Anderson,
Last year at Junior's you mentioned that you wanted former graduates to contact you and let you know how life was going so you could pass on some information to your students who are considering pursuing this life. I've mulled it over constantly in my mind and I think I've got the quick and dirty version for you to pass along (if you so desire). I could list the classes that one should look for, I could mention the types of college programs that could be useful, or the books they should read, but that's for another message and there are already so many opinions on that out there that mine would only add to the noise (for the record: Linklater classes or Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA for amazing intensive work; BA programs over BFA's; and "An Actor Prepares," "The Actor and the Target," John Barton's "Playing Shakespeare," Uta (obviously), and Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People." If your students want my reasoning behind those varying opinions, I'd be more than happy to supply them).
Instead of going into detail over that minutia, I think it far more important to lay out what has worked for me so far in having what I consider to be a successful career thus far. Perfect? Heck no. But I'm proud of what I've accomplished so far (which includes continual work as an Equity Actor under contract) and look forward on what's to come.
This is not a post on how to be a good actor. To be successful, you don't have to be good. Good golly I sure ain't. I'm decent, but there are actors who don't work who are far better than me. Why do I get work? Simple:
People want to work with me.
That's lesson numero uno- You don't have to be a good person, but be the kind of person people want to be around. Work hard, be polite, and have fun (it's called playing for a reason). ALWAYS be early (on time for an actor should be 15-10 minutes earlier than call at the latest). You can't predict traffic or alien abduction- so never plan to be where you need to be when you need to be there-- plan to be there much earlier.
And then, when I'm in the room, I'm prepared. I've done my work ahead of time and I'm prepared to play. I don't gossip or talk bad about others and I focus on the job at hand. I also am interested in others.
So part two of lesson one- be good to other people. Like I said, I don't care if you're a good person, but be good to other people. Care about them and treat them with respect. You don't have to marry 'em or date 'em or even be friends with 'em- but when you're working hard together on a show, treat them with the utmost respect and be interested in who they are as a person. I've had people I thought I despised, but I was patient and didn't let that hurt our working relationship and now they're incredibly close friends or mentors or employers.
Heck, this isn't just for people in shows with you. There was a girl in high school who people treated like crap. I wasn't the closest of friends with her, but I treated her kindly and with respect. She now works for SNL and has frequently invited me along to the after parties and up to the studio and to tapings. That's not to say be nice with an agenda- just... be a decent human being. That's really all I'm saying. Life is far too short to be total bastards.
I've gotten far more work and opportunity from being someone people want to be around than talent alone. I'm rather crappy at auditioning, I think. But through being a decent human being, I've gotten consistent work with the same directors and helmed a show or two. So once again-- be a decent human and have fun while doing it. No one wants to work with a diva or a sour puss.
Lesson two? Don't be shy about letting the world know you have things you want to do.
People can't help you if they don't know you want to work on certain projects. Let people know you want to work on something- if you followed lesson one, they'll try and help you out. Ask for help! People like helping other people! And even celebs are people and like talking about the work they do. So let people know you want to work on stuff, and ask questions and for help. Currently I'm board op-ing for a show with my stage manager friend. I'm not an actor, but she knew me in college and that I worked in the electrics shop and worked the board and enjoyed it. She got me a paying gig working on this show that's produced by Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and stars Victor Williams (The King of Queens). I've even babysat for Victor's daughter. This perhaps also goes back to lesson one (I was always really friendly with the stage manager and the SM's at college liked me because I treated them with respect and helped them out whenever I could and didn't think I was better than them. Because hey- we ain't. Stage managers and techs work harder and longer hours than any actor. Trust me. I'm both- so don't pull a Christian Bale. Maybe actually treat them like humans).
Lesson 2.5- Be interested in a lot of things. Gives people more of an opportunity to help you out and you more of an opportunity to work.
Lesson the Third: Just do it.
Emerson said "Do the thing and you will have the power." The only way to be a successful actor is to... ACT! And here's the big secret: you don't have to wait for anyone to give you permission to do it.
With the internet you can produce anything you want- film a 5 second clip or record a podcast. Get some friends together and do plays in your basement for yourselves on a Saturday instead of getting sloshed at a bar.
Want to play Hamlet one day? Pull out the play and start memorizing the part now. Why wait for a director to tell you that you can be in their play? Learn the roles you want to play now and do not wait for someone else to give you permission to chase your dream. The only way to get good at something is to do it. Consistently.
That is probably the most important thing I will say to you in this message- Do not wait for permission. Whatever it is you want to do, pursue it. Work at it every day. If it's medicine, read medical journals or find a doctor and ask her questions. If it's writing, sit your butt down and write daily. If it's acting- act.
And here's the fun part: you're gonna suck. And you'll know it. And that's discouraging. Stop being a perfectionist and just send in that poem to the college literary magazine. Perform monologues with your friends. Work, work, and work harder. Do the work and eventually you'll find you don't suck so much anymore. Will you be perfect at it? No. You never will. But you'll still have made things you can look back on with pride.
If you want to do something in this life, stop consuming all the time and go out and create. "Do the thing and you will have the power."
That was probably an incredibly ramble-y message, but here are some scattered thoughts. And a summary of them-
Remember:
1. Be a decent human
2. Ask for help, work hard, and let people know you want to work with them/you want to do a certain type of work
3. Don't wait for someone else to give you permission to do what you love.
All the best,
Johnny Wahl
Last year at Junior's you mentioned that you wanted former graduates to contact you and let you know how life was going so you could pass on some information to your students who are considering pursuing this life. I've mulled it over constantly in my mind and I think I've got the quick and dirty version for you to pass along (if you so desire). I could list the classes that one should look for, I could mention the types of college programs that could be useful, or the books they should read, but that's for another message and there are already so many opinions on that out there that mine would only add to the noise (for the record: Linklater classes or Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA for amazing intensive work; BA programs over BFA's; and "An Actor Prepares," "The Actor and the Target," John Barton's "Playing Shakespeare," Uta (obviously), and Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People." If your students want my reasoning behind those varying opinions, I'd be more than happy to supply them).
Instead of going into detail over that minutia, I think it far more important to lay out what has worked for me so far in having what I consider to be a successful career thus far. Perfect? Heck no. But I'm proud of what I've accomplished so far (which includes continual work as an Equity Actor under contract) and look forward on what's to come.
This is not a post on how to be a good actor. To be successful, you don't have to be good. Good golly I sure ain't. I'm decent, but there are actors who don't work who are far better than me. Why do I get work? Simple:
People want to work with me.
That's lesson numero uno- You don't have to be a good person, but be the kind of person people want to be around. Work hard, be polite, and have fun (it's called playing for a reason). ALWAYS be early (on time for an actor should be 15-10 minutes earlier than call at the latest). You can't predict traffic or alien abduction- so never plan to be where you need to be when you need to be there-- plan to be there much earlier.
And then, when I'm in the room, I'm prepared. I've done my work ahead of time and I'm prepared to play. I don't gossip or talk bad about others and I focus on the job at hand. I also am interested in others.
So part two of lesson one- be good to other people. Like I said, I don't care if you're a good person, but be good to other people. Care about them and treat them with respect. You don't have to marry 'em or date 'em or even be friends with 'em- but when you're working hard together on a show, treat them with the utmost respect and be interested in who they are as a person. I've had people I thought I despised, but I was patient and didn't let that hurt our working relationship and now they're incredibly close friends or mentors or employers.
Heck, this isn't just for people in shows with you. There was a girl in high school who people treated like crap. I wasn't the closest of friends with her, but I treated her kindly and with respect. She now works for SNL and has frequently invited me along to the after parties and up to the studio and to tapings. That's not to say be nice with an agenda- just... be a decent human being. That's really all I'm saying. Life is far too short to be total bastards.
I've gotten far more work and opportunity from being someone people want to be around than talent alone. I'm rather crappy at auditioning, I think. But through being a decent human being, I've gotten consistent work with the same directors and helmed a show or two. So once again-- be a decent human and have fun while doing it. No one wants to work with a diva or a sour puss.
Lesson two? Don't be shy about letting the world know you have things you want to do.
People can't help you if they don't know you want to work on certain projects. Let people know you want to work on something- if you followed lesson one, they'll try and help you out. Ask for help! People like helping other people! And even celebs are people and like talking about the work they do. So let people know you want to work on stuff, and ask questions and for help. Currently I'm board op-ing for a show with my stage manager friend. I'm not an actor, but she knew me in college and that I worked in the electrics shop and worked the board and enjoyed it. She got me a paying gig working on this show that's produced by Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and stars Victor Williams (The King of Queens). I've even babysat for Victor's daughter. This perhaps also goes back to lesson one (I was always really friendly with the stage manager and the SM's at college liked me because I treated them with respect and helped them out whenever I could and didn't think I was better than them. Because hey- we ain't. Stage managers and techs work harder and longer hours than any actor. Trust me. I'm both- so don't pull a Christian Bale. Maybe actually treat them like humans).
Lesson 2.5- Be interested in a lot of things. Gives people more of an opportunity to help you out and you more of an opportunity to work.
Lesson the Third: Just do it.
Emerson said "Do the thing and you will have the power." The only way to be a successful actor is to... ACT! And here's the big secret: you don't have to wait for anyone to give you permission to do it.
With the internet you can produce anything you want- film a 5 second clip or record a podcast. Get some friends together and do plays in your basement for yourselves on a Saturday instead of getting sloshed at a bar.
Want to play Hamlet one day? Pull out the play and start memorizing the part now. Why wait for a director to tell you that you can be in their play? Learn the roles you want to play now and do not wait for someone else to give you permission to chase your dream. The only way to get good at something is to do it. Consistently.
That is probably the most important thing I will say to you in this message- Do not wait for permission. Whatever it is you want to do, pursue it. Work at it every day. If it's medicine, read medical journals or find a doctor and ask her questions. If it's writing, sit your butt down and write daily. If it's acting- act.
And here's the fun part: you're gonna suck. And you'll know it. And that's discouraging. Stop being a perfectionist and just send in that poem to the college literary magazine. Perform monologues with your friends. Work, work, and work harder. Do the work and eventually you'll find you don't suck so much anymore. Will you be perfect at it? No. You never will. But you'll still have made things you can look back on with pride.
If you want to do something in this life, stop consuming all the time and go out and create. "Do the thing and you will have the power."
That was probably an incredibly ramble-y message, but here are some scattered thoughts. And a summary of them-
Remember:
1. Be a decent human
2. Ask for help, work hard, and let people know you want to work with them/you want to do a certain type of work
3. Don't wait for someone else to give you permission to do what you love.
All the best,
Johnny Wahl
