How to act drunk?

Question

Here's yet another question about Guys and Dolls...

I want to collect as much information as I can on Guys and Dolls, and since the part I'm trying out for Sarah, I want to be sure I can nail down her drunk scene, you know, when she sings "If I Were A Bell", etc.

Anyone have tips for acting drunk and tipsy? (without looking like an utter moron and fake?)

Answer 1

The simplest answer is to use big movements, not quite over acted, but very very close.  And emphasis certain words that correspond with the movement or rather move with the emphasised word.  *IF* i were a bell...

Learn to giggle and also how to belly laugh/snort.  

And to slur certain words and letter combinations.  Like Ses and CH.

Break a leg!

Answer 2

rent the Marlon Brando film and observe how Jean Simmons played it,

Answer 3

go spend time in a bar, observe people, track how much they drink & at what point their demeanor changes & motor skills become impaired. a karaoke bar could give you a good reference of how their singing diction is affected too.

edit; oops, didn't know your age------------

Answer 4

No offense, but Drunk, usually equates to looking a bit moronic.

   In knowing and working that piece a few times, she didn't begin the scene DRUNK exactly, but eased into it, as is normal.

   Changing the pitch of ones voice on occasion, slurring, smiling way more than one might, tipping a glass over, BODY language, as she was forcibly relaxing.

   I do so often wonder, and ask this, and mean no disrespect, have you ever seen the play? Could you even find it on DVD, and/or YouTube, just to get a sense of the scene and her general character both sober and tipsy?

  Here is a Youtube link to a few examples

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_qu...

   The first link is some actual staging.

Answer 5

Alcohol tends to relax the muscles, as well as the inhibitions. Sometimes a little too much. Folks with a buzz on sometimes miscalculate their balance, or how far a distance is, or get easily distracted by small things. Speech and vision can get a little fuzzy.

Most beginning actors overplay these, and look like cartoon drunks (like Homer Simpson after a long evening at Moe's, for example).

The thing to remember is that most folks who are drunk are trying to look as sober as they can, and often sit or stand straighter than normal, walk very carefully (if possible), speak with great control, despite the fact that their tongues are a little loose and their teeth feel funny. But they sometimes slip up, despite their best efforts. And sometimes they just slowly let loose and let it all out, like Sarah does as she gets into the swing of her song. Exuberant, free, AWOL from the Army.

Answer 6

The great Jack Lemmon, who excelled in playing his share of alcoholic characters, used to say that you can do anything you want to, EXCEPT slurring your words.  Part of your job is to make sure that you are understood.  I've found the best thing to do is to find one or two things that this specific character would do, work them into the beginning of the scene, and then forget it.  The audience will say to themselves, 'She's drunk'.  There's nothing worse than to watch an actor constantly busy trying to make sure the audience knows that he/she is 'drunk'.

Answer 7

The method actor would say that you have to actually get drunk and either remeber what it was like or have someone video record you. That's one way to do it if your a hardcore method actor

If not I would say you at least need to observe people who are drunk. I once went to a new years party and saw a two people get drunk and have the most interesting conversation I'm still using that memory in case I ever need to play a drunk.

But yeah observe people who are drunk take notes on what they do, what they say, how they walk it may help you out a bit

One last thing you can do is get a pair of beer glasses, they simulate what its like to walk as you are drunk try walking around in those

IF you can't get drunk or go activly watch people get drunk then watching movies where people are drunk is the only other alternative I can think of Besides that research what effects alcohol has on the body ( specifically what she drinks in the play I think its bacardi)

Answer 8

act as if you think everything have to say is the most important point ever made, play with your mouth movements, point a lot, use as much space as possible, be unsteady , and give that drunken accent by never fully closing your lips while speaking (it slurs your words without entirely losing all diction and looks really good too)