What abilities should a good actress have?

Question

I want to be an actress, and I want to be a good one, but I'm not totally sure what characteristics and abilities a good one should have.

Answer 1

Acting and elocution.

Answer 2

Acting is tough, and it's good that you know so. Talent, determination, skill, and perseverance are all must haves. And even then it's not enough. You often miss out on work for reasons beyond your control, i.e you're too pretty, young, old, fat, skinny, dark, light, funny, nice etc etc.

You need to be properly trained (drama school, courses etc). You also need a good agent, who understands what you want, and sees your potential. Then you need a VERY thick skin. You will receive a lot of criticism, and it will feel personal. And you need to be willing to sacrifice a lot. Move away from your family, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend if work calls for it.

You need a great photgraph. This is how you open the door that leads to agents, then auditions, then work. Do not skint on this expence. Be prepared to pay a couple of hundred to have you picture taken by a talented actors photographer. You can find them in the phone book, or often through recommendations of agents whom you approach.

Once you have a great photo, write up a performance cv, stating any performance or related experience you have. Do NOT put your normal jobs (paper-run, waiting tables etc) on this, only performance, training, theatre, voice, sport ability, accents, height, eye and hair colour etc.

Then produce lots of copies of cv and photo, and call agents, requesting a meeting. Sometimes they'll see you in person, other times they'll ask you to submit your forms. Attach a self addressed stamped envelope if you want your photos back. Any agency that asks you for money in order to represent you is a scam. An acting agent takes a percentage of your income for each acting job, that is the legitimate way they make money. Where I am it varies between 10% and 20% depending on the agent and the type of work.

Good luck. You'll need an abundance of confidence, a thick skin, and plenty of perseverance. It can very often be years before you get good work. As Don Cheattle once said "If you can do anything else, do it". But if acting is really you passion, all the sacrifices will be worth it if you succeed. Bear in mind most people do not succeed, and that is a risk you must be willing to take

Answer 3

Memory [[ scripts ]]

Acting [[ for obvious reasons ]]

deteminition [[ you will only get 9 out of 10 parts ]]

if that....

and DO NOT BE NERVOUS

hope i helped

-Becca

Answer 4

Talent and determination.  the greats STUDY acting. They find an acting coach and study. Sometimes for years. Good luck.

Answer 5

team work is one of the best abilities any actor needs to have. taking and giving to a scene partner is essential on stage. without your partner, you have nothing. that's what makes monologues so difficult. you don't have a person there giving back to you. if a director sees you really connecting with a scene partner, it'll help you a lot. no one likes to see an actor outshining  they're partner. ick. another talent, is to take criticism very well. no one is perfect, despite what they say and work is always needed to be improved. i could go one for days telling you what i think a good actress needs, but i think a lot of what you acquire is through experience. you see what is needed to be at the top and work your butt off to try and be the best. anyway, i think team work is the most imprtant thing. without it, theatre would not exist. :)