Being Okay with Being Ugly (or how to rock a gorilla suit)

Currently, I am performing in a play at Playhouse West called A Mixed Tape.   I spend almost the entirety of the play in a full Gorilla suit.  You may be thinking that's too bad for me that the audience doesn't get to see my face.  But the truth is that being in the costume gives me so much freedom that I have a ton of fun doing this play.  Plus, I don't have to worry about my hair and make-up before the show, so I'm not sitting with the other ladies fighting over plugs for flat irons.

I've always loved character work, when I get in a costume and develop traits that are different from my own, I am truly happy.  Now, even when I am doing a role that doesn't specifically call for a lot of character work, I still create character traits to give my performance that extra layer.  Creating a character always makes me feel more relaxed and free on stage.

What I don't understand are actors who are not willing to make themselves ugly when a role calls for it.  It's like they are scared we have such short memories that we'll forget they are actually beautiful.  Look, if you are supposed to be in the 1800's Old West, you have to accept that showers were not common and flat irons were not invented yet, so if you look perfectly made up and clean then it's kinda hard for the audience to buy that you are actually in the Old West.

Charlize Theron would never have won an Oscar if she worried about what she looked like playing Aileen in "Monster."  If you want to be really truthful in whatever part you are playing, you cannot be afraid to get a little dirty.  Sometimes a role calls for you to put away the curling iron and rock your frizzy natural hair, think how different Cameron Diaz would have been in "Being John Malkovich" without her frizziness.

As actors I know we all fret about what we look like.  We obsess over diets and exercise.  We bleach our teeth and our hair.  We are constantly trying to look like the perfect people we think Hollywood wants us to be, but when you do get an acting job don't forget why you are in this crazy business: to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances.

Don't shortchange your character or the audience by not being truthful with how your character looks.