The moment before.

This well-known practice can assist you to have a good start to the scene.

At best, it bulwarks against you beginning by reciting memorized lines rather than playing a situation. It is one of the best tools you can have as an actor to help you get in.

All scenes have a beginning, middle and end - the beginning is the most important.

Given circumstances or back story are different from the moment before in that they cover more history, more time.

Time is key here.

An obvious example as how to use this precept is if you have a typical TV line like, ‘No, I didn’t see anyone.’ Here you’re most likely answering someone’s question which is not written as they got ‘in late’ in the scene. So, you could write out the imagined question, ‘Did you see anyone?’ as your moment before. Having that moment before imagined will allow you to have a start from a useful place – your imagination.

And it brings your breath into play – another key element. By ‘hearing’ the question after Action! is called you will breathe in to answer with your first line.

It’s on that inhalation that you drop in.

Your imagined, unwritten question sends a signal which creates an impulse in you and you breathe as needed and respond. Send and receive - Yale School of Drama.

You create your own send and receive. You start from your imagination. You engage your breath.

There are many ways you could use the moment before depending on what you like and the scene. Could be: headache – feel the headache; coughing; out of breath; lost in thought; nervous and more. Something psychological or physical or both together.

Start there, breathe that in and play.

It’s qualitatively different from being pushed into their space and time on their command of Action! and then trying to catch up to get into yours.

You begin your way.