Acting is real

by Emma Sheikh
Has there ever been one person that can change your life in a matter of two hours with a
few correctly phrased words? For me, that person was my monologue coach, Devin. I spent four
weeks this past summer at a musical theatre college prep program called CAP21 in New York
City. Even though Devins class was only on Fridays I learned more from him in those four
classes than I learned from anyone else back home. Acting isnt pretending to be someone else,
with someone elses problems. Its being yourself in a different situation. I had always thought
of acting as becoming someone else and pretending to be that person for two hours on a stage
every night, but as soon as I heard Devin say different, I started thinking otherwise. Maybe thats
what separates a good actor from a truly great actor. Maybe thats the reason I never got
emotionally invested in a role. As an actor, everything changed for me after that one class.
I started to read my scene for my acting class differently.The woman I was playing was
fifty years old, her husband was dead, and she owned a two hundred-pound chimpanzee that
animal control was trying to take away from her. Obviously, I had nothing in common with her.
Then I started thinking about how the character must have felt when animal control was trying to
take away the only thing she had left that she really cared about. That, I can relate to. Musical
theatre is really the only thing I care about, its been that way since my sophomore year of high
school and its what I want to major in at college. My father, however, does not agree. My dad is
one of those stereotypical Asian fathers that wants their kid to be one of three things: a lawyer, a
doctor, or a mathematician. If you dont become one of those three things than your education
was both a waste of time and money. So, naturally, my father did not approve of my career path
and wanted to change it by any means possible. He wanted to take away the only thing that I
have ever really loved. My dad was animal control and musical theatre was my gigantic
chimpanzee. I finally understood what was going on with this woman. All because I heard two
sentences from a shaggy looking twenty seven year-old I just met five minutes ago.
Besides giving me the key to being a great actor, Devin gave me a confidence in myself
that Ive never had. After that first class Devin asked me and one other student from our class to
stay after and talk. My first thought was that I was going to be chewed out for only having a
comedic monologue and not a comedic and dramatic. I had never been good at dramatic
monologues so Ive always made sure to have a kick-ass comedic in my head at all times. Its
really never been a problem in the past, but I guess it was coming back to bite me. Once again,
being the amazing Devin, the first words out of his mouth changed me profoundly. Have you
two ever considered auditioning for Juilliard? What? Im sorry, what?! No the thought of
auditioning for the most prestigious acting program in the entire globe had not recently crossed
my mind. Like every other kid that wants to be on stage I wanted to go to Juilliard for acting my
entire freshman year. Then reality hit. Over one hundred thousand students worldwide apply to
the acting program at Juilliard and only eighteen get accepted. Eighteen. That dream had been
put to bed for two years and now it suddenly popped back up. This man thought that I could be
one of the eighteen. He truly believed I could make it based on seeing only ninety seconds of my
work. Juilliard. Freaking Juilliard.
After leaving New York all I wanted to do was work harder. And believe me, that never
happens. But for some reason its true. Ive read over thirty plays since Ive gotten home and
have been nautiously awaiting the day the Juilliard application goes live. Im suddenly not afraid
to act anymore, or rather, not afraid to be myself and just make a mistake. Im not constantly

concerned with the fact that Im not good enough. Because even if I dont get into Juilliard at
least I know what it means to be a real actor.
Feedback Guide
Name:_______________________________

Period:_________

The following guide to feedback rates the students demonstrated achievement for each of the standards of
the assignment. The following scale is used:
Level of Demonstrated Achievement

Descriptor

Excellent

Proficient

Adequate

Limited

Incomplete

Purpose (X 2.5): 4
Conveys a significant literacy event that considers the entire rhetorical situation
Genre (X2.5):4
Captures the authors moment and demonstrates the significance of this moment by containing an
explicit or implicit thesis that unifies the piece, using vivid detail, and demonstrating sophisticated
reflection
Design/Layout:4
Effectively uses columns, font/spacing/size to make the reading experience enjoyable, and includes a
title and the authors name in the appropriate place
Audience (X2.5):3.5
Uses vocabulary appropriate for a college audience, assumes a level of intelligence and sophistication
for the audience, adheres to the rules and conventions of mechanics, spelling, usage and grammar, and
uses a style that fits with the concept of a narrative so the audiences expectations are met
Stance(X2): 3.5
Uses the narrative to offer an argument about literacy, includes a consistent tone that presents the
authors take on the event, and takes risks in that it offers the reader some insight into the author
Summative Grade Conversion
Each 4 point scale for the rhetorical situation will totaled and averaged. The resulting score on the 4 point scale will
then be converted to a percentage using the following scale:

Scale Score

Percentage Score

100

3.5

95

3.0

88

2.5

80

2.0

75

1.5

67

1.0

60

Below 1.0

50