As Neil Patrick Harris acts, he thinks not through his eyes, but the audience’s eyes. He doesn’t act in a way that pleases him, but he thinks about what would made the crowd/audience laugh. He performs for the people, and not himself. He says acting requires agility, and requires your mind to constantly work. “You have to be a couple of steps ahead in your mind when you're doing it. Body awareness is key” Harris says. He believes in going for it, whether you’re going to make yourself look like a fool or not. “I went for it, and didn't seem to care very much about making an ass of myself, and they seemed to respond to that mentality.” Harris always pays special attention to the audience, and makes sure they they’re never bored. He strives to keep their attention. “On a sitcom, and in theatre especially, you have to really be listening to an audience. And if you're losing them, you can hear the sniffs, and and the playbills shuffling and whatnot. So you have to take an extra-long pause to make them think something's gone wrong, and then try and get them back.” And, when asked about cooperating with the directors, “It's your job to make the most of what material's given to you.”
1.What have you learned about acting from your research?
I have learned that acting isn’t something that you can be told to do, necessarily, but you have to feel it, and feel what’s natural. If it’s not natural, then the audience won’t respond well to that.
2. How will you incorporate what you’ve learned into your performance?
Instead of being told what to do, I will take my acting into my own hands and think out each scene. For instance, I’ll act like I’m not an actor, but I’m actually experiencing it and my reactions and acting will come from that.
3. What will you change about your performance?
Like I said before, I’ll try to have a natural reaction without being told that I need one in the first place. I will also be aware of what’s going on with the audience, so that I can better my performance and stay focused with the crowd and what’s going on in the scene.