Life is a Stage

Jermaine Parris . 45 . Theatre The theatre, when all is said and done, is not life in miniature, but life enormously magnified, life hideously exaggerated.

[jermcine-blog]

ofantimony:

raina marie keo || open starter. 

she wrapped the gauze tightly around the man’s arm - tighter than strictly necessary, perhaps - tying it off with clinical accuracy and rechecking her work once more. “do me a favour and don’t open your stitches again, alright?” raina offered him a withering stare, stepping back to let him go. she had only just cleaned her hands off, only just ripped away the tattered hem of her bloodied shirt, when she heard someone else enter the med-tent; her fingers instinctively curling around the handle of a knife. turning, she raised a brow at the person. “is there something i can help you with?”

Hands held up at the sight of the knife, he let out a deep breath. Her unease was understandable, they weren’t exactly out on a picnic after all, you never knew if the person behind you was alive or not. Or whether their intentions were in your best interest, for that matter. “Jesus. You’ve got good reflexes, don’t you? Promise there’s no need to stab me though. I’m here for the same reason you are.” He tried a smile, but found it difficult to make his muscles comply. Circumstances weren’t exactly cheerful these days.

[jermcine-blog]

ofacademias:

          ‘ of course i understand them. ’ luci scoffed at the insinuation. she thought the highest of herself, and expected for others to do the same. if they did not, then they were of no use to her. ‘ blanche’s motivations may be marred by her alcoholism but it’s easy to detect her problem – she wishes to escape from reality. she is afraid to confront the truth. and in the end, that is her downfall. wouldn’t you agree ? ’

A small nod in her direction, and a hand held up in a show of surrender. “I do. Of course her disillusionment with the reality she lives in stems from her own dreams and desires, as well as an expectation that her life should have been something more than what it became. And of course her alcoholism is a direct effect of this. You nailed it.” Smile melting into a more serious expression, wrinkled eyes hardening as he leaned a bit closer to his student. “You know how highly I regard you, Luci. Which is why I have to push you more, test you harder.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofervdition:

        words of wisdom. ale smirked to himself. ‘ i suppose so. watching sports only gets entertaining if the home team is doing a good job, personally. ’ not very fair or sportsmanlike, of course, to be invested solely for the competition, but he couldn’t care less about noble ideals among sportsmen. the thought of performing in the other field is enough to bring a sharp exhale and a look of absolute horror on him. ‘ god, i stayed far, far away from theatre in school. just — the ability to even speak in front of people expecting entertainment, that there is real courage. ’ theatre specialists were one of a kind.

    ‘ yup, ’ he said, with a tone of disdain. physics in a lab was only fun when you were doing it for the hell of it, not to show a bunch of disinterested students how a practically useless machine worked. ‘ demonstrating how magnetism works and all that. ’ a blink follows. ‘ absolutely no offence, but i’ve always wondered how you teach something like theatre. do you practice lines or — ? ’ 

It was rare for him to smile as genuinely as he did now, even if he rarely ever let the corners of his mouth rest. Something about their conversation was just pleasant, different from the usual small-talk he got from his colleagues. “You’re right. It’s quite the opposite of most other forms of entertainment isn’t it? Usually it’s too boring if things go well for the protagonist.” Then again, people seemed more engaged when their team wasn’t in a commanding lead, a bit of competition seemed to make things more exciting.

A pensive hand rubbed over his jaw, watching with interested as Alejandro spoke. “I teach stage presence, voice projection. I give them the tools they need, direct them in where to turn their gaze, how to position their bodies. Have you ever noticed how in a play, the actors rarely ever face away from the audience completely? The rest is up to the students, all I can do is point them in the right direction.” He shrugged, unsure how to explain it properly. Acting could be taught, but it wasn’t quite as robust a field as Physics.

“I think teaching is quite the same as being on stage, honestly. We have to work to captivate our audience, and make sure that even those on the back-most rows can hear us, right? You’ve already been on stage, you just don’t know it.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofacademias:

@jermcine !

          ‘ of course i’m going to get the role. i’m the best there is. ’

     whether that statement was true or not, luci said it with conviction and authority. that type of confidence simply could not be faked. fluffing out her bright red hair, the young woman took the seat across from the professor, placing the bound play back onto his desk. it had become a bit of an unusual routine of theirs over the years to recap her auditions, on and off campus. it was perhaps the most authentic part of her personality – her passion for acting. it incited something.

     or maybe, she just liked all eyes on her.

He always enjoyed time with Luci, always prepared to spend a little extra time with her. She was something of a star student after all, top of her class and a clear natural in the art of acting. So if he played favourites every now and then it was only because he saw a bright future for her. “Of course you will.” A simple agreement, mainly since Luci had a tendency to get what she wanted, whatever it took. She lived and breathed the stage, reminding Jermaine of himself when he was that young. “You already know how highly I view your skills as an actress. But are you sure you’ve understood the motivations of the character?”

[jermcine-blog]

ofervdition:

         ‘ so am i, ’ retorted ale rather hotly. ‘ i don’t see as sports entertaining at all. ’

well, that wasn’t an entirely correct statement to make. it was the prospect of spectating that put him off more than anything else. he’d always considered it an all-or-nothing deal; either he played, or he didn’t even watch. of course, his physique didn’t allow him to even jog these days without serious back cramps. seeing all those kids rushing around the field like confused stallions filled him with a deep, inescapable dread. 

  ‘ sure. but only for being at riverbank, sadly, not for classes. and classes are what i need. ’

“And I fail to see the value of reality dating shows. But that does not make them any less entertaining for those who indulge in such things.” Entertainment was what people made it to be. if the common populace was willing to dedicate their time to watching it, that meant it has entertainment value. No matter how much others might disagree. Personally, Jermaine preferred cooking shows and musicals. “I think, perhaps, out fields require different levels of attention. I can see how it would be detrimental to a scientific field. Catastrophic even for lab work!” He paused, reminding himself how little he knew of the sciences. He’d passed his classes in high school, but that did not mean he knew anything of how the fields were taught at an academically advanced level. ”Do you do lab work in physics, or is that only chemistry?”

[jermcine-blog]

ofantimony:

she lounged back in her chair, swiping through emails will ill-disguised disdain, because seriously? she did not have patience enough for this. hell, she didn’t get paid enough for this. kids emailing her, asking her for extensions. kids asking her to change their grades. kids asking to be excused from class because they weren’t feeling well - even though she was pretty sure most of them were just hungover. the school year had barely begun - barely! - and raina had a very competent teacher’s assistant. she didn’t need students flood her own inbox. glancing over, she raised her eyebrows at the man,  his question not surprising her at all. “that’s what people do, isn’t it? they talk.” oh, they definitely talked. especially since her girls had been involved. “it’s not several - more like a few. memorable game day, that’s for sure.” her tone was even, but damn if she didn’t sound bitter. “where have you been? how did you not know that?” 

“But, that’s what several means?” He mumbled, questioning. Maybe he’d been misusing the word his whole life without knowing, the thought of that terrified him. As an actor, he knew how much power words could hold, but they had to be the right words. Had to mean the right thing. The next words she spoke were like knives, stinging as he realised just how little he actually paid attention to everyone around him. For all the times he’d said he cared about his students, how superficial had they been? Had he only been pretending? Her words wouldn’t hurt if that was the case, maybe he just needed to get better at listening. “I suppose I had been riding the high of our recent victory.” He replied, shrugging. “I hope they’ll be okay. And that anyone responsible will be dealt with accordingly, if they haven’t already. Lord am I out of the loop.”

[jermcine-blog]

@ofantimony

Coffee in hand, Starbucks for once rather than home-brewed, Jermaine pushed into the faculty lounge, usual grin replaced with a small smile. “Good morning.” He said to no one in particular, nodding at a colleague in a polite greeting. It wasn’t that he’d slept badly, really there was no physical reason for him to be less cheery than most days. It was his mind that was filled with disturbance, whispered rumours had spread throughout the school - okay, maybe not everyone was whispering, but most had heard. Pursing his lips in thought, he turned towards the closest person. “People have been talking. Is it true that several students have been in the hospital recently?” Yes, he was that uninformed. Truly an icon for generations to come.

[jermcine-blog]

ofervdition:

ale shrugged. ‘ yeah, well. the dorms are going to be trashed, though. ’ moreover, he was guaranteed inattentive students for at least the week. perhaps more with the fraternity business going around. regardless it was — probably less traumatic than a loss. a loss had people irritated for the month. ‘ the tigers have had a good streak, ’ he noted. ‘ sports really is getting a lot of good people this year. ‘ it was hard to hide mild bitterness. 

              ‘ have to say, i didn’t think you were a sport person. ’        

“I am a man of entertainment, and what is sport if not that?” Had he been an honest man, he would have let slip that he actually found sports to be incredibly boring. He would never understand why people dedicated so many hours of their short lives to sit, their eyes glued to a screen or directed at some field, just to watch a ball bouncing back and forth in an over-complicated game of Pong! Instead, he smiled, a hearty laugh erupting from his chest. “Are you not a fan, Mr. Flores? It is a good tool for raising morale.”

[jermcine-blog]

PLAYLIST: the art of stalling

[jermcine-blog]

@ofervdition

With game day over wand a win for the home team, Jermaine was in good spirits. Hungover students were far to prefer over mauled egos, not to mention much easier to handle - a hangover would pass, a disappointed sportsman took time to get back on their feet. So he was happy. Blissfully unaware of what had transpired, and with a bounce in his step. Spotting a face he’d seen at the game, a grin spread on his face as he approached. “That was some game, huh? We sure did win in the end though.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofervdition:

  ale was distracted when first pulled up but his fellow professor, but it wasn’t as much due to the game — as it was wondering what the hell he was going to eat that night. ‘ oh, yeah, sure — ’ and he scooted over to make space. it was already packed, even if it had only been a couple of minutes since the game had begun. ale couldn’t help but wonder what kept the other busy before he made it to the game, evidently the highlight of the day ( and perhaps the next week, even ). 

    ‘ have you been working — ? ’ he asks, his tone only slightly mocking. ‘ either way, you having missed much. i think we scored. the students were screaming. ’ 

Settling down, he spoke a quick “Thank you.” before unscrewing the lid of his bottle and taking a long sip of water. He hadn’t realised how thirsty he was until the bottle touched his lips. “In a sense. Glad to know I haven’t missed anything major.” In all honesty, he had forgotten about the game until the last minute, although it technically had been due to work. Just nothing that couldn’t have waited until later. “I wasn’t expecting to see so many colleagues here.” After glancing around, he’d spotted quite a few others, wondering what type of investment they had in the game. “Any of the players yours?”

[jermcine-blog]

ofatheva:

“it’s the same with writers. and they have plenty rage to vent. i can imagine an actor temper tantrum is quite the sight to see.” the literature professor snorts to himself then. wasn’t their whole thing to be as dramatic as possible afterall? this he allows with a nod of his head, hands clasped over his stomach as he sinks lower into the godforsaken chairs they’d be trapped in for hours more. “that is also very true. there’s no such thing as a sane writer.” he likes some sports, is admittedly very picky about which ones he follows and this is certainly not one of them. even playing it had never won him over. but he does get the competitive streak. “well because where’s the fun in that? it’s what drives them, the need to win, to be the best. knowing they simply did their best won’t do. they’re insatiable.”

“Of course they have to do their best. But moping about losing just seems counter-intuitive.” He shrugged, finally deciding that he was never going to get the hang of the game, and gave up trying to. Tennis was easier, although admittedly it wasn’t quite as entertaining, or nerve-wracking to watch. “I understand it, though. Kind of. From the individual’s perspective. It’s never fun to have something important slip out of your grasp.” Speaking from personal experience, his thoughts drifted to a relationship lost, auditions that had lead to nothing. There just seemed to be a bit more consequence to an athletes career. “I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve been to a game.”

[jermcine-blog]

MOODBOARD: Jermaine Parris and the art of not being an actor

[jermcine-blog]

@ofervdition

It was game day, and Jermaine was determined to show appropriate support for the home team. And yet, he’d only barely made it on time. Scouring the rows in hopes of a good seat, he shuffled past many unfamiliar faces, water bottle gripped tightly in one hand. It was always weird to be on the audience’s side of things, even more so when it was at an event that he knew next to nothing about. Something about a ball and some yards, and touchdowns. Putting on his best game day smile, he nodded at one of the first familiar faces he happened upon. “You don’t mind if I sit here, do you? I’d hate to miss the start.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofatheva:

“look, if you’re not enjoying yourself either then it makes me feel a lot better. at least i know you’re not gonna dunk me for it.” his tone is conspiratorial for a reason. knows there’s some serious fans sitting nearby looking for a teacher to toss ice cold water over. and he was wearing his favourite shirt. rafael arches an eyebrow at the other man then, lips twitching with slight amusement. “you’re really not a sport man are you? you can’t have sports and not be competitive. doing your best means winning. are you trying to tell me that theatre isn’t just like that?” 

”Maybe so. When it comes to auditions at least, you might have a point. An actor that doesn’t get chosen for a role, is rarely a happy actor.” He couldn’t say he’d ever met an actor whose entire week was ruined after a performance, not in the way that college football players seemed to be stuck in a black cloud at least."And I have heard that a rejected play can drive certain writers mad.” He gestured to the field, roughly where the ball was at that moment. If he was honest he had no clue what was happening. “That being said, even as actors, no amount of practice will teach you how to mope like a defeated athlete. They have it down to an art. I just think it’s a shame that the teams can’t acknowledge that they both made their best effort. No matter how well they play, they can’t both win. I know that much.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofatheva:

“you’re the american.” he boasts, letting out a snort. “don’t they raise you on this stuff, send you to sleep with tales of the great victories of old? you should be the expert here.” the man laughs then, swills his warm beer and then things better of it. a cheer goes up from the other side of the stadium then as the other team manages to make some catch or other. “as long as we win i don’t care. can’t stand the sulking on a monday if we lose.”

A hearty laugh came in response to the other man’s words, Jermaine reverting his attention back to the game. “Well, I can’t run from that.” No point trying to deny it, he was a born and raised American. Not always proud of it, but in the end what did it matter where he was from, people were what they made themselves to be! “I never listened to the tales of our great, ball-fighting heroes. I was far too preoccupied playing dress up in my parents’ closets.” He gestured to the field. “If these blokes had only paid a little less attention to those stories, maybe defeat would not affect them so badly. Really, as long as they do their best that should be all that counts.”

[jermcine-blog]

ofatheva:

“the point systems still don’t make sense to me.” the professor narrows his eyes, tracking the ball as it soars across the field and the other teams player fumbles the catch. “why do they get six for placing the ball past the line, but only three for kicking it through goal posts, where’s the logic?” it’s not his game. yeah. he’d been a reserve in college but that didn’t mean it had to make sense to him. so he sat there. a beer forgotten and warm in his hand as he did his best to concentrate and not talk about how much better the other football was. now was not the time for a soapbox.

“I have no idea!” Truth be told, he hadn’t even noticed the amount of points given for the different types of scores the teams could make, he’d been far too preoccupied trying to figure out why they were calling it a ball when it really looked much more like an oversized lemon. Rafael was providing some much appreciated information about a sport that, on any other day of the year, the theatre teacher couldn’t care less about. “But who cares, as long as our team are the ones scoring the points, hm?”