INTRODUCTION TO CHARACTERIZATION

Characterization 

Overview: There are three key aspects of creating a character: their face, their physicality, and their voice. When first building a character, aiming for at least two of these three criteria is heavily recommended. As your piece develops, your characters should evolve into having all three aspects. 

First Steps

Posture– Aside from voice, posture is the other main way to distinguish between characters, with each character having its own distinct posture. For beginners, one character can have their arms at their sides, and another can have their hands on their hips. As you get more advanced, work to incorporate more nuances into your posture based on the character's qualities/personality. Do they have a nervous tic? Maybe they tend to slouch? Maintain a full-body posture (including legs, arms, torso, etc.).

Levels (AKA Height) – Height of characters can be conveyed in a variety of ways. The most obvious way is in your physical stance: bend your knees more for shorter characters, less for taller characters. However, the most important way you can convey height is through "eye contact." When characters are speaking, have them look where the other's head would be. If you have a tall character, they will likely be looking down when talking to other characters; if you have a short character (like a child), they will be looking up. Similarly, you can convey height through blocking and the distances/angles characters reach for objects. A short character may have to stand on tip-toes/reach further than a taller character to reach a counter, for instance.

Feet position – Feet position is essential for clean pops, and while it may not be as eye-catching as voice, facial expressions, or posture, it is often what separates a 3 in a round from a 1. Each character should have a distinct foot position. This does not mean every character needs an extreme or unnatural stance, but there should be some physical difference between them. One character might stand with their feet close together, another with their feet wide apart, another with one foot slightly forward, and another with their weight shifted to one side. These small choices help create consistency and make your characters visually distinct before they even speak. A foot position should also reflect the character's personality. A confident character may stand wide and grounded, taking up more space. A nervous character may stand with their feet close together or constantly shift their weight. A clean foot position is especially important during pops. If your feet are messy, unclear, or inconsistent, the judge may struggle to tell when one character ends and another begins. 

Next Steps

Voices – Each character should have a unique voice. These voices can be created by varying your pitch, speed, and intonation, and by combining them. Generally, try to come up with voices that fit the character/make sense. For instance, male characters will generally have masculine voices—unless you are intentionally using an unexpected voice for humor (ex, a large, buff character with a high, squeaky voice). Finally, make sure you can physically maintain the voice consistently; that is, don't pick a voice outside your range or one that hurts to speak in for prolonged periods.

Accents – Don't stereotype unless your piece is clearly satirical. Use accents sparingly; it's more realistic to have different tones for characters simply. Use accents when it's obvious that a character is foreign (ex, a British tourist in LA). However, in many cases, accents can be a powerful tool to push an emotion or feeling, so make sure that there is meaning and a reason behind this choice.

Last Steps

Facial expressions – Creating bold, unique expressions is the secret to a piece that stands out. Most people will overlook this trait, but having exaggerated facial expressions for each character will not only refine your piece but also create opportunities for comedic, dramatic, or other moments. There are a few parts of the face that one should especially pay attention to when developing a character—the eyes, eyebrows, and the mouth/mouth-adjacent area. The eyes are one of the clearest ways to reveal a character's personality. A nervous character might have wide eyes, an angry character might have an eye twitch, and an intense character might maintain unbroken eye contact. Eyebrows are especially useful because they can instantly change the tone of a character. Raised eyebrows can show innocence, surprise, confusion, or fake politeness. Furrowed eyebrows can show anger, concentration, suspicion, or frustration. One raised eyebrow can create sarcasm, judgment, or comedic disbelief. Since eyebrows are easy for the audience to read, they are one of the best tools for making character reactions clearer. The mouth is another major tool for characterization. A snobby character might speak with a stiff upper lip, while a goofy character might speak with a loose, open mouth. Even when a character is not talking, their mouth can still communicate judgment, fear, excitement, disgust, or awkwardness.

Motivations – A character's motivation is what they want in a scene. This is typically the last step of a character—once the character is established, what they want and how they are going to achieve it are the last steps to create a nuanced scene. While voice, face, and physicality show the audience who a character is, motivation shows the audience why that character is speaking in the first place. Motivation is essential because it keeps a performance from becoming one-note. Without motivation, a character can become just a funny voice or a physical gimmick. Motivation should influence voice, facial expressions, posture, blocking, and pacing, all of which truly define a character's significance in a piece. Ultimately, properly assigning and illustrating each character's motivations deepens the performance and makes it believable.

Good luck!