ABSTRACT
The viewer recognizes a transition only through the player's reaction. A response to some physical action is easily understood, but a reaction to a new idea or intention, as expressed in a line of dialogue, is much more difficult to realize. In dialogue scenes the reaction is almost always triggered while the actor is listening. Such a reaction is usually visual, but when it is accompanied by a vocal response, the result is a natural interruption. The best reactions are a natural result of paying attention, and they should be inborn and simple. The actor, because of prolonged script study and rehearsal, knows the line and its meaning thoroughly, and will frequently shorten his reaction and respond vocally before the viewer, who is hearing the line for the first time, can fully grasp its significance. The honest reaction in life is usually a controlled one; broad reactions, unless gradually approached, immediately label the reactor an extreme neurotic or a fraud.
