Right Acting
The “Sopranos” star Michael Imperioli is a Buddhist, not a bad guy.
After taking refuge in December 2008 and developing a daily meditation practice, Michael Imperioli, best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti on the HBO hit series “The Sopranos,” is applying what he’s learned from Buddhism to his acting. Earlier this year, Tricycle sat down with Imperioli at the magazine’s offices in New York City, where he spoke about mindfulness on stage, the impermanence of fame, and how Buddhism has changed him as a person.
You’ve said before that your skills as an actor are some of the very same skills you use in your practice. Can you talk about that? I went to the Lee Strasburg Institute, which teaches an approach to acting that originated with Stanislavski in the Moscow Art Theatre.
Comments
Right Acting
I met Michael I. briefly while working on season 5 of the Sopranos. I was struck by how warmly he recieved me. I thank him for that as folks "in the biz" are not always so open and kind. So, that alone is a wonderful benefit of the practice. As a praticioner myself I have been working on applying the principles of compassion towards my characters. Understanding their motivations and behaviors, which are often NOT what is on the surface, allows me to find a truer path to honesty and depth in performance. Also, what a relief it is to apply the practices of relying on a happy mind alone and, working for the benefit of others, to the work day and beyond.
Blessings, MPnyc
Thank you, Mr. Imperioli
I so greatly appreciate your thoughts, and your willingness to share how your acting practice and your dharma practice complement one another.
I too am an actor, and have reflected on these very same ideas for years. In fact, it was discoveries I found in creating characters for the stage that led to my interest in Buddhism.
My favorite aspect of being an actor is having the opportunity to step in to the shoes of another person - to see the world from another person's point of view. As a character actor, one uses dialect, movement, vocal timber, mannerisms, costumes, hair pieces, etc, to create the illusion of a living, breathing, unique individual different from one's self. After many years of breathing life in to these creations, it began to occur to me that the characters I craft for the stage are every bit as real as I am - or more accurately - I am no less illusory than the characters I'm playing on stage.
My experience may be contrary to the experience you describe in the interview, but I don't necessarily think that's the case. Of course my "real self" is infinitely more complex than anything I could possibly invent for use in a play - and the raw material that I use to create these characters comes from the conditioned self.
A couple of years ago, when conversations with my friend / Dharma teacher first came about - so much of what he was teaching made more sense in relation to acting, in terms I could understand. And conversely, my daily meditation practice has enhanced and deepened my understanding of the theater and the work we do there.
Guess I wasn’t the first to think of it:
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts
Going to have to borrow that one...
"Doing it while your doing it" is a great way to explain being present, which is probably my favorite form of meditative practice - just getting completely absorbed and engrossed in the experience of my activity. I'm going to borrow your teachers saying as a way of explaining to others!
Of course, I just wish it was as easy to do it while your not doing it, as in terms of formal meditation, but I'm sure I will get there eventually.
Thanks Michael!
Regards,
Frank
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