How Actors Cope with the End of a Production

Thanks for reading last month’s debut of the Schreiber Scribes! We hope you enjoyed reading about the actors who are just starting out, and if you want to catch-up with them, stay tuned next month…
This month, we want to look at how actors navigate the post-production blues—something we’ve been talking about here at the studio coming off of a fantastic run of the Schreiber Shorts: Wake Up! a few months ago.

The Emotional Impact of Completing a Production
Every actor knows what it feels like to build a deep connection to a character, a show, a cast, and a community, only to have it all disappear after the last curtain call or when filming wraps.
In theatre and film, we as actors pour our all into an intensive project alongside a specific group of people. We come together, bond, further our craft, and share our excitement about telling the story. And then, just as quickly as it coalesced, it vanishes.
Post-production blues is a common feeling among actors, both new and more seasoned. Making his Broadway debut earlier this year in a production of Uncle Vanya, Steve Carell discusses how he is always reflecting on the play when he is not in the theatre. In an interview with the Lincoln Center Theater, Carell says, “I think about the play all day long, in a good way” – “There’s not a bad apple in this ensemble and I’m going to miss them when the run is done”.
Of course, we know the ephemeral nature of theatre is what makes it so precious. But the void left by characters and productions gone-by is a reality for actors across different media, even in film, where the product of the work lives on. And sometimes we carry those characters with us long after we’ve finished a production.

The Shared Experience of Community in Theatre
As our Managing Director Gillian put it,”I can still feel characters in me that I’ve done, not just on the stage but even in scene study class. When you’re portraying a character, if you’re doing it right, it’s a deep connection. I used to be surprised when something would come out in a character’s perspective—oh, Juliet would do that—but it’s almost second nature now.”
Also from the cast of Uncle Vanya, William Jackson Harper reflects on what he misses about theater after taking an extended break from the stage. In an interview with New York Theatre Guide, Jackson says, “Theatre’s my community because that’s what my career’s mostly been until the last eight years or so. I love rehearsal so much. I love going into a room and making terrible decisions and trying something different the next day and trying to find something surprising but inevitable. Theatre allows for that. When that work is received in a way that I meant it, it’s really wonderful.”
In an effort to witness this phenomenon—these post-production blues—we want to show our community that you’re not alone. So we asked the cast of the Schreiber Shorts: Wake Up! what they missed from their time in the production. And many of them mentioned missing both character and community.
“I miss the feeling of getting more and more comfortable in the skin of my character, finding those moments of connection each night . . . adding layers each night (always more to add),” says Michelle Bagwell, who played Toni in The Simulation Argument. “I miss walking through the back door of the theatre and feeling the creative energy in the whole building.
Peter Aguero, who played Norm in The Shuddering Goat and Steve in The Exit Interview, agrees. “I miss the camaraderie that happens from a shared set of goals,” he says, “but more than that are the moments in between the work – the shorthand that develops between takes of fight call, the non-verbal cues that are developed with previous strangers in those times after a scene, the physical contact that comes from comfort and trust. That stuff rarely exists outside of acting.”
F4’s Crisco, David Donahoe, echoes Peter, saying “I think being a part of a successful stage production always brings a lot of joy in the work and being creative with talented, generous people – the whole process is exhilarating.”

Coping with the ‘Void’ Left After a Production
It’s this joy of the whole process that many of the Schreiber Shorts actors identified as what they missed the most. “I miss the ensemble, the stage, and the whole process of figuring it all out and putting it together,” says Traver Koehler, who portrayed Will in The Shuddering Goat.
Similarly, Phillip Kramer, who played Lenny in The Exit Interview, says, “I miss waking up each day and going straight to 42nd street, grabbing a coffee, entering the theater and seeing the cast/crew dotted around warming up, smiling, laughing, everyone focused on the same thing.”
And still others missed the opportunity to use the skills they’ve built up as they’ve grown their craft. “I miss the challenge of putting into practical use everything I have learned in my classes” in front of an audience, says Marcie Shaw, who played Christine in Why You Are Here?
The Enduring Impact of Each Production
As actors, we’re all artists working to create art. We come together, go our separate ways, and hope we’ll meet again and get another chance to collaborate – which is why building strong ensembles is important for any production. Because, more than anything, those are the deep connections we’ll feel gratitude for well beyond the length of any production.
“I am grateful for the generosity of the rest of the actors to give plenty of space for each other to develop the performance, the character, the moment,” says Peter Aguero.
And that moment is one that many actors are grateful for, like Michelle Bagwell, who says, “I’m grateful to have been a part of a production that moved me to tears and or laughter each night.”
But even after those tears dry or that laughter dies down, actors can hold onto that feeling of telling a story that moves people. As David Donahoe puts it, “When it ends the excitement dims but the accomplishment endures. You can put it in your pocket. To me, acting is hard. The whole thing is hard. But the payoff is fantastic.”
Plays and films that we work on become a part of us, but they’re never fully gone. Holding onto those ephemeral moments requires understanding the beauty of the community we create. And even when we feel the post-production blues, we know that a production always stays on with each and every person involved. Each one of us carries it, and when we go on to start a new production, we do so knowing that we are enriched by every show we’ve done before.
