Did acting teacher bring out the best in Kapuso actors?

Two days ago, Anthony Vincent Bova, the artistic director of Bova Actors Workshop and New York-based Ionica Theater, finished a three-day workshop with 20 Kapuso actors. Bova has over three decades of study in the Eric Morris System (EMS) under Morris himself, and has been teaching EMS for over 20 years.

Aside from actors, Bova’s clients also include executives whom he trains the way he does actors — that is, how not to act, but how to make an authentic and empowering statement. He is frequently requested to assist actors on movie sets or the stage, and takes much pride in having a reputation in producing highly skilled actors.

Prior to founding the Bova Actors Workshop, Anthony was on the staff at Tisch School of the Arts in New York City, the Lee Strasberg Theater Institute, HB Studios and the New York Film Academy. He has worked in television, film and stage. Among his credits: Reading Rainbow with Levar Burton, The Emperors Club directed by Michael Hoffman (with Kevin Kline and Patrick Dempsey), and the National Tour of Cats.

Brought here by GMA with the help of Ana Feleo, Bova arrived on Monday, Aug. 14, from New York City, 30 years to the day when Morris himself came here to train actors. Morris’ visit was facilitated by Ana’s mom Laurice Guillen, the first Filipino actor given by the US Embassy a theater grant to study under Eric Morris. Ana, who trains local actors, studied acting under Bova.

Before he was presented at a general presscon, Bova sat with The STAR for an exclusive interview on the day he arrived. The three-day Kapuso workshop ended on Thursday, Aug. 17.

Bova practices the Eric Morris System (EMS) which he studied for over 30 years under Morris (right, with Bova)

Excerpts:

How do you feel about the 20 Kapuso actors participating in the workshop?

“It scares me and you know why? Their parents might not have met yet when I started doing this thing many years ago. That’s how long ago!” (Laughs)

Maybe the participants don’t even have any idea who Eric Morris is.

“They may not and that’s okay. The workshop is not about Eric or about Anthony; it’s about them. You know, it’s about how I can empower these young, talented and gorgeous people to blossom and shine for themselves and for GMA. In my opinion, way above and beyond any network would do, GMA is really investing in their talents and trusting me to train their talents.”

Can you give me an idea how the three-day workshop will proceed?

“I’m hoping that it’s gonna be seamless and they’re going to learn very, very quickly. I’m going to create an atmosphere for them to fail as well as to succeed and that is vital for an artist’s development. If you are only in an environment in which you have to be perfecting, you will never ever develop. The work is very, very demanding, and in order for them to give to that demand the environment must be safe, like in a laboratory where they can experiment and make mistakes.”

If you make them do Being, I’m sure you will be drawing out most of their secrets, things about themselves that they have been fiercely hiding or protecting.

(Laughs) “I have a feeling that I’m gonna leave here more educated than they will be.” (Seriously now) “I respect  privacy. Whatever is private, I call that sacrosanct. That said, it doesn’t mean that they can’t express it through other ways. I don’t want to know what is private but I want to know what is personal.”

What will the three-day workshop cover?

“It will be half-instrumental and half-craft. ‘Instrumental’ is the process of helping the actor identify and eliminate obstacles from ‘being’ such as mannerisms that get in the way. Eric always says that if you come into your art with these things, they are magnified 10 times before the camera. So the work is about liberating them.

“Now, once the actor is liberated, the ‘craft’ follows — how do you go about character development. A lot of schools…and I’m not making any comparison…focus on the craft which, by the way, is wonderful. But we give a lot of room to the instrument — you know, are you free to even do the craft? If an actor is wrongly taught and they feel not safe, I respect that, I respect anyone’s need to be safe. But the other reason why people may not come from the belief that the highest form of arc comes from reality.”

So while the work-shoppers are learning things, they will at the same time be unlearning other things.  

“You’re right. There’s a trap that some actors fall into and that is, acting natural versus being natural. A lot of actors go through careers acting natural when in fact they are not tapping into their talent; they are still acting. We will have exercises to make them aware first of these and then eliminate them so they could be natural.”

I presume that you have seen some Filipino movies and you may have a little idea how Filipino actors “act.”

“Actually, Ana has shown me clips of some Filipino soaps and movies featuring the actors who are participating in the workshop. In New York, I saw a Filipino movie about a fighter (Kid Kulafu directed by Paul Soriano) and I like its very earthy element.”

What do you expect from the participants after the three-day workshop? Can you tell who among them will evolve into good actors?

“I’m going to be very frank about this — I expect the workshop to be completely outstanding. I’m very prepared, incredibly prepared, for every aspect that’s going to happen. What I need are worrier actors because they are the ones that are emotionally ready to ‘de-clog’ themselves in front of the camera and they are giving up themselves in every way. I have this intuition that there are a lot of ‘worriers’ among the participants and they are the ones who will truly blossom.”

By the way, can you spot a talent 10 seconds into your first meeting?

“I believe talent is subjective. I can tell you this: in real time, I can see who is willing to show the world a unique statement of themselves by the way they look, their body language. I can see it through the eyes and even before you sit down you already feel something.”

(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos, visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on Instagram @therealrickylo.)