Editing Acting (section)

== Heart rate ==
Depending on what an actor is doing, their heart rate will vary. This is the body's way of responding to stress. Prior to a show, one will see an increase in heart rate due to anxiety. While performing an actor has an increased sense of exposure which will increase [[performance anxiety]] and the associated physiological arousal, such as heart rate.<ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov">{{cite journal|last1=Yoshie|first1=M|title=Music performance anxiety in skilled pianists: effects of social-evaluative performance situation on subjective, autonomic, and electromyographic reactions|pmid=19701628|doi=10.1007/s00221-009-1979-y|volume=199|issue=2|year=2009|journal=Exp Brain Res|pages=117–26|s2cid=12759663}}</ref> Heart rates increases more during shows compared to rehearsals because of the increased pressure, which is because a performance has a potentially greater impact on an actor's career.<ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov"/> After the show a decrease in the heart rate due to the conclusion of the stress inducing activity can be seen. Often the heart rate will return to normal after the show or performance is done;<ref name="journals.plos.org">{{cite journal|last1=Wells|first1=Ruth|title=Matter Over Mind: A Randomised-Controlled Trial of Single-Session Biofeedback Training on Performance Anxiety and Heart Rate Variability in Musicians|journal=PLOS ONE|date=4 October 2012|pages=e46597|pmc=3464298|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0046597|pmid=23056361|volume=7|issue=10|bibcode=2012PLoSO...746597W|doi-access=free}}</ref> however, during the applause after the performance there is a rapid spike in heart rate.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=McKinney|first1=Mark|title=The Effects of Audience Size on High and Low Speech-Anxious Subjects During an Actual Speaking Taks|journal=Basic and Applied Social Psychology|date=1983|volume=4|issue=1|pages=73–87|doi=10.1207/s15324834basp0401_6}}</ref> This can be seen not only in actors but also with [[public speaking]] and [[musicians]].<ref name="journals.plos.org"/>

=== Stress ===
[[File:Sam Gibbs and Su Thomas Hendrickson in Oresteia by Aeschylus, adapted by Ryan Castalia for Stairwell Theater, 2019.jpg|thumb|Sam Gibbs and Su Thomas Hendrickson in [[Oresteia]] by Aeschylus, adapted by Ryan Castalia for Stairwell Theater, 2019]]
There is a correlation between heart-rate and stress when actors' are performing in front of an audience. Actors claim that having an audience has no change in their stress level, but as soon as they come on stage their heart-rate rises quickly before they speak their first lines.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Konijin|first1=Elly A.|title=What's on Between The Actor and His Audience|page=65}}</ref> A 2017 study measuring actors' heart-rate during performance showed that individual heart-rates rose right before the performance began. Length of monologues, experience levels, and actions done on stage were important factors in the study. Heart-rate drops significantly at the end of a monologue, big action scene, or performance.<ref name="audienceheartrate" />

Acting has been shown to be an effective tool for reducing stress created by [[social anxiety]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Can Acting Help with Social Anxiety? |url=https://blackboxacademy.ca/2024/12/19/can-acting-help-with-social-anxiety/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |author= |date=2024-12-19 |website=Black Box Academy |publisher=Black Box Academy }}</ref>