Getting to the Heart of Your Audience Through Story

Everything is dark. I’m walking around on stage, selling the idea that I can’t see anything. And it’s giving me a golden opportunity to find the truth of the story.

You see, I’m playing Carol, the lead in a play called Black Comedy by Peter Shaffer. In it, a sculptor and his fiancée (me) borrow expensive antique furniture from our out-of-town neighbors to try and impress an art collector. But then the power goes out (hence the black), and everything goes wrong (hence the comedy).

What’s really cool about the experience, though, is that the lighting is transposed. When the stage is lit, the cast is seemingly in darkness, and the characters can’t see anything. But only when the stage goes dark can the characters finally be able to see themselves and their surroundings.

This ended up being my favorite play to perform because I got to embody a character so far removed from what I’m used to. My special guest Brittany Ishibashi is no stranger to this experience. She lives her life immersed in story and has been a working actress since high school! 

In this episode, she and I talk about playing characters, effective elements to enhance storytelling, and discuss questions like:

What’s the inside-out vs. outside-in approach to playing a character, and why is it crucial to gaining audience empathy? Why is an audience of just one person all you really need? And how can you easily and effectively open a story?

• How characters and story (in all its forms) can truly change or save lives
• How to encourage the spirit of play in your life and business
• Why music is such a universal part of the human experience in storytelling

Born in Orange County, California, Brittany Ishibashi was raised by musical parents. Seeing her love for the arts, they encouraged her to try out the different facets of the entertainment world. Her passion for musical theater emerged at a young age, and she became a triple threat in dance, music, and acting.

Brittany got her first big break right after graduating from high school when she was cast on J.J. Abrams’ Felicity. She continued her education in Theatre, Film, and Television at UCLA while establishing her career and has gone on to work consistently over the years on numerous TV series. She’s been on shows such as This Is Us, Political Animals, Grey’s Anatomy, Grace and Frankie, The Office, Supernatural, and more.

Most recently, you can watch Brittany play the villainous Tina Minoru on Marvel’s Runaways, Claire Cormier on the CW’s Tom Swift, and Tamiko Masuda on CBS’ Hawaii Five-0. She also played the villain Karai in Paramount’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Jeff, and their three children.