2 years to find a role, 5 years to lose it

Leonid does not just train his actors for this particular performance. He trains them how to do this kind of work forever, no matter where they are. "Once you find the road to the superconsciousness (god, nature, childlike flow), it is your road. You have it forever. You can always find it again." And, "For the actor, there is no performance. There is only training, only practicing deeper and deeper, whether people are watching or not. It is all rehearsal."

With actors he knows, like Paul from his Tokyo company, he is direct. "Paul. Right now you are 70% intellectualism, 30% creativity. We need 70% creativity." Paul, who has come straight from work and is struggling to shift modes, nods. Leonid is like those electronic road signs, You are now going 38 miles per hour. 37. 39. 36. 35. 35. 34. 36.

Leonid has observed from his repertory companies that the actor doesn't really find the role until after two years of performing it at least once a week. "Once a week is not enough for actors," he corrects himself. "They will lose the role. The actor needs to perform the role every 3 days." After 2 years of performing a role at that pace, "Then you are ready to perform it in any country, for any audience. The role is ready." After 5 years of performing it, he says, the role begins to die.

The Odin is better at tuning the audience. Both Eugenio & Leonid require the actor to carve personal pathways deep within themselves, for each moment of the role. Their actors look equally and profoundly Chekhovian, even though their approaches are so different.