How To: Cry convincingly on stage

Knowing a few tricks of the trade will help you cry at the drop of a hat.

You Will Need:

* A sad memory
* Discipline not to blink
* A bright light
* Peppermint oil
* Oil of Olbas
* A tear stick

Step 1: Think of something sad
Before relying on any gimmicks, test your acting skills by thinking of something really, really sad. Any tears?

Step 2: Stop blinking
OK, so you're no Laurence Olivier or Meryl Streep. Try this—moments before you need to cry, open your eyes just a bit wider than usual and stop blinking. Soon the tears that hydrate your eyes when you blink should start trickling out.

Step 3: Stare into a bright light
You could irritate your eyes further by staring into a bright light for a few seconds.

Step 4: Get minty
Here's a trick you can prepare ahead. Put a little peppermint oil on a finger and, when the time comes to cry, discreetly rub it just below your eye. The fumes will get the tears flowing—just wipe off the oil when you're done!
*Warning: Test a little oil on your skin to make sure you're not allergic--and avoid getting it into your eyes!

Step 5: Try Olbas oil
Another tearjerker is oil of Olbas. Pour some on a handkerchief and inhale deeply before you need to bawl. Find it at health food stores.

Step 6: Stick it
Steal Hollywood's trick—buy a professional "tear stick." It's a piece of menthol with a hole in the middle; have someone blow it right into your eyeballs when you need a good cry.
*Fact: Ilker Yilmaz of Turkey holds a world record for being able to snort milk up his nose and squirt it from a tear duct in his eye.