In most cases, when you go in to audition for a role, or when you are actively playing the role, the advice you're going to hear from the experts in the field are to "eliminate" the obvious and to play against type.

What this means is that you are not to play the role as everyone else would, but to play it to the best of your abilities.

To get creative and make the performance memorable for you and your audience.
The thing that most actors and actresses, and perhaps their teachers often forget is a simple fact of life.

Not every role is a big role, not every role is one that gives you the latitude to actually GET creative with what you're trying to portray.

Reality is frequently a real come down.

The Director isn't looking for you to make the part of a meter maid memorable or all encompassing, if she has just two lines and a ticket to offer the audience.

Those are sadly enough probably the first parts you're going to get.

The waitress, the cop, the government worker or the bored housewife are the roles that you're going to come across most, and for the most part, you have a very good chance of getting them, so they will be your first exposure, most likely in television or film.

Now granted you want to do them well, but chances are that the bored cop on the intersection isn't going to give you a great deal of room for creativity. And if you use it.. chances are you're going to be out of a job.

These are bit parts and they aren't meant to be used creatively.

IF, on the other hand, you're character has several lines of dialogue or more than one scene then getting quirky with him will probably get you noticed and let you keep the job.

The Experts recommend this guideline:"Biggest clue you can be creative? Your character has a name. Biggest clue you shouldn't? Your character has a number ( i.e., Cop #2 or Ambulance Attendant #1)."